Results and Reports 18th March 2007
St. Ives 10 Shelford 25
A squad weakened by Mothers Day withdrawals was made weaker following the late withdrawal through illness of tight head prop Harry Leyden. However Max Davies, fresh from his BBC1 appearance with Chris Evans on Comic Relief, stepped into the breach manfully, helping the smaller front row to compete on even terms with larger opposition. From the kick off St. Ives tackled ferociously, knocking their opponents backwards and scooping up possession. Hooker Nick Abbott drove forward aggressively, showing no ill effects on his return from pneumonia to set up good field position. Steffen Gosling fed Tyler Elstub from the base of the ruck and the fly-half evaded several tackles before being held up. Abbott though was on hand to strip the ball free and drive through 2 attempted tackles to cross for a deserved try. St. Ives continued to press hard for the rest of the half but suffered further misfortune when loose head prop Daniel McManus suffered a facial injury and had to be replaced. However Chris Radbone proved an able deputy, never giving an inch to the Shelford front three. Despite the pressure, the Young Bulls were unable to trouble the scoreboard further before half-time, going close with efforts by Sam Hirons and Toby Naylon.
In the early part of the second half, St. Ives stood off their tackles and were made to pay for it by clinical finishing from Shelford who turned the game on its head with 4 tries in less than 10 minutes to establish a 20-5 lead. St. Ives rallied; Luke Green went close and Jack Fleming was forced into touch just short before Tyler Elstub powered through to close the gap with a well taken try. St.Ives pressed again as the final seconds approach but the ball was turned over and Shelford went the full length of the pitch to make the final score 25-10.
St. Ives 5 Upper Clapton 15
The second match also proved to be a game of two halves as St. Ives again showed their opponents too much respect, allowing the Essex side to build up a 3 try cushion before half time. However the arrival of Malcolm Maclean seemed to galvanise the forward effort, allowing half backs Gosling and Elstub to release Toby Naylon and Jack Fleming on dangerous runs. However, the half-time score remained 15-0 to Clapton. In the second half, the Young Bulls defence tightened up and the extra possession created space for Chris Radbone and Sam Hirons to exploit. Eventually, the Clapton defence cracked and Hirons was able to sprint down the touchline before cleverly evading the covering tackles to score in the corner. After turning the Clapton ball over, Steffen Gosling was unlucky to be charged into touch just short of the line following a similar break but there were few further clear cut chances and Clapton held on for victory.
St Ives 0 - Shelford 12
St Ives entertained Shelford in a re-arranged 'friendly' fixture following several weeks of inactivity due to adverse weather conditions making the pitches un-playable, with both sides short of key players. Although the recent 'early Spring' weather had dried the pitch out, conditions were still far from ideal, with a very strong 'biting' wind blowing directly down the length of the pitch, with forecast Sleet & Snow showers soon to follow.
Shelford started with both the slope and wind advantage and from the kick off had St Ives in trouble on the 22 line. Unfortunately at the resulting ruck St Ives flanker Thomas Mulqueen injured his Shoulder forcing him to leave the field. Matt Cox, himself recovering from injury, came on as replacement earlier than planned, however, this left St Ives with only one further replacement for the remainder of the game. not an ideal situation against such strong opposition.
With the strong wind behind them for the next few minutes Shelford launched a continuous assault on the St Ives line, with only aggressive defence by the St Ives players holding them out. Eventually, the pressure took its toll and Shelford opened the scoring with a well executed forward drive from a five metre scrum.
This set back appeared to galvanise the St Ives team who started to play with a greater determination and conviction. With the slope and wind against them, St Ives line continued to be under pressure from the well organised Shelford outfit, with most of the play confined to within the St Ives 22. However, St Ives defence held firm and as the half progressed, strong running from the three quarters coupled with well organised drives from the pack enabled St Ives to progress up the field. The half finished with St Ives camped on the Shelford line, but it was Shelford's turn for their defence to held firm and the half finished with Shelford leading 5-0.
With the elements now in their favour, the tables were turned with the second half played primarily in the Shelford half. A score was soon surely to follow, however, mistakes at crucial moments by St Ives coupled with an organised Shelford defence meant that this was not to be.
With ten minutes to go St Ives were dealt a further blow when full back Andy Howard suffered a potentially serious neck injury in the process of being tackled into touch. Although, good news was received later on that the injury was not too serious, the necessary precautions were taken, causing a lengthy break before play could resume.
Play eventually re-commenced on the second team pitch, however, with no three quarter replacement St Ives had to make emergency positional changes. Although from the re-start St Ives continued to press Shelford line, it was clear that the changes had un settled the team. From a turnover ball in their own 22, Shelford for the first time since the early stages of the game, broke through the St Ives defence and after several well executed phases scored under the St Ives posts. The conversion followed.
With Shelford's confidence high & St Ives un-settled, the remainder of the game saw St Ives on the back foot, however, last ditch tackles held Shelford out and the game finished St Ives 0 - Shelford 12.
Thorney 5 - St. Ives 62
The sun shone on St. Ives, but the match was played in gale force winds, which ultimately forced St. Ives to play a running game.
Playing with the wind in the first half, St. Ives often found themselves on the back foot as good rucking by Thorney won them much possession. Kicking for territory led to a scrum for Thorney near their own line. St. Ives contested well and Chris Thomas picked up a loose ball from the base and ran over for the first try, converted by Nice.
Having weathered another Thorney attack, St. Ives gained ground and ran the ball left, with Adam Buttigieg looping well to score another converted try.
There then followed two tries from strikes against the head by Calum Richardson. The first led to Ben Carter scoring in the corner, after which Nice managed an incredible touch line conversion against the wind. The second was scored and converted by man-of-the-match Nice himself after a strong direct run through the Thorney defence. Half time 0-26.
Given that the St Ives pack had been taught such a lesson in the ruck in the first half, the second was a revelation. The St Ives pack played superbly with all contributing to a Herculean effort, which saw Thorney hardly win the ball. That said, St Ives were often gaining possession close to their own line and, against the wind, were compelled to run the ball. In this phase Ali Geddes at scrum half excelled, hitting his man with bullet passes, or breaking the gain line when necessary. This played to the St Ives strengths and they notched six tries through handling well, spreading the ball wide and making excellent ground.
Nice set the half rolling with a solo try which he converted. This was followed by a stupendous effort by James Wood. Receiving the ball literally on his own line, he broke through a number of tackles, found himself clear and sprinted the entire length of the field to score a fine try, converted by Dan Breed.
There then followed two identical scores for Carter, the ball spread wide to him with space to run, which he did – like the wind, against it! – completing his hat-trick.
There then followed a fine team try, the forwards once again gaining possession for the backs to run and interpass well, Dan Bainbridge finally scoring. Finally, Breed ran around the Thorney defence from his own 22 for a self-converted try.
Thorney’s unflagging spirit was rewarded when they eventually managed to round the St Ives defence for a deserved consolation score with the last play of the game.