Great first 20 minutes proves decisive for the Seconds

07/03/09 - Tribute Somerset Three South: North Petherton II 26 v 19 Wiveliscombe II

Report by Matt Glanville

With several more players available this week and a strong looking bench to call on, North Petherton Seconds started this match with a much more balanced look to their side than they had during last weeks defeat at Weston. They also began the match in a much more positive manner, showing good aggression at the breakdown and closing down the space out wide.

Playing down the slope, Pethy dominated the opening 20 minutes and established a lead that they would not relinquish for the rest of the match. During this period they played some great rugby, scoring 3 well-worked tries.

The first try was scored after 5 minutes as Pethy swept forward from the kick-off, securing plenty of quick ball, and overwhelming the visitors defence to quickly set up a good position inside the Wivvey 22. A step inside and floated pass from fly-half Mark Sutherland-Earl was met by a perfectly timed run from full-back Dave hill, who cut a great line towards the right of the posts to dissect the opposition centre’s, before off-loading out of the tackle for right winger Matt Habberfield to score in the corner.

Pethy collected the restart, and a quick pass to flanker Miles McNeillie saw him outpace the majority of the Wivey forwards to set up another good position inside the visitors half. Several quick phases of play then got Petherton to within 10 metres of the try-line, and good passing by scrum-half Kev Rybaruk and prop Kyle Prescott put winger Lloyd Steward away, and he comfortably rounded his opposite man to score. He converted his own try to give Pethy a 12-0 lead.

Clearly boosted by the way they had begun the match, the home side began to play with great confidence, and after 20 minutes they were 19-0 up after good work from the forwards again established a great position in the middle of the Wivvey 22. Quick ball went to the left where Pethy had a big overlap, which allowed Kyle Prescott to show his handling skills once more to dummy his way through the stretched covering defence. Lloyd Steward added the conversion.

Pethy were then guilty of letting their opponents off the hook somewhat as their level dropped and the match became a much slower and scrappier affair. Wivvey’s larger pack began to get their hands on the ball, and they gained some good position of their own inside the Pethy 22 after 30 minutes. Some good driving play later and a simple crash ball to their big outside centre saw him beat a couple of attempted tackles and force his way over the line under the posts for a converted try.

This type of play continued into the second half as the visitors made life hard for the home side to get out of their half. Pethy made a number of changes after the break which did not help them gain any momentum, and the visitors pack eventually rumbled their way over from close range for a second converted try to bring the score back to 19-14.

However, just as it was beginning to look like Pethy would throw away their lead, their fresher legs began to tell and they were able to up the pace of the game, again stretching the Wivvey defence, forcing them to concede penalties. Quick tap and go’s by Rybaruk and Nick Pocock helped Pethy to gain ground quickly, and Prescott again showed good hands to put Sutherland-Earl in space after 70 minutes. With the Wivvey defence outnumbered, he sold a dummy and showed good pace to finish under the posts from outside of the 22 to seal the victory for his side. Steward added the extras for a 26-14 lead.

Wiveliscombe never gave up, and during the last five minutes their forwards again pounded the Pethy try-line. With the final play of the match, their No.8 barrelled over for a consolation score. The conversion was missed and Pethy celebrated a good victory over a team who are above them in the league table.

For Pethy, this was a much more positive performance than the week before, during which they displayed some of the good running rugby that they have struggled to produce in recent matches. In what was a good team performance, prop Kyle Prescott was outstanding for Pethy, playing almost like a second fly-half and being pivotal in much of Petherton’s best play. The experience of Rybaruk and Sutherland-Earl at 9 and 10 brought a calming influence to the backs, who all played with much more direction as a result. Full-back Dave Hill was particularly prominent, hitting the line with pace and making good yards with some strong ball-carrying.

H/T: 19-7

Tries: Habberfield, Lloyd Steward, Prescott, Sutherland-Earl

Cons: Lloyd Steward (3)

Pens:

Drop Goals:

Team: 15. Hill, 14. Habberfield (Rep. Walford, 65), 13. Powell, 12. D.Steward (Rep. C.Burge, 60), 11. Lloyd Steward, 10. Sutherland-Earl, 9. Rybaruk, 1. Glanville (Rep. PC Prop, 55), 2. Long (Rep. Kearle, 65), 3. Prescott, 4. Tew, 5. Kingston, 6. Pocock, 7. McNeillie (Rep. Pither, 40), 8. Harris.