The youngsters at Saffron Walden Rugby Club enjoyed a day out on the Heath with two games at Royston - complete with two fabulous performances.
The U11s warm-up had commenced with a charge up the hill behind the pitch and when they came back down they put their charging efforts into attacking the well-organised defence of the hosts.
And by the end there had been little to separate the two sides with Walden showing plenty of solid support play.
The kicking game, a new aspect to the rules at this age group, allowed Royston to gain territorial superiority but the visitors countered that with great use of the space on both wings.
Both teams left the field exhausted but to plenty applause.
The U8s meanwhile continued their progress with another hard-fought contest.
A spokeswoman said: "We showed amazing teamwork, focus, tackling and attacking with some fantastic passing looking for team-mates in space.
"The team was also praised for their sportsmanship and respect by the opposition. They are a credit to the club and their parents."
The seniors endured a difficult day out at Stowmarket in London Two North East but the 62-26 defeat did at least come with one bonus point.
Walden faced a strong wind blowing diagonally across the pitch in the first period after ended the half 31-12 down.
Stowmarket got the first points from a line-out on 10 minutes but Walden not only levelled five minutes later, a strong scrum allowing Morgan Cook to canter through a couple of tackles and under the posts, but the conversion gave them a 7-5 lead.
They were back on level terms after a Max Skingsley try, Kevin Lock playing a big part in the build-up, had followed a converted home score and it was only in the final stages of the half that Stowmarket pulled clear.
Walden came out strong in the second period and scored their third try after forcing Stowmarket to concede a penalty on their 10-metre line.
A quick-tap by scrum-half Paul Marshall gained useful ground and a couple of good quick clear-outs enabled the ball to go deep into the 22.
Marshall then picked the ball up from the base of a ruck and drove towards the line and although he was tackled, he was able to off-load for Skingsley to grab his second.
A yellow for a high tackle looked to have ended any hopes of a comeback with Stowmarket adding another try in the ensuing 10-minute period but those hopes were re-ignited when the home side were temporarily down to 14, Ben Stapleton adding the bonus-point try to make it 36-26 with 17 minutes remaining.
However they could not put any more points on the board and with players tiring after putting in so much effort for the first hour, Stowmarket scored three more tries to climb to fourth in the table, Walden down in seventh.
They are back at home on Saturday with Chelmsford the visitors.
Anyone interested in joining the club should email either info@swrfc.co.uk or graham.marshall2@ntlworld.com
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