Pethy Earn Hard Fought Victory Against Burnham

23rd October 2010 - Tribute Western Counties West:

North Petherton 23 v Burnham on Sea 17

Match Kindly Sponsored By "Gentleman Farmers of Somerset" Harold Bult & Tony Bradford

Report by Matt Ranson

North Petherton came out on top in this local derby, but did not have it all their own way.

For the first time this season they came up against a young abbrasive pack of forwards who would not lie down and fought hard against the Pethy 'machine'. Had they had a similar set of backs, then the result may well have been a different story.

Playing up the slope in the first half, Pethy's forwards struggled to produce a good supply of quick ball, with which to release their backs.

When they got quick ball, Andy Webber, making a return to action, directed them around the park with precision. Webber's vision led to a slick backs move with James Carter being the recipient of the final pass to crash over in the corner to open the Pethy account. Sam Williams missed the conversion attempt.

The game then decended into a war of attrition, with both packs grinding out the hard yards and the backs content with ariel ping pong.

Burnham got themselves on the score sheet through there No 10, Rio Cooper, who slotted two penalties, conceded by Pethy players offending at the breakdown. He also kept Pethy pinned down in their half of the field with his canon of a left boot.

Pethy regained the lead just before the break. A strike against the head, led to home No 8 Aaron Gibbs picking up and powering over for his first try of the season. Williams was again off target with the conversion attempt.

Petherton started the second half in second gear. Burnham's forwards worked the ball up field and from a ruck on the Pethy line, power house second row Mike Coles was sin-binned for handling on the floor. Burnham opted for the scrum and duely dispatched the Petherton 7 for a well taken push over try. Cooper stepped up and missed the conversion.

The home side clawed the lead back with 2 Sam Williams penalties, only to let Burnham in for a try scored by O. Streeter. This seemed to spur Pethy into life. The pack now back to full strength began to lay seige to the Burnham line. After several attacks, Matt Brown was held up, when clearly over the line. The resulting scrum allowed a bit more Webber magic. He picked up James Carter running a great line, who ghosted over near the posts. Sam Williams converted to put some daylight between the teams.

The score remainded this way to the end of the game, with both sides working hard to add to their tallies right to the final whistle. At the final whistle there was jubilation for the home side and an air of relief from the crowd.

On the whole it was a good team performance, with Andy Webber outstanding, leading and directing with an experienced head.

Petherton were glad to get their home account open after several false starts. Momentum is building, but the need to start securing bonus point wins, with 4 tries, is a point of concern. If Petherton are to compete at the upper end of the league where they have proved they are capable, then they must start putting sides away and capitalising on the new scoring system.

Team: T. Williams, J. Adams, M. Stevens, M. Foad, J. Carter, A. Webber, B. Tracey, M. Brown, A. Gibbs, G. Pettingal, M. Coles, J. Cox, K. Prescott, S. Williams, M. Angel (capt)
Reps: S. Ranson, H. Roberts, M. Mcneillie

The club would like to thank the 'Gentleman Farmers of Somerset' Harold Bult & Tony Bradford for sponsoring this match.