Young Cole so close to hat-trick
Teenager Ethan Cole was denied a dream start to 2019 after his hat-trick try in Wolverhampton’s 37-5 victory over Stafford was ruled out.
The 17-year-old winger has only recently cemented his place in the starting XV, but he scored twice on Saturday.
Ian Harley, Wolverhampton RUFC spokesperson said: “He only turned 17 at the beginning of the season and hasn’t played that much to be honest.
“But then he played well in the cup and they started him, and he was very good.
“He’s a bit raw, but a very quick winger. It was a marginal call that he didn’t complete his hat-trick.
“We’ve got Luke Brough on the other wing who is only 18. We generate quick ball and get these guys in space.
“The back three is exciting, and it bodes well for the future, they’re young lads who are committed to the club.”
Like Cole, Brough also scored two tries against Stafford. Joe Walker, George Smailes, and Josh Humphreys added more scores.
Wolverhampton are second in Midlands 2 West (North), and gained a point on leaders Ludlow, who failed to pick up a bonus point over the weekend.
“We’ve struggled with Stafford in the past,” admitted Harley. “The year we went up and they were bottom and they beat us. They’ve been a bit of a bogey team.
“They have quite a big pack and play above themselves when they play us. We only trained once over Christmas, there was concern we might no be firing on all cylinders. But everyone was quite pleased with the performance.”
The next match is a tricky trip to Crewe & Nantwich.
“They finished second last season,” said Harley. “They haven’t performed how we thought they would but they’ve had a couple of good results. We’re not taking anything for granted there.”
Wolverhampton will be boosted by Luca Nothnagel Di Goivanni’s return after he went home to South Africa over Christmas.
