07/02 Newbury U13B v BrackEnsians U13B
February 8, 2010
Newbury U13 B’s 24 - BrackEnsians U13B’s 12
In chilly conditions at Monks Lane, Newbury B’s recorded their first win of the season against a strong BrackEnsians squad. With only 15 minutes to go B’s were 19-nil ahead and looked to be cruising to an easy victory but two quick BrackEnsian tries within three minutes brought the score back to 19-12 and suddenly the result seemed in jeopardy. It was to the credit of the whole team that they regrouped, battled hard and scored a final try to seal the win just before the end.
With a number of changes and absentees, several of the squad members were asked to play out of position. However everyone stepped up to the mark and played exceptionally well as a team, with a real cohesion between backs and forwards, marshalled by Joseph Peppiatt who had a great game at scrum half.
Whereas previously this season the B’s have started slowly, today they opened the game strongly and pressed hard straight from the kick-off. The forwards were particularly strong and the backs were passing the ball down the line with confidence.
It was no surprise when Newbury took the lead after 10 minutes with George Bicknell crossing the line after a great run.
For the rest of the half Newbury continued the pressure on BrackEnsians but failed to increase their lead despite good running from Alex Gallo and Connor Segre. When BrackEnsians tried to mount their own attacks they were frustrated by Newbury’s sturdy pack and some great tackling, particularly from James Lewis and Henry Mills.
The B’s have a big squad, and the coaches wanted to ensure that everyone was involved in the game. Therefore a number of substitutions were made at half-time. Potentially this could have unsettled the team, but spirit was maintained and the new players gelled extremely well. From the kick-off Newbury were awarded a penalty on the BrackEnsian 22. Christian Brucciani took it quickly and the backs swept the ball down the line to George Bicknell who ran in under the posts. He converted his own try, and the score move to 12-nil.
From the restart Newbury attacked again, nearly made it to the tryline for a third time but lost control of the ball metres from the posts. BrackEnsians almost broke away, but a terrific tackle from Alasdair Gravatt stopped them in their tracks. However BrackEnsians made steady progress downfield and reached the Newbury 22, where the ball was knocked on. Newbury won the ensuing scrum and the ball was passed out to Kieran Ffrench who outpaced the BrackEnsians defence and ran almost the length of the pitch to touch down under the posts. George Bicknell converted and Newbury were 19-nil ahead.
The try seemed to galvanise BrackEnsians into action and from the restart they drove toward the Newbury posts once more. However for almost five minutes Newbury produced probably their best defensive effort of the season. Although trapped close to their line they defended doggedly and held off the BrackEnsian surge. Finally BrackEnsians were awarded a 5 metre scrum which Newbury won, Christian Brucciani kicked to clear and the pressure appeared to be off.
Considering the team effort involved in keeping BrackEnsians out, what happened in the next few minutes was a real disappointment. BrackEnsians charged forward again, slipped a number of tackles and scored a try under the posts which was easily converted. From the kick-off one of their forwards caught the ball on his own 22 and ran at the Newbury team. Coaches and spectators could hardly believe it when he scythed through the whole team almost unchallenged to score BrackEnsians’ second. This time the conversion missed. However with around five minutes remaining, Newbury suddenly looked fragile and with BrackEnsians only a score away urgent action was required. For most of the game the whole squad had played tremendously and it would have been a massive disappointment if they didn’t come away with a win.
The coaches decided to make a number of substitutions prior to the restart. This seemed to resettle the team, and the momentum swayed back to Newbury. They drove downfield but were forced out of play on the left, just outside the BrackEnsians’ 22. Newbury won the lineout and the ball was fed out to Henry Mills who had too much pace for the BrackEnsians backs and crossed the line in the right hand corner. The conversion was missed, but Newbury were 24-12 ahead.
With little time left BrackEnsians took a quick restart in an effort to surprise the Newbury team. However the ball was safely gathered up and both teams spent the remainder of the game keeping each other at bay until the final whistle blew.
Everyone had given their all and deserved the victory. Head Coach John Peppiatt summed it up with one word: “Superb”. Credit should go to the whole team, but there were individual performances worthy of mention. All of the try scorers, especially George Bicknell for his brace. The hard-working pack were excellent – Callum O’Neill was exceptionally strong and rucked well, Alasdair Gravatt tackled hard and drove forward with power. The backs functioned as a really cohesive unit, passing the ball with confidence and precision.
Congratulations to all involved for a thrilling game.
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