Stroud played their final home game of the season in front of a sizeable crowd on Past Players Day. Youth was very much to the forefront of the side with seven teenagers in the squad including four out of the starting front five forwards. Fairford as ever brought their “Green Army” to add to an excellent atmosphere at Fromehall.

1 Ryan Poole 2 Tom Stone 3 Tom Allen 4 Will Tidey 5 Darion Lambert 6 Sam Davies 7 Aaron Raath 8 Zinzan Cremins 9 Spike Parsons 10 Joe Ashenford 11 Marcus Martin 12 Sam Lewothy (Captain) 13 Myles Marklove 14 Peter Sykes 15 Fin Hill Replacements: 16 Phil Fruin 17 Tom Flanagan 18 Eddy Davey-Jawara

The opening salvos from Stroud were very dis-jointed as a much-changed backline looked to bed itself in. Early penalties stopped any Stroud momentum and it was Fairford who earned the first opportunity at points but their penalty kick drifted wide.

Despite the lack of cohesion, Stroud had their share of ball, with the scrum being as secure as ever and Tidey and Lambert generating their share of possession from the line-out. The first score of the afternoon however came from an excellent turnover from Cremins, which allowed Parsons and Ashenford to spread the ball wider to Marklove. Certainly not lacking in confidence on debut, he showed great acceleration to attack the wider channel before exhibiting pace and power to race away up the touchline and scorch in from 60m. Ashenford converted. 7-0.

The right side of the pitch would prove a source of great success throughout the afternoon and this flank would see the next Stroud score. A powerful burst from Raath from deep inside his own half set the platform for Ashenford to release Leworthy for the first of many destructive carries. Bursting through multiple tacklers, the skipper found the wide-open spaces before a well-timed offload to the supporting Lambert saw the second-row cross by the posts. Ashenford converted. 14-0. Flanagan replaced Davies (blood injury).

Fairford were having their fair share of possession and regularly looked to carry close to the ruck. Pressure at the breakdown forced Strouid into the concession of a penalty, which Fairford kicked to the corner. A solid line-out allowed a series of forward drives culminating in a powerful crash ball line that resulted in a well-deserved score. Try converted. 14-7.

A more patient build-up was needed for the next score as the forward pods began to make some inroads. Raath and Cremins were at the heart of many of the carries but Tidey and Davies were also getting through their fair share of work. One burst from Cremins gave Stroud real momentum before Tidey took play into the Fairford 22.

Ashenford recognised space out wide and spread play to Marklove, who committed two tacklers before freeing Sykes. The winger still had plenty of work to do but showed great evasion to avoid three covering tacklers to cross wide on the right wing. 19-7.

The scrum has been particularly solid all season – the introduction of Poole did nothing to diminish this and the youngster showed great technique to dominate his more sizeable opposite number throughout the game. From a solid base, Cremins fed Leworthy on a hard line to crash through multiple tacklers before gifting a score to the ever-willing support runner, Lambert. Ashenford converted. 26-7.

Stroud continued to press and Fairford were forced to clear their lines regularly. One such clearance was expertly taken by Allen, showing his skills go far beyond scrummaging and set up another attack. His distribution in the forward pods was also becoming more and more prominent throughoput the game.

The next score was not long in coming; Leworthy continued his destructive carrying after a classic turnover from Cremins set up a Stroud attack against a disorganised defensive line. Not requiring an invite to take the play forward, the skipper broke through two tackles before showing enough speed to cruise away from the scramble defence to crash over in the corner. 31-7.
The half finished the way it started with Stroud looking to exploit the wider spaces - Parsons and Ashenford combined to free Hill, who linked with Sykes and Marklove, who again showed his pace to race in for his second of the afternoon. 36-7.

Half Time Stroud Rugby 36 Fairford RFC 7

Fruin and Davey started the second half and were soon in the game showing solid tackle technique as Fairford dominated the early possession. Flanagan, as ever, was at the forefront of the defensive effort and was well-supported by Davies, who had returned to the field.

The first 15 minutes of the half were scoreless with defences on top but Stroud continued to show patience and built through the phases. Parsons unfortunately had to leave the field after a head knock with Ashenford moving into to scrum-half and Marklove moving to 10.

Fruin and Davey this time showed their strength in attack carrying well into the 22 before a series of forward pick and goes gave solid ball for Ashenford to spread wide. Marklove showing his distribution skills, picked out Hill, who gave Sykes room on the outside to beat his opposite number and dive over in the corner. 41-7.

The next score was almost identical with Cremins and Leworthy providing the initial surges before the ball went wide from Marklove to Hill. Tis time the young full-back backed himself and forced his way over between two tacklers. 46-7.

Fairford were playing with a huge amount of pride – led by their strong running Number 8, they continued to test the Stroud defence and earned a penalty that was kicked deep into the home 22. Another series of short-range drives were repelled with Flanagan, Stone and Cremins showing bravery in the close-quarter battle. Further penalties were conceded and Flanagan was eventually penalised for a no-arms tackle in the course of a Fairford score from close range and received a yellow card. Try converted. 46-14.

With the game breaking up – Stroud exploited the wider spaces with Martin and Sykes making ground up the wings and Leworthy and Davey continuing to carry well. Ashenford was in his element, exploiting space close to the ruck to snipe away; well supported by Sykes, play pushed deep into the Fairford 22. When the defence transgressed at the breakdown, Ashenford took a quick tap and crashed over. 51-14.

Fairford scored a wide try of their own after excellent handling before Stroud completed the scoring with one of the best tries of the afternoon. A clean line-out take from Tidey set the platform for the attack. Cremins and Lambert carried well before the ball was spread wider to Sykes to once again show his elusiveness to always beat the first defender. Carrying deep into the Fairford half, the ball was the spread left and excellent hands from Marklove and Davey found Martin, who took the ball on at speed to cross in the left-hand corner (a rarity in this game for Stroud – 9 of the 10 tries were scored to the right of the posts!).

Full Time Stroud Rugby 56 Fairford RFC 19

This was a fine way for Stroud to sign off on their Home fixtures this season. Youth certainly flourished with all the teenagers more than doing their bit and showing that the integration of Colts players into Senior Rugby continues to develop after the successes of last season. The squad now turn their focus to a classic top of the table clash next week as they visit Gloucester Old Boys (March 11 Kick-off 1430).

Huge thanks to all the past players and supporters, who created a great atmosphere both during and after the game. The support the team has received at Fromehall this season is much appreciated and we hope it will be the same on our travels in the next three games.

Man of the Match: Myles Marklove