Blues blitz the second half

MAIDENHEAD 22 v 51 NEWBURY BLUES

Blues blitz the second half

Saturday 17th Feb 2018, 2-30 pm KO South West Premier

Newbury Blues produce a sublime second half performance scoring 6 try’s to end Maidenheads 31 match undefeated home record and grab 5 valuable league points

A Blues squad depleted by injury unavailability and illness come up with an outstanding second half performance after a pretty even first half at the end of which they trailed 15-10 to blitz Maidenhead and play some of their best rugby this season scoring 41 points including 6 try’s and Richard West kicking 11 points, Maidenhead only getting a consolation try on the final whistle

Blues travelled to Maidenhead knowing this was a must win game to help in their battle to avoid the drop, a hard afternoon in prospect as Maidenhead hadn’t been beaten at home for 31 games, but a dream second half totally upsets the form book

Maids kick off the match and Blues with some good attacking rugby take play back into Maids 22 and for the first 5 mins keep Maids under pressure in their own half but are unable to turn their attacking play into points. Maids win a scrum in their own 22 then a penalty which is kicked to touch on half way, lineout won they attack getting into Blues 22 and win a penalty scrum, their forwards have the better of the Blues pack and they win another penalty scrum which is repeated getting Blues a yellow card, Blues have to bring on a prop

Anthony Hackett comes off Paul Sayers on 9 mins.

Maids push Blues back and the scrum collapses, Maids keep the ball and they get over to score through Mark Darlington, conversion is just wide 5-0 10 mins

Blues restart and a good chase and tackle keeps Maids in their own half, Maids run at Blues before putting in a good chip kick, Blues gather and kick to touch on half way, Maidenhead win the lineout and run the ball but a knock on gives Blues a scrum on half way, Blues under pressure win their scrum and try running the ball but are pushed backwards before they put up a high kick and chase. Maids gather and attack through several phases but concede a penalty allowing Blues to kick to touch in Maids 22, Blues win their lineout and run at the Maids defence but a knock on halts their progress,

Anthony Hackett on Stephen Ansell off 19 mins

Maids win the reset scrum and some good running rugby takes them out of their 22 and up to Blues 22 where they win a scrum, from the scrum Maids attack and break through some poor Blues tackles for their centre Ed Keohane to score and convert 12-0 23 mins

Blues restart kick is taken by Maids and they get a penalty which is kicked to touch in Blues half, Maids win their lineout and attack but are pushed sideways by the Blues defence who infringe giving Maids a scrum on half way, scrum won they run at Blues getting another penalty scrum, Maids forwards still have the upper hand at the scrum and they mount another attack before putting in a chip kick over the Blues defensive line, Blues gather but make a mess of it and Maids have the ball and attack winning a scrum in Blues 22, Maids win their scrum but a knock on gives Blues a scrum and a chance to get out of defence, Blues just hold their scrum going backwards and kick up field, Maids gather and kick Blues do the same, this time Maids run the ball getting up to Blues 22 and win a penalty in front of the posts, Ed Keohane kicks 15-0 32 mins

Maids look the better team and things look bleak for Blues, but from this point on Blues tip the game on its head from the restart kick Maids knock on and give away a penalty which Blues kick to touch in Maids 22, lineout won Blues mount a sustained attack through their forwards and after several phases Ollie Spanswick crashes through the Maids defence to score close to the posts Richard West converts 15-7 35 mins

Maids restart kick is run back by Alex Millar and a high tackle gives Blues a penalty, a spate of handbags holds up play before Blues kick the penalty to touch, Blues attack from the lineout and are rewarded with a penalty scrum, Blues hold their scrum going backwards and the ball is spread wide through their backs but a good Maids tackle takes them into touch. Maids win their lineout and their dominant forwards maul good yards before the ball is released to their backs who make further ground before they spill the ball, Blues gather and kick upfield, a good chase puts Maids under pressure, ref blows for an injury time out.

Jamie Futcher on Anthony Hackett off 37 mins

Maids win their scrum but a knock-on gives Blues possession and a scrum, Blues win their scrum and Alex Millar makes ground before releasing Joe Pigott who draws the defender and slips a pass to Toby Pearce who makes a good run up the touchline getting into Maids 22 before he is stopped, Blues win a penalty at the tackle which Richard West slots between the posts 15-10 half time

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Blues kick off and Jamie Futcher catches the ball, Blues recycle and put the Maids defence under pressure but concede a penalty at the tackle, Maids kick to touch win the lineout and their forwards maul 25yds but concede a penalty scrum well in Blues half, Blues win their scrum and another good Alex Millar run takes play towards the half way line, Blues keep the ball live and kick into Maids half. Maids gather and run back at Blues but cough up the ball allowing Blues to attack and take play into Maids 22 before a loose pass is caught by Maids but they are tackled into touch, Blues win their lineout and their forwards pick and drive, Adam Neal makes the break through when he brushes off the Maids tackles to score Richard West converts 15-17 44 mins

Maids restart kick is gathered by Blues who run the ball before a kick is put deep in Maids half, Maids gather and run getting a penalty at the tackle which is kicked to touch in Blues 22, lineout won Maids attack but a loose pass is gathered by Dan Thorne who dodges the tackle and runs from deep in his own half to score a great try under the posts Richard West converts 15-24 48 mins

Blues are now playing the better rugby and from the restart they take play back into Maids 22 with some good running rugby before Richard West slots a good bouncing kick into touch, Maids win their lineout and try running out of defence but spill the ball at the tackle, Blues gather through Toby Pearce and sets off on a crossfield run but a big tackle means play is held up and he has to leave the field.

Kris Ford on Toby Pearce off 53 mins

Play restarts with a Blues scrum which they win after it is reset, a good run by Kris Ford puts Maids on the back foot and gives Blues a penalty, Blues play the advantage but play comes back for the penalty which Richard West slots between the posts 15-27 54 mins

Maids restart kick is returned by Blues, Maids run the ball then their forwards make more yards with a good maul but they lose the ball, Blues run but don’t get far before a loose pass is gathered by Maids who run at Blues getting up to 5m short of the try line before being stopped play is held up for a Blues injury

Duncan Craigen off Stephen Ansell on 60 mins

Blues win the scrum and run out of defence getting into Maids half before a high Maids tackle gives Blues a penalty which is kicked to touch, Maids steal the lineout and maul again making good meters before Blues manage to snaffle the ball through Ollie Spanswick who breaks a tackle and Blues win a penalty which is kicked to touch in Maids 22. Blues win the lineout and run at the Maids defence making ground but lose the ball, Maids clear up field Blues gather and run, Alex Millar makes good ground and Blues spread the ball through several passes Richard West releases Joe Pigott who is gone through the Maids defence to score under the posts Richard West converts 15-34 63 mins

Maids take the restart kick which is returned by Blues, Maids run out of defence, Josh Love is quick to spot the chance and intercepts a Maids pass to run in under the posts Richard West converts 15-41 65 mins

Maids get a yellow card giving Blues a penalty restart which they kick to touch, Blues get into Maids 22 from the lineout but a knock on gives Maids a defensive scrum, injury time out

Rob Drysdale off Duncan Craigen on

Maids win their scrum and run out of defence winning a penalty at the tackle, Maids kick doesn’t find touch allowing Alex Millar to run then Ollie Spanswick makes good meters, Blues keep the ball live and it is quickly recycled to Joe Pigott who carries on the move before sending a grubber kick through the Maids defensive line, a good chase by Jamie Futcher is rewarded when he gets his boot to the ball before the Maids defender gets his hands on it, the ball bounces just right for him to catch and touch down wide out on the left the conversion is just wide 15-46 73 mins

Blues attack from the kick off and make good yards, Maids game has now fallen apart and Blues look like they can score at will, Blues are soon in Maids 22 with a good run from Kris Ford who releases Josh Love to score wide out on the right the long conversion just wide 15-51 76 mins
Blues attack again straight from the kick off and another good kick takes play back into Maids 22, Maids run out of defence but both sides are tiring and make mistakes, Maids manage to put several phases of play together which takes them into Blues 22 before they win a penalty and an injury time out gives both sides a breather, Maids kick to touch win their lineout and put pressure on Blues defence before the lose the ball, Blues kick up field, Maids gather and run back into Blues 22 winning a scrum, Maids mount another attack from their scrum and manage to score a consolation try through Sam Churchyard, Ed Keohane converts 22-51 full time

A great result for the Blues in this Berkshire derby giving them the double over Maids

Pretty impossible to pick a MOM so this week is Squad of the match

Newbury Squad
Stephen Ansell, Rob Drysdale, Graham Stewart, Duncan Craigen, Adam Neal, Dylan Stewart,
Ollie Spanswick, Alex Millar, Joe Pigott, Richard West, Toby Pearce, Josh Love, Dan Thorne,
Anthony Hackett, Cameron Golby Barr, Paul Sayers, Kris Ford, Jamie Futcher,

Thanks to the great Blues support who travelled in numbers for this Berkshire derby and cheered on the boys, outnumbering and out voicing the Maids supporters

Blues have a week off before a home match against Cleve on 3rd March another game Blues need to win

Good luck to Maidenhead for the rest of the season and your battle for second place in the league, a good win at Ivybridge this coming Sat would help all Berkshire teams

Link to Maidenhead Advertiser report
https://www.maidenhead-advertiser.co.uk/gallery/maidenhead-rfc/127733/rugby-round-up-maidenhead-rfc-s-31-match-unbeaten-run-at-braywick-ends-in-capitulation-to-newbury-rfc.html