Blaydon RUFC 25, Otley RUFC 23 Sat 04th September 2010

Saturday marked the start of the “proper” rugby union

season; after the pre-season friendlies, the league matches began in earnest

with Otley playing hosts to Blaydon. There’s always a buzz of anticipation to

greet a new season and Otley’s strong finish to the 2010 campaign justifies a

fair degree of optimism. It’s a pity there was only a very sparse crowd at

Cross Green to welcome the new season in.

 

Only a few days before the match the Otley club had

been rocked by the news that last year’s inspirational captain, Howard Parr,

was leaving for Henley Hawks of Division Three (South).  As a Squadron Leader in the RAF and based in

High Wycombe, Parr had had to decide he could no longer manage the time

travelling north for Thursday’s training session and Saturday’s match each

week. He has been a tower of strength as both a player and a captain and he

will be sorely missed. Everyone connected with Otley will wish him well with

his new club. Otley’s new captain is open-side wing-forward Jamie Sutton, who

has arrived from Stade Domontois.

 

The match started with both teams showing a positive

attitude and a willingness to run the ball and play an expansive game. After

five minutes, Otley were awarded a kickable penalty, but this was slotted wide

by the new outside-half and goal kicker, Will Nelson from Nottingham. The miss

proved to be a precursor for the rest of the afternoon. Just after the missed

kick, Blaydon committed a dreadful handling error in their own 22 metre area;

the ball was dropped and fell to ground. Otley centre Joe Barker gratefully

pounced and swooped over for a gifted try. Nelson converted from under the

posts and Otley led by 7-0.

 

Otley now started to dominate the game, but

frustratingly they alternated between positive attacking rugby and scrappy

handling. Thus a period of dominance came to naught. After 25 minutes, it was

Otley’s turn to show unwarranted generosity. As a Blaydon player ran towards

the Otley try-line, defenders variously stood still, positioned themselves uselessly

or simply missed straightforward tackles. The lead changed hands and Blaydon

were now 7-5 in front. Frankly, such poor defending simply isn’t good enough.

 

A few minutes after the gratuitous Blaydon try, their

scrum half Tom Rock (once of Leeds and Otley) was sin- binned. It was now up to

Otley to capitalise on the advantage. Instead, the handicap seemed to inspire

Blaydon – even to the extent that Otley lost a scrum against the head to an

eight-man shove, despite the Blaydon pack only having seven men in it! A second

bout of very sloppy Otley tackling let Blaydon in for a wholly unnecessary try,

at the traditional Otley moment of just on the half-time whistle. The try was

converted and Otley went into the dressing room 7-12 down in a match they

really should have been winning.

 

Whatever was said at half time certainly seemed to

have done the trick and Otley came out galvanised. Pressure on the Blaydon line

led to an early penalty, but the kick at goal was missed. However, a very  good Otley move pressured Blaydon into

conceding another penalty. The ball was slotted into the corner, the line-out

was won cleanly and Otley forced the ball over the line from the ensuing rolling-maul.

The try was credited to prop Gareth Denman. The conversion attempt hit the

upright and the score was levelled at 12-12.

 

Otley were now fired up and dominating the match. A

good, orthodox, passing movement led to Jamie Sutton going over for his first

Otley try. Again the conversion attempt hit the post. Otley led 17-12.

On the hour, Blaydon again took advantage of some

flimsy Otley tackling to score a try, which was converted to give them a 19-17

lead. Five minutes later Nelson missed another penalty kick.

 

Otley then fought back. A neat chip was followed by a

speculative punt towards the corner flag. Fortuitously the ball bounced

perfectly and stood up for winger Curtis Wilson, following up at great speed. He

pounced on the ball and touched down in the corner. The difficult conversion

attempt was missed, but Otley now led 22-19. 

 

Otley’s lighter pack was now tiring and taking a

pounding from the Blaydon forwards, dominated by one Steven Trethewey! Too many

 penalties were being conceded. The

referee came in for a good deal of criticism from the crowd for enforcing the

rules of the game, when the ire may have been better directed at the players

for breaking them. Fortunately, Otleys insistence on conceding penalties was

matched by that of the Blaydon goal-kicker on missing them. However, in the

last few minutes they changed their goal-kicker and the full back gratefully

accepted two opportunities to score penalty goals  and as the game reached its conclusion, Otley

trailed 25-22.

 

Otley attacked vigorously, determined to pull the

match out of the fire. With almost the last move of the game, wing-forward Rob

Afoa-Peterson tried for an ambitious long range drop goal. It seemed destined

to go over to square the match, but the ball hit the crossbar. Tantalisingly,

it bounced the wrong way – straight back into play. Curtis Wilson was following

up and managed to fly-hack the ball towards the try line. He chased the ball

and dived on it for a spectacular touch down. Alas, the referee adjudged that

the ball had gone over the dead-ball line and the “try” was disallowed.

 

There was only just time for Blaydon to restart the

match and take the first opportunity to kick the ball out of play to signal

full time. Otley had lost a wholly winnable game 25-22, but had the consolation

of two bonus points. Missed goal kicks cost them dearly, but there seems little

point in criticising Nelson for not being a better (or luckier) goal kicker

than he proved to be on the day. Of more concern was the woeful defence. Let’s

hope that the tackling bags are out for this week’s training sessions.

 

Next Saturday Otley travel up the dale to visit

friends and rivals Wharfedale, who managed to win their opening game at the

notoriously difficult venue of Redruth. It will certainly be a nice trip and a

good day out; let’s hope for a favourable result too.