Blues are forced into several changes due to injury and unavailability but the strength in depth is such that their performances stay at the same level and the wins keep coming

Banbury kick off on a warm sunny afternoon, a good chase keeps Blues in their own 22 but a Banbury knock on gives Blues a scrum just outside their 22, Blues pack put in a big shove and win a penalty which Alex Bancroft clears to touch, Banbury steal the lineout and run at Blues before putting a kick deep into Blues 22, Blues run out of defence but concede a penalty which Banbury slot between the posts, 3-0 5 mins

Blues take the restart kick, Banbury gather and some good rugby takes them across the pitch making good ground until a knock on halts their progress, Banbury win a penalty at the scrum which they tap and go running at the Blues defence, Blues manage to steal the ball but concede a penalty at the tackle.
Banbury kick to touch, lineout won their forwards maul up to the line before the ball is quickly spread out allowing them to score under the posts, the conversion is kicked 10-0 11 mins

Blues need to up their game and a few minutes later they have opened their scoring, a good Toby Pearce run results in the ball being kept live and fed out to Kris Ford who charges trough the Banbury defence to score a try, Rory Jones adds the conversion 10-7 16 mins

Banbury restart, Blues gather and the forwards pick and drive before kicking deep, Banbury run the ball before putting in a kick, Blues gather and run but a knock on gives Banbury a scrum, Blues win a free kick at the scrum which is cleared to touch, Banbury win the lineout and their forwards maul before they put in another kick, Blues gather and win the scrum when Banbury knock on in the tackle.
Blues scrum is reset then a penalty for Blues which they take quick and get up to the try line before a Banbury hand knocks on the ball, Blues win the 5m scrum and a good shove by Blues pack is just stopped illegally by Banbury, Blues have another 5m attacking scrum, from the scrum Blues attack but a loose pass rolls into touch.
Banbury win the lineout and clear to touch, Blues win the lineout and mount another attack, Banbury knock a pass forward giving Blues another attacking scrum, Blues win the scrum after it had been re-set, Josh Bartlett is over but held up, Blues win the scrum and get over the line but are held up, Blues pack put on a big shove at the scrum and are rewarded when Banbury infringe, the ref blows and awards a penalty try to Blues, 10-14 31 mins

Banbury take the restart kick and after a couple of kicks by each side Blues run at Banbury Kris Ford making a good run breaking tackles and taking play into Banburys 22, Blues lose the ball allowing Banbury to kick clear, Blues gather and are straight back on the attack, a good Harvey North run takes play across the pitch and allows Josh Winfield to make the final yards to score wide out on the left, Rory Jones kicks the long conversion, 10-21 34 mins.

Blues have the better of the remaining minutes of the half but are unable to add to their score

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Blues kick off the second half down the slight slope, Banbury gather and take play back up to half way and get a scrum when Blues knock on in the tackle, scrum won Banbury attack then put up a high kick and chase, Blues gather and win a penalty at the tackle which is kicked to touch, Blues knock their lineout into touch, Banbury win their lineout but spill the ball in the tackle allowing Blues to run, a kick drifts straight out so back for a Banbury lineout.
Banbury win their lineout and some good play takes play across the pitch and into Blues 22, Banbury keep hold of the ball and spend several phases testing the Blues defence before the ball is spread out to their backs who make the break through and score the conversion is kicked 17-21 47 mins

Toby Pearce and Duncan Craigen off Alex Sparkes and Ryan Davies on

Blues kick off, Banbury run then kick, Tom Martin gathers and sets off on when of his runs, the ball is kept live, Tom Hunt out to Alex Bancroft and his long pass reaches Josh Winfield, some great interplay between him Dylan Stewart and Harvey North ends with Josh Winfield going over under the posts to score a well worked and the bonus point try, Rory Jones kicks the conversion 17-28 50 mins

Straight from Banburys kick Blues run at Banbury, the ball is spread quickly through hands which ends with Harvey North making the final yards to score, Rory Jones converts, 17-35 53 mins

Kris Ford off Duncan Craigen on

Blues are now playing some great rugby and a few minutes later have increased their lead when after some good phases they are into Banburys 22, a Rob Drysdale charge takes play close to the line and Rory Jones is there to pick up the ball and step through to score, his conversion hits the upright 17-40 57 mins

Stephen Ansell on Ben Hicks off

Nether side can make the break through over the next 15 mins although Blues are now dominant and have the better of the play some good runs from Stephen Ansell and Ryan Davis high light this period
Sadly, the game is brought to an early end when a Banbury player sustains a bad injury in a tackle, a horrible end to a good game of rugby
We wish him all the best and a speedy recovery

MOM goes to Dylan Stewart
DOD goes to Stephen Ansell

Newbury Squad
Ben Hicks, Rob Drysdale, James Macaulay, Tom Erskine, Duncan Craigen, Rory Jones,
Dylan Stewart, Josh Winfield, Tom Hunt, Alex Bancroft, Harvey North, Kris Ford,
Josh Bartlett, Toby Pearce, Tom Martin, Stephen Ansell, Ryan Davis, Alex Sparkes.

Thanks to the big Newbury crowd who travelled to Banbury much appreciated by players and coaches

Blues next match is Sat 06-10-18, 3pm KO home against Beaconsfield