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MATCH DAY - Maidenhead (home)
Peter Kasic20 Feb 2022 - 10:52
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Storm Eunice
Home game versus Maidenhead saw us confronted with the elements and with an opposition who ran strong lines in the backs under the guidance of Will Greenwood.
The tail end of Storm Eunice made all the elements unpredictable… heavy rain before kick-off, blustery unpredictable winds and pitch that was soft underfoot. Apart from that perfect for a game of rugby.
One minutes of clapping by both teams and supporters preceded the game in recognition of Jack Jeffrey who passed away last week while playing for Evesham Rugby Club.
This was the first competitive game for a couple of weeks for the “Stags”. We started well and conceded an early try following a kick through by Maidenhead while the “Stags” were putting on the pressure in the Maidenhead half. A number of rash calls on the pitch meant that we did not capitalise on some strong positions. A missed penalty kick in blustery conditions and the ball held up over the line, despite the efforts of Zinny Norman (5) to ground it examples of scoring opportunities. The opposition meanwhile were converting their opportunities mainly through the running lines, off the fly half, by the inside centre (12). Just before half time we finally got on the scoreboard with an opposition maul being stripped of the ball by Zinny Norman (5), who took the opportunity to break blind from the 10 metre line beating a number of players before passing out to Angus Low (4) who made it to the corner from 5 metres out despite the attention of 3 Maidenhead players. Angus subsequently had to leave the pitch having received a second knock in as many minutes.
Half time 5-28
The second half saw a huge amount of effort, but the vagaries of the first half continued in the second - game management, handling the opposition 10/12 axis etc. That said, the scrum overall benefited from having a front row that held its own – this can only get better, the line outs were erratic for everyone given the weather, the forwards were competitive at the breakdown, there were strong individual performances across the back line, and it was exciting to see line breaks happening. Much to work on but certain aspects are coming together.
Full time 5-54
The tail end of Storm Eunice made all the elements unpredictable… heavy rain before kick-off, blustery unpredictable winds and pitch that was soft underfoot. Apart from that perfect for a game of rugby.
One minutes of clapping by both teams and supporters preceded the game in recognition of Jack Jeffrey who passed away last week while playing for Evesham Rugby Club.
This was the first competitive game for a couple of weeks for the “Stags”. We started well and conceded an early try following a kick through by Maidenhead while the “Stags” were putting on the pressure in the Maidenhead half. A number of rash calls on the pitch meant that we did not capitalise on some strong positions. A missed penalty kick in blustery conditions and the ball held up over the line, despite the efforts of Zinny Norman (5) to ground it examples of scoring opportunities. The opposition meanwhile were converting their opportunities mainly through the running lines, off the fly half, by the inside centre (12). Just before half time we finally got on the scoreboard with an opposition maul being stripped of the ball by Zinny Norman (5), who took the opportunity to break blind from the 10 metre line beating a number of players before passing out to Angus Low (4) who made it to the corner from 5 metres out despite the attention of 3 Maidenhead players. Angus subsequently had to leave the pitch having received a second knock in as many minutes.
Half time 5-28
The second half saw a huge amount of effort, but the vagaries of the first half continued in the second - game management, handling the opposition 10/12 axis etc. That said, the scrum overall benefited from having a front row that held its own – this can only get better, the line outs were erratic for everyone given the weather, the forwards were competitive at the breakdown, there were strong individual performances across the back line, and it was exciting to see line breaks happening. Much to work on but certain aspects are coming together.
Full time 5-54
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