On a very hard pitch and on a hot sunny day the first 30 minutes of this match belonged to Taunton. There were spaces opening all around the Pethy defence, and the home team quickly notched up a deserved 20 point lead through 4 unconverted tries. It could have been a few more if it wasn’t for players covering back, especially full-back Tom Williams who made some huge tackles as the last defender.

Pethy struggled to get their hands on the ball and when they did could only clear their lines, and even though they were fielding a near full-strength first team, Petherton were unusually dis-organised in defence. The last of the Taunton tries seemed to have a big effect on the game. Tom Williams managed to race back to make the tackle on the break-away runner, and even though he had crossed the try line, Tom held up the player and dragged him back over the line. The next supporting Taunton player raced in and put his knee into Tom’s back who was now on the deck. Even though the ref was present the game continued, the ball rolled out and Taunton went on to score in the corner. This served to inspire Pethy to up their game in a match that had been intensive from the start, and the rest of the game became an outright battle.

From this point on the defensive line became almost unbreakable and the tackling was stepped up a notch. As soon as Pethy got their hands on the ball they moved up the field with a few small breaks and by taking any penalties quickly. Constant pressure by the forwards on Taunton whenever they tried to clear their lines eventually saw the full-back drop the ball. Kevin Ryburuk was on hand to kick the ball into space and set off to what seemed to be a clear opportunity to score, however he was tripped by the fullback who was on the deck. Pethy reacted badly to the deliberate foul and the penalty ended up going against them.

Not long after Pethy found themselves in the home 22, and with the home team conceding penalty after penalty trying to stop the onslaught, Pethy were awarded one 10 meters out. Kevin Ryburuk saw that powerhouse Harley Brown was running from deep, took a tap and off loaded it to him at full tilt, and even with the defence organised, he was unstoppable, crashing over to score and taking most of the Taunton front row with him. Tom Williams converted to bring Pethy back into the game at half-time 20-7 behind.

Right from the start of the second half Pethy continued to play with the added aggression and confidence that they found at the end of the first. Within minutes of the kick-off Pethy found themselves on the home team’s try line. The ball was taken down the short side and quick hands from Carter and Lees saw Chris Wand, who had just stepped on to the pitch, score in the corner. Tom Williams was unable to convert.

Pethy spent the next 5 to 10 minutes defending whatever was thrown at them and as a result Taunton started to kick possession away trying to gain field possession. Deciding to run everything Pethy started to make breaks, both through forwards and backs. The next time Taunton got their hands on the ball another big tackle was made deep inside the Pethy half close to the touchline, and with Pethy now getting to the breakdowns quickly, the ball was turned over and popped out to the surprised Chris Burge who decided to go blind, drew the defender and released Lloyd Williams who pinned his ears back and ran two thirds of the pitch to score under the posts. Tom Williams easily converted to put Petherton only 1 point behind.

Within a couple phases of the kick off, the forwards produced quick ball and Kevin Rybruk threw a long pass to Lloyd Williams, who sold a dummy to his opposite man and broke from his 22m, taking the ball just over the half way line. He then drew the last defenders and then threw another long pass to the supporting James Carter who ran it in. Tom Williams was unable to convert, but Petherton were now leading for the first time in the match.

The rest of the game became very stop start, penalties were given at nearly every breakdown, and both teams began to get more and more frustrated with decisions being made. This spilled over into the play resulting in a few small scuffles, and the Pethy tackling kept getting bigger with a large crowd cheering them on.

The best attacking chance for Taunton in the second half saw the ball spread wide quickly to their speedy winger; however Bradley Archer made a great tackle, got to his feet quickly and stole the ball. Just before the end of the game Pethy had a strong driving maul going from a lineout and as it entered the home 22 the home team’s flanker tried to bring it down by dangerously lifting the leg of Matt Glanville, who tried hard to stay up before it continued off the ball. The referee was on hand and, probably having had enough of the off-the-ball spats during the game, yellow carded both the flanker and somewhat surprisingly Glanville as well.

The whole team played well in the second half and as a result came off the pitch ecstatic with the result, as it was the first time they had won the cup in several years. The front row of Harley Brown, Matt Glanville, Andy Long and Kyle Prescott had great games with and without the ball. Open side flanker Gavin Wolfe was everywhere, making some bulldozing runs often taking several players to stop him. He stole the ball in the tackle and in the rucks and mauls, and tackled everything. In the second half the backs looked dangerous and were throwing everything into their tackles.

It was good to see James Carter with a Pethy shirt on again. He had no game for Bridgwater and Albion over the weekend and was able to help out his old side who were missing usual centre Rob Havill. It was also a big positive to see a few new faces in the team who all played a big part in the win, as well as a few faces who have been away for most of the season. Petherton will be hoping to keep hold of these players to boost their chances of promotion next season.

Tries: H.Brown, Wand, L.Williams, J.Carter

Cons: T.Williams (2)

Pens:

Drop Goals:

Team: 15. T.Williams, 14. B.Williams (Rep. Archer, 40), 13. J.Carter, 12. C.Burge, 11. D.Steward (Rep. Wand, 40), 10. L.Williams, 9. Ryburuk, 1. Prescott, 2. Glanville (Rep. Long, 40), 3. H.Brown, 4. M.Burge, 5. Lees, 6. Gingell, 7. Wolfe (Rep. Glanville, 70), 8. M.Brown.