Blues flounder at Brixham

BRIXHAM 19 v 12 NEWBURY BLUES

Blues flounder at Brixham

Saturday 10th Mar 2018, 2-30 pm KO South West Premier

Newbury Blues caught out by the Fisherman in a first half which saw Blues trail 13-0 at half time

Blues travelled down to Brixham with only one change to the squad that had played at Maidenhead, new recruit fly half Ollie Milner coming on to the bench to replace the injured Anthony Hackett

Blues faithful travelling support travelled in numbers, many making a Devon weekend of the trip staying in and around Brixham

Brixham kick off down the slope on a warm but dry afternoon the pitch wet and soft after the overnight and mornings rain, Blues return the kick which is gathered by Brixham and they put pressure on the Blues defence, Blues manage to steal the ball and run out of defence but a stray pass gives Brixham an attacking lineout. Blues steal the lineout and clear to touch, Brixham attack from the lineout and again put pressure on the Blues defence getting into the 22 before a knock on gives Blues a 5m defensive scrum. Blues win a penalty at the scrum and clear to touch still in their own half. Blues win the lineout and kick up field, Brixham run at Blues before putting a kick deep into Blues 22, Blues gather and run out of their 22 before a big kick just drifts out so back for a Brixham lineout, again Brixham are soon back into Blues 22 and after several phases of play spent putting pressure on the Blues defence are rewarded with a penalty which their 15 Tom Putt kicks, 3-0 10 mins

From Blues restart kick Brixham get a penalty which they kick to touch deep in Blues 22

Toby Pearce off Blood Kris Ford on 11 mins

Blues manage to steal possession at the lineout and run out of defence but a knock on gives Brixham a scrum, Brixham return the favour after winning the scrum which allows Blues to hold their scrum and clear to touch on halfway, Brixham win the lineout and run the ball but a big tackle and steal by Kris ford then a charging run makes good ground for Blues but the wet ball is dropped, Brixham win their scrum and kick clear deep into Blues half.
Blues gather and run the ball before a high kick and a good chase is rewarded when Brixham are tackled into touch, Brixham make amends and steal the lineout getting back into Blues half and win a penalty which is slotted into touch in Blues 22, lineout won Brixham’s forwards get up to the line but are held so they have an attacking 5m scrum. Brixham win their scrum and put pressure on Blues defence taking play across the pitch then back which finally opens a gap for their 13 Connor Bedwell to score Tom Putt converts 10-0 22 mins

Blues restart kick is gathered and Brixham run back at Blues but cough up possession giving Blues a scrum on halfway, Brixham steal the scrum and another good attack takes them into Blues 22, Blues manage to steal the ball and kick clear, Brixham gather and are straight on the attack before they kick into Blues 22, Blues gather and run out of defence getting a penalty for a high tackle which is kicked to touch in Brixham’s 22, Blues throw is not straight so Brixham have a scrum and the chance to relieve the pressure. Blues win a free kick at the scrum which they tap and go taking play across the pitch, injury time out for Adam Thomas who sadly had broken his arm
Blues restart play with their scrum and put pressure on Brixham’s defence, a loose ball is fly hacked up field by Brixham, Blues gather and run but concede a scrum on half way, Brixham win their scrum and attack the Blues making good ground and win a penalty which Tom Putt slots between the posts, 13-0 34 mins

The remainder of the half see saws from one side to the other with the Blues probably having the best chances but mistakes and good defence keeps both sides from adding any points to the scoreboard, Half Time

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Blues kick off the second half, Brixham gather and run the ball before putting up a high kick which they manage to regather and some good running rugby takes them back into Blues 22, Brixham keep up the pressure through several phases of play and win a penalty which they tap and go quickly spending more time camped in Blues 22 before Blues defence infringe giving Brixham a penalty which Tom Putt kicks between the posts 16-0 46 mins

Richard West off Ollie Milner on for his debut

Blues take the restart kick and a good chase forces Brixham to kick, Blues gather and run winning a penalty which is kicked to touch in Brixham’s 22, Blues win the lineout and their forwards attack taking play up to the line but they cannot get the final yard to score, Blues have a 5m scrum, from the scrum Blues take play across the pitch but still cannot quite get over the line and win another 5m scrum, again from the scrum Blues forwards are up to the line but get held up another Blues 5m scrum, Blues forwards put more pressure on the Brixham defence but cannot get over and have another attacking scrum, this time Blues forwards put the pressure on Brixham but the ball is fed back allowing Joe Pigott to make the break through to score wide out on the left the conversion just slides past the posts, 16-5 60 mins

Toby Pearce on Jamie Futcher off

Brixham restart Blues gather and don’t clear when their kick is charged down but get a scrum when the loose ball is knocked on by Brixham, Blues win the scrum and clear to touch on half way, Brixham win the lineout and their forwards maul making good ground before the ball is spread wide, Blues manage to steal at the tackle but don’t get far before the mistake in the form of a knock on gives Brixham an attacking scrum.
Brixham hold their scrum and run at Blues winning a penalty which Tom Putt slots between the uprights to make the score 19-5 70 mins

Graham Stewart off Paul Sayers on

Blues make a mistake at the restart kick so back for a Brixham scrum on halfway, scrum won Brixham attack before kicking into Blues 22, Blues run out of defence before putting a good kick deep into Brixham’s 22 Brixham clear to touch, Blues take quickly and a good Josh Bartlett run takes play up to Brixham’s 22 he releases Ollie Spanswick who gets over the line but the ref rules the ball is held up, Blues have a 5m scrum, Blues pack shoves Brixham backwards at the scrum and the good momentum is stopped by Brixham infringing so Blues are awarded a penalty try 19-12 75 mins

Richard West on Adam Neal off and a bit of a reshuffle between backs and forwards

The heavy pitch has taken its toll in the second half and there have been numerous injury time outs so some minutes to be added on

Newbury gather Brixham’s restart kick and put up a high kick, a good chase is rewarded when Brixham knock on in the tackle, Blues have a scrum on halfway, a big shove by the Blues forwards wins a penalty which is kicked to touch deep in Brixham territory, lineout won Blues forwards maul towards the try line, Blues keep the pressure on Brixham’s defence through several phases but Brixham manage to steal the ball at the ruck and kick clear up field.
Blues gather and run but concede a penalty at the tackle, Brixham kick to touch still in their own half, lineout won Brixham’s forwards trundle up the pitch getting into Blues half, Blues manage to rob the ball but a knock on gives Brixham a scrum just outside Blues 22. Brixham just hold their scrum going backwards but again good pilfering by Blues gives them the ball, a long kick and good chase takes play back into Brixham’s 22, Blues get a penalty scrum when Brixham hold on at the tackle, Blues shove Brixham backwards at the scrum and win another penalty scrum, this time Blues make a mistake at their dominant scrums allowing Brixham to clear to touch and the final whistle is blown

Blues put up a good fight in the second half but couldn’t claw back the points they had conceded in the first half, Blues only reward from this closely fought game a losing bonus point. Blues again gave away far too many penalties in their own half which cost 12 points

A game of two halves with Brixham probably just deserving the win, good luck to you for the last few games of the season and all at Newbury RFC wish your captain a speedy recovery from his broken arm, also thanks for giving Newbury RFC a great Devon welcome at Brixham RFC, hope to see you next season

Newbury Squad
Graham Stewart, Rob Drysdale, James Macauley, Adam Neal, Duncan Craigen, Dylan Stewart
Ollie Spanswick, Alex Millar, Joe Pigott, Richard West, Toby Pearce, Josh Love, Dan Thorne
Jamie Futcher, Josh Bartlett, Paul Sayers, Kris Ford, Ollie Milner

A big thank you to all the travelling Blues support who made the long journey to Brixham much appreciated by Players and coaching staff

Blues next game is the rearranged home game against Cleve on Sat 17th March, KO time TBC, let’s all get behind the boys and hope for a good win at Monks Lane