Exeter Saracens Rugby Club, Exeter, Devon

Match Reports

28th October 2007

 

Plymstock U10's (5 -v- 35) Exeter Saracens U10's

 

Match1 The return of Jack Clark helped inspire the Sarries to a vastly improved performance. Some strong tackles put pressure on the home team from the start, with Jack Searle running clear for early score. Most of the rugby was played in the Plymstock half and the Sarries made the most of this territorial advantage scoring 4 more tries before the break. The tries came from Charlie Pike, Morgan Rosser, Ben Colebrook and Searle again. Plymstock upped their game after the break limiting the away team to 2 more tries (through Pike and Ed Smale), with the home side finally getting some reward for their battling play with a try at the death.

 

Plymstock U10's (15 -v- 25) Exeter Saracens U10's

 

Match2 Despite the appalling weather the teams were keen to play again and this game was a much tighter affair. Plymstock dominated the play in the first half and the Sarries had to rely on 2 excellent breakaway tries from Jack Searle and a sniping effort from Ed Smale to stay on level terms at half time. Sarries larger squad helped them control the second half with a well deserved try for Jack Clark and a hat-trick try for Jack Searle completing their second win of the day.

 

Brixham U12’s (5 v 33) Exeter Saracens U12’s

 

With driving, piercing rain, racing in horizontally at times on a howling gale that blew straight down the pitch from one try line to the other, the match was to be a close fought battle against not only each other but also against the elements. In the end Exeter Saracens were to prove just too strong for a remarkably improved and bulked up Brixham side from last years meetings.

 

Sarries started with the kick-off into the wind and applied superb controlled pressure with Alex Evens, Ash Brindley and Steven Gill all wrapping the catcher up and then snaffling the ball to gain possession. With Theo Thomson, Ross Watts and Adam Tregedeon all pushing their weight around then the ball was secured with excellent rucking technique for the Scrum Half Evens to set the next phase of play into action. Always eager to break the gain-line was Sam Garner at fly half and centre partnership of Tom Pugsley and Brindley. The ball was kept tight in the conditions and it wasn’t long before Brindley received a pass to put him in the clear to score a well deserved try. With the conversion slotted by Garner then Sarries were not going to rest on that. With the kick off controlled by Thomson with his boot he picked up and launched the next assault. The breakdown was textbook with quick ball coming to Gill who threaded his was back up the touchline showing a great turn of speed, to just make it over the try line before the covering tacklers made it across. Again the conversion by Garner saw Sarries extend their lead despite playing into the horrendous conditions. Brixham upped their game and started a strategic advance to Sarries line. Two long kicked balls had to be well fielded by full back David Kittow. Despite the balls being so long that he gathered in his own in goal area, he opted to run the ball back out making remarkable ground and soon found the support of his forwards. A fantastic individual run by Jon Bardot gave the team some respite but Brixham kept pushing back with a renewed vigour. Sarries defended for what seemed an age but eventually the Sarries try line was breached by a hard fought for try by Brixham. The conditions meant that the kick was always going to be difficult to get under control and unfortunately for Brixham the effort was unsuccessful. Sarries were not done and battled back up the field with Jake Hurford, Chris Bayliss and Brindley linking well to develop a move up the touchline. With Gill gathering a loose ball on the floor he tried to carry on the move but was unceremoniously dumped out into touch which bought about the half time whistle.

(Half Time – 5-14)

 

Sarries looked to receive the ball with the conditions now to their backs. However, discounting one penalty kick during the next half, Sarries endeavoured to keep the ball tight and not to kick the ball away on the wind. With Elliot Watts starting his first game he had had an accomplished first half putting himself around where he needed to be but excelled when he gathered the kick off from Brixham, ran it back into contact before passing to the waiting Gill on his shoulder. Sarries soaked up the initial pressure that Brixham exerted but always seemed to have an answer whether it be through good flying tackling, wrapping Brixham ball carriers up in the tight and then commanding the maul using good communication skills or the powerful rucking that yielded so much ball to Sarries. A fast gain-line breaking run saw Pugsley break through and score the first try of the half. With the conversion added by Garner, then Sarries did not waste time in again pushing Brixham back into their own half after the restart. With Laurence Parker on for a short spell for Ross Watts then Sarries inched and drove towards the Brixham try line. With scrums evenly matched, the main free for all was the line outs where the wind and rain meant that the put-in’s were a lottery. Good spoiling and the awareness to pour through on loose ball saw Sarries easily get the better in this area. With Gill and Evens fighting against Brixham for each and every loose ball then it wasn’t long before Thomson found himself in a position to go over the line to score a try that seemed to lift Sarries spirits even higher. The sure boot of Garner slotting his forth conversion of the game enabled Sarries to move further into the lead. With Ross Watts back on his determination to make up for the last five minutes showed as he firstly contested an opposition lineout which forced a spill but then from in his own half took a front ball at a line out and gallivanted down the touchline like a stampeding rhino only just being pulled up for a foot in touch but despite this carrying on a further 20 yards down the pitch still looking for work. All Sarries players gritted their teeth and went on the rampage. Pure aggression showed on the faces of the likes of Tregedeon and Hurford as they committed themselves to the rucks. The half was closed off with a wonderful jinking and dazzling run from Garner who added a try to his conversion tally. Unfortunately the conversion of his own try was unsuccessful.

(Full Time – 5-33)

 

Sarries man of the match was Tom PUGSLEY for his constant hard work, commitment, lightening fast runs, tackling and superb support play.

 

Exeter Saracens U14's (47 -v- 0) Plymstock U14's

 

Saracens stretched their unbeaten run of matches to 5 when they entertained Plymstock at the weekend. Both sides started strongly and attacked and defended well. It wasn't long before the Saracens forward gained the upper hand and began to supply their backs with good quallity quick ball. Saracens crossed for first half tries through Huw Rosser, Will Bottrell, Jason Williams, Matt Pullen and Ben Shires to lead 25 nil at the interval. They continued the second half where they left off in the first and scored further tries through Alec Wheatley and Lewis Conabeare and with Rosser and Shires grabbing their second of the game. Saracens man of the match Lewis Watts added the further points with the boot to make the final score 47-0. The score could have been more if it had not been for the strong tackling of the Plymstock team

 

Plymstock U15's (7 -v- 7) Exeter Saracens U15's

 

Despite gusting winds and driving rain these two well matched sides put up an entertaining and hard fought performance. Plymstock scored in the first half from a cross field kick and Saracens Jake Robey replied with a try in the second half, coming of the back of a scrum. Craig Galoway Converted to bring the scores even.

 

Plymstock U16's (30 -v- 7) Exeter Saracens U16's

 

You could just tell that the weather wasn’t going to be friendly as you drove to Plymstock in the pouring rain and gusting winds!

 

Saracens started off playing into wind against a Plymstock side that looked bigger and stronger than Saracens, and the first few minutes certainly showed that Plymstock could put a move or two together. But the real advantage for Plymstock came from the weather and soft Sarries hands; a little inevitable really with everything so wet. The first half saw Plymstock camped out for larger parts of the game in the Sarries half, but their tries came from poor handling that gifted Plymstock good position from which they put together good moves and use of their power house forwards to secure the points. Sarries kept up as good a game as they could in the battle against Plymstock and the wind, but they lost most of the line outs to the wind that took the ball away for what was judged non straight throws. But on a better note Sarries held or won every scrum. Nevertheless Plymstock ran in 5 tries, of which non was converted despite the advantage of the wind. Sarries kept battling away and were able to break down the Plymstock defence but not for long with Plymstock’s back row closing down any real progress. However, it had to give eventually to some relentless pressure from Sarries who reaped their reward with a fine try from Ben Alsford who broke several tackles to run a twisting course over the line and across to put the ball down between the posts. Captain Ory Sharland stepped up to successfully kick against the wind for the extra points.

 

In the second half Sarries took advantage of the wind to their backs and managed to turn the run of play to play mostly in Plymstocks half. Sarries tried to maintain advantage with a kicking game by using the wind, but sadly most kicks went dead. Sarries kept up a spirited game taking several knocks from Plymstocks big forwards who surged through Sarries’ defence until being brought down in the tackle. Set plays on balance belonged to Sarries with all the scrums going with the run of play, plus several balls being stolen by Sarries Hooker Andy Radford. At the line out much better timing between the players let Martin (Tayz) Taylor win the ball.

 

In the end it was a strong defence from Plymstock that denied any further points for Saracens. Even a moment of confusion from Plymstock led most to consider their player had failed to touch the ball down in his own try area thereby giving Sarries an opportunity to take the ball for a try, but in fact the referee judged Plymstock’s player to have done so.

 

Saracens usually suffer large defeats to Plymstock with their crop of Devon players, but not this time. Saracens gave a good account of themselves in difficult conditions, which the score line doesn’t truly reflect. Not to take anything away from Plymstock though, who played the better game and deservedly won. Saracens need to keep up the hard work and training to continue their improving game and it will all soon gel together