Blues keep the dream alive

OLD PATESIANS 24 v 26 NEWBURY BLUES

Blues keep the dream alive

Saturday 25th March, South West 1 East League, 2 pm KO

Newbury Blues beat 2nd placed Old Patesians in a close game, Blues leaving at least 21 points un-scored.
Blues after leading for most of the match had to score a try and conversion in the final minutes to retake the lead, Old Pats then missing a penalty on the final whistle drama filled end to a good competitive game

Blues make one change to the squad that beat Old Cents a couple of weeks ago, Ollie Spanswick coming in for Alex Millar who was unavailable for this top of the table clash.

Blues kick off this top of the table clash on a warm sunny afternoon, Blues have the advantage of the slope for the first half, Old Pats return the kick, Blues Rory Jones takes and sets off he passes to Josh Bartlett who puts up a high kick and takes a late hit so a penalty to Blues where the ball lands, Nick Wackwitz kicks the 40m attempt which is just wide.
Old Pats take the 22 drop out, Blues gather and again the Rory Jones Josh Bartlett link works and Blues are into Old Pats 22 but a knock on halts their progress, Old Pats win their scrum but they knock on giving Blues a 30m scrum, Blues win the scrum and spread the ball wide allowing Josh Bartlett to side step the defender to score wide out on the right, Nick Wackwitz is just wide with the long conversion, 0-5, 5 mins

Old Pats take the restart kick Blues gather and a good Kyle Doel run takes Blues up the pitch, Blues spread the ball wide before a forward pass gives Old Pats a scrum, Old Pats win their scrum and run across the pitch winning a penalty for a high tackle which is kicked to touch in Blues 22, lineout won Old Pats attack through several phases in Blues 22 but a knock on gives Blues a defensive scrum. Blues win the scrum but running out of defence they knock on giving Old Pats an attacking scrum, from the scrum they keep up the pressure on Blues defence winning a penalty which they take quickly, Blues are not back 10 concede the penalty and get a yellow card, Old Pats slot the penalty through the posts, 3-5 13 mins.

Blues restart kick doesn’t go 10 but Old Pats play the advantage then kick into Blues 22, Blues take and return the kick, Old Pats gather and send a good kick bouncing into touch just in Blues 22, Blues lineout is not straight so Old Pats have an attacking scrum which they win but are penalised for crossing so Blues have the scrum, Blues win the scrum and kick clear, Old Pats gather but the Blues pressure wins a penalty scrum.
Blues win the scrum and run the ball making good yards and win a long penalty which Dan Thorne kicks just wide, Old Pats take the 22 drop out which is returned by Blues, Old pats kick is charged down by Blues and they get a penalty just in Old Pats half, Rory Jones is just wide with the long kick. Old Pats take the 22 drop out and manage to keep possession getting into Blues half and win a penalty which is just wide of the posts, Blues take the 22 drop out long, Old Pats take and run before kicking, Blues gather and get a penalty at the breakdown which is kicked to touch.
Blues win the lineout and are soon in Old Pats 22 with some good running rugby and are further rewarded with a penalty which Nick Wackwitz kicks 3-8 26 mins

Old Pats restart and win a penalty scrum, from the scrum Old Pats attack but Blues get a penalty which is kicked to touch, Old Pats get a scrum when Blues throw is not straight, Blues pack puts Old Pats under pressure but they manage to keep possession and kick to touch, Blues win the lineout and kick up field, Old Pats take and run back at Blues but knock on when hit by a great Josh Bartlett tackle.
Blues win the scrum and spread the ball across the pitch getting into Old Pats 22 and look like scoring but the ref strangely calls a forward pass, Old Pats win the scrum and run the ball but good Blues pressure at the tackle forces Old Pats to hold on giving Blues a 5m penalty scrum.

Blues win the scrum and attack a long pass is knocked on and the try goes begging, Old Pats win the scrum and kick clear. Blues win the lineout and attack Old Pats, Blues win a penalty but play the advantage but a knock on brings play back for the earlier infringement and a Blues scrum.
Old Pats steal the ball and run but don’t get far so kick out of defence, Josh Bartlett takes and a great run splits the defence and he is into Old Pats 22 before passing to Toby Thorne who is over in the corner the long conversion just wide 3-13 half time

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Old Pats kick off the second half they now have the benefit of the slope, Blues don’t take cleanly and a knock on rolls into touch, Old Pats win the scrum and put the Blues defence under pressure, Old Pats get a penalty put play advantage, play is brought back for the Old Pats pen which is kicked to touch, Old Pats win the lineout and cut through some poor Blues tackling to score under the posts 10-13 44 min’s.

Blues restart long Old Pats take in own 22 and run before kicking back into Blues half, Blues catch and put up a high kick and chase, Blues get their hands to the ball but knock on, Old Pats win the scrum and kick Blues take and kick, a late hit on Blues kicker Toby Thorne gives Blues a penalty where the ball lands and earns Old Pats a yellow card. Blues kick to touch but cough up possession at the lineout when they concede a penalty.

Dylan Stewart off Ollie Spanswick on 48 mins

Old Pats kick to touch win the lineout and run at the Blues defence and win a penalty, Old Pats kick is to long bouncing over the try line and dead so back for a Blues scrum on half way. Blues win a penalty which they kick to touch, lineout won Blues run across the pitch making good ground before another seemingly ok pass is strangely ruled forwards, Old Pats have a scrum just outside their 22 and are further rewarded when the get a penalty which they kick to touch on half way.

Ben Hicks on Graham Stewart off 53 mins

Old Pats win the lineout and run at Blues but lose the ball Blues kick high, Old Pats take and kick from just outside their 22 straight out so back for a Blues lineout, Blues win a penalty at the lineout which is kicked to touch 10m out, lineout won Blues forwards maul towards the line once halted the ball is spread out through the backs who get within 5m but cannot make the breakthrough but Blues get a 5m scrum. Old Pats win a penalty at the scrum and relieve the pressure kicking to touch, lineout won Old Pats kick up field but play is back for a Blues penalty, which is just wide of the posts.

Jamie Futcher off Toby Pearce on 59 mins

Old Pats take the 22 drop out Blue catch and run across the pitch getting up to Old Pats 22, play is halted for an Old Pats injury in the tackle, Blues win the scrum and again send the ball wide winning a penalty for a high tackle, Blues play the advantage but play is brought back when they infringe, Nick Wackwitz slots over making the score 10-16 61 min’s

Old Pats restart and a 10-minute period where Blues take their eye off the game and Old Pats play their best rugby and look to have won the game, Blues knock the restart forwards into touch so Old Pats have an attacking scrum, from the scrum Old Pats attack getting up to Blues 22 winning a penalty which is kicked to touch. Old Pats win the lineout and keep up the pressure on the Blues defence through several phase’s, Blues infringe and a deliberate knock on earns Blues a yellow card an Old Pats a penalty try and the lead for the first time 17-16 64 mins

Blues take the restart kick Old Pats gather and kick to touch well in Blues half, Old Pats steal the lineout and brush off several Blues tackles to score and convert 24-16 67 min’s

Blues now have an uphill struggle to get anything out of this game after having the upper hand for so long, Blues restart kick is returned by Old Pats, Blues gather and put up a high kick and a good chase is rewarded when they manage to re-gather the ball and win a penalty in front of the posts which Nick Wackwitz slots over 24-19 70 min’s

Old Pats kick is taken by Blues and they run back at Old Pats getting into their half and win a penalty which is kicked to touch, lineout won Blues attack but lose the ball allowing Old Pats to kick out of defence, Blues gather and again run at the defence but a knock on halts their progress

Graham Stewart on Ryan Davis off front row required 71 mins

Blues manage to steal the ball at the scrum and again put pressure on the Old Pats defence a good jinking Toby Thorne run ends up just short of the try line but the Blues support is there and the ball recycled, several phases later the ball reaches Kyle Doel who decides the Old Pats defence is not going to stop him and he crashes through to score close to the posts Nick Wackwitz holds his nerve and the conversion is over 24-26 74 min’s

Graham Stewart off, Dylan Stewart on 74 mins

Blues now have the lead back and need to hold on for the final minutes, Old Pats restart kick is taken by Blues and a good kick by Joe Pigott rolls into touch just outside Old Pats 22, Old Pats win the lineout and the kick is straight out into touch, some confusion on whether the kicker was in or out of his 22 but the ref rules a penalty to Old Pats which they kick to touch. Blues get a scrum at the lineout as Old Pats throw wasn’t straight, still more drama to come as scrum won Blues are penalised for holding on in the tackle, Old Pats have a kick at goal to take the spoils, the kick just drifts wide of the posts giving Blues a deserved victory and keeps the battle for second place well and truly alive, the remaining 3 league games are now all cup final games

Well done to this squad who never gave up and were rewarded with a great victory

Forwards MOM James Macauley
Backs MOM Josh Bartlett

Thanks to the great travelling Blues support who easily out numbered the home followers

Blues Squad
Graham Stewart, Rob Drysdale, James Macauley, Kyle Doel, Jon Bastable,
Dylan Stewart, Ryan Davis, Rory Jones, Joe Pigott, Nick Wackwitz,
Jamie Futcher, Josh Love, Dan Thorne, Toby Thorne, Josh Bartlett
Ben Hicks, Ollie Spanswick, Toby Pearce

Blues are at home against Oxford Harlequins on Sat 1st April 3 pm KO, Blues need a bonus point victory in their last 3 games and rely on Old Pats slipping up at some point.

Report from Old Pats website (few names wrong)

Pats lose to Newbury
By Connor Thompson

Pats remain in 2nd, just!

With the South West One East league leaders Maidenhead in a rich vein of form, Pats knew that victory against rivals Newbury would all but secure a playoff spot, but the Berkshire men had different ideas and took the spoils in a ferocious three tries a piece tussle at Everest Road.
Playing down the slope the Blues showed early enterprise and when winger Toby Thorne had the try line in front of him; it was only his knock on that saved the Pats blushes. A miss move in the centre opened a gap and full back Josh Bartlett cruised over for the visitors. Pats hard man Scott Alldritt proved a handful throughout as the Frenchman’s bulldozing pick and drives reaped havoc amongst the Newbury defence but all too often the ball was lost at the breakdown and scoring chances were missed.
Tom Langton’s crunching tackle in midfield forced a penalty when Newbury failed to release and James Aherne thumped over for three points from 40 metres. Aherne narrowly missed a penalty after Alldritt continually frustrated the Newbury defence and with two missed penalty attempts Newbury’s third choice of kicker Nick Wackawitz finally nudged over against the wind. Pats threatened with winger Jimmy Gahan superbly reading Alldritt’s breaks and looking for the offload but it was an excellently organised Blues defence that time and again kept the speedster out.
The hapless Thorne let Pats off the hook when once again he knocked on with the try line beckoning but when Pats missed a tackle in midfield he made amends with an unconverted try in the corner after a sweeping Newbury move across field. A rousing half time refocusing from head coach Craig Jones saw an improved Pats stick to their patterns as the second half got underway and after some classy phases of play, line out supremo Josh Stevens stole the ball on the Newbury 22 and ever present Alldritt was rewarded for his efforts with try converted by Aherne.
Newbury hit back with a Wackawitz penalty but the Pats reply was swift when Duncan Spurrier found Gahan on his shoulder and combining with replacement Chris Downes it was his captain Chris Dean who received and barged over from short range to take the lead with a try converted by Aherne. With Spurrier certain to score a deliberate knock on saw Newbury’s centre binned and a penalty try awarded and Aherne chipped over for the extras.
Pats charismatic Matt Dean also saw yellow and Newbury took the three points after the fly half was adjudged to have tripped his opponent. Rory Jones received at pace and was unstoppable and crashed over levelling the scores and when Wackowitz’s excellent conversion bisected the uprights, Aherne had a chance to steal the victory with a last minute penalty but with the wind in his face the attempt went wide and brave Pats suffered their fourth defeat of the season.
Pats are now masters of their own destiny, three straight wins keeps them in the title chase starting next weekend with a local derby against fifth placed Old Centralians which is all set up to be an epic battle.