Stroud pipped at the death by powerful Bath

It was a New Year. Santa had been kind to the U15s squad. Brand new shirts were laid out for them. Even had numbers. None of this nickname garbage on their shirts - just leave that for the match reports..... The kids looked splendid in their blue, black and white outfit. In fact they looked exactly the same as Bath who were their opponents. We just had a nicer shade of blue so 1st victory to us. After we had won the shirt face-off Bath backed down and resorted to white – very magnanimous – and better than going as Skins in the biting windy conditions.

The other pressie from Santa was a new unicorn inspired notepad for the match reporter. Lovely pink and purple hues were a great match for the tour shirt. Just like unicorns it was going to be more made up stories leaping from its pages for the rest of the year….

Stroud were still in a flanker injury crisis. Harry and now Euan were still injured. We had finally worked out the curse. Flanker coach Mk II had broken his leg last week at Seniors training so he was dispatched to London for the weekend in the hopes the injury curse followed him. Likewise injured Bailey at prop would leave a gap – quite literally – so a wholescale re-org of the forwards was on the cards. A lot of the kids hadn’t played since early Dec so would take a few minutes to blow the cobwebs, turkey sandwiches and mince pies out of the system. If last weeks training session was any indicator they had a lot of pies to shift…..

Forwards: Liam, Orgy, Bernie, Darion, Jedd, Stoner, Laurie, Mr T
Backs: Hilly, Will, Dave, Keyan, Big Mac (aka new Archie), Billy, Alex
Subs: Lucas, Callum, Fin, Arthur, Flash, Jamie

Stroud kicked off and the ball bounced into touch on the 22. Bath won their lineout and quickly attacked left. Mr T was quick in defense and pushed them back but Stroud were penalised so Bath kicked for touch. Another lineout on their 22 gave them an attacking platform but quick Stroud defence lead by Stoner and Laurie stopped them abruptly. This time Bath were penalised at the breakdown and Will kicked for touch. Laurie took an excellent catch from a laser throw by Orgy. Hilly’s expert pass set the backs away. You know what comes next…. Will feeds Dave the perfectly timed crash ball on the perfect line. Dave runs through 3 tackles and forces himself over the try line for the opening score. Easy conversion and Stroud led 7-0

Bath kicked off and Stroud ran it back. The ball came out to the backs and Keyan went for a long pass but the Bath winger missed his intercept and knocked on. Stroud lost their scrum restart on their 22 and Bath attacked through their well organised backs. Dave managed to rip the ball away at the breakdown and Darion made good yardage out of the 22. Ball back to Will and a long diagonal kick into space. Billy Whizz just missed controlling the loose ball with a gruber kick as a try scoring chance went begging. Bath won their lineout on halfway and attacked left. They then went aerial with a high kick that Alex knocked on as he landed on top of Mr T! Stroud managed to win the Bath scrum restart against the head with a great shove and expert hook by Orgy. Hilly saw the gap and set the backs off left. Will dummied one defender and cut up over half way. As the defence closed him down he launched the perfect pass to Billy who finished the job and out-sprinted the covering tackles and dotted down close to the posts. A massive gust of wind then conspired to force the conversion kick wide but Stroud had edged out to 12-0.

Bath kicked off long and Darion ran it back well. He got isolated at the tackle though and held on so Bath were awarded a penalty. They kicked for touch but the swirling wind kept the ball in play, but forced a Stroud knock-on. Net result was Bath still controlled the ball with a scrum restart 10 metres away from the Stroud line. They duly won the scrum and went through a few forward phases. Stroud were under immense pressure and eventually a crash ball to their prop forced them over the try line. A good conversion made it 12-7 to Stroud.

Stroud kicked off short but Bath controlled it well. They kicked left into space but Alex bravely dived in amongst the feet to secure the ball. Ball back to Will and a long kick. The Bath full back caught it well and sent a kick back that Will was waiting for. This time Will kicked diagonally and Billy was unlucky to knock-on as he tried to gather the ball at pace. Bath won their scrum and their powerful #8 went down the blindside. He smashed through 1 set of tackles and looked to accelerate but Billy put in a superb tackle (aided by his tackle!) and brought him down. Darion pounced and ran the ball up the left wing but was man handled into touch. Bath won the lineout and attacked left. Quick hands got the ball to their big back who crashed through the Stroud up-rushing defensive line. He accelerated towards Alex but this just meant he fell further and harder as Alex dumped him to the ground. Quick Bath recycling kept the move alive though and they kept the ball alive down the left flank aided by some missed tackles and managed to score in the corner. The difficult conversion was missed but the game was finely balanced at 12-12.

Bath recovered the long kickoff and ran it back well. More missed tackles gave them plenty of space to exploit. They then saw a gap and kicked over the top but Big-Mac (aka Archie) retreated well and had no option but to hack the ball into touch close to the Stroud line. Bath won their lineout and went for a driving maul but Stroud held them up well and then by some Christmas miracle Jedd came away carrying baby Jesus – sorry the ball – and Stroud managed to drive forward to give them some breathing room. Will went with another diagonal kick and this time it was 3rd time lucky. Keyan recovered the bouncing ball at pace and shot up the left flank. As their winger looked to have him under control a perfect inside pass to Dave set him away and he ran in a try from halfway. Will kicked the afters and Stroud were leading again 19-12.

Bath kicked off and Jedd caught it well and ran it back strongly. Both packs engaged in pick and runs and rucking turnovers. Eventually Stroud won the combative battle and were awarded a scrum restart. Laurie took the ball from the base of scrum and made good yardage. Good clearouts from Lucas and Bernie gave Hilly clean ball. He led the attack right which unleashed Big Mac. He sped up the right wing but was tackled by their fullback. Bath stole a turnover at the ruck and kept the ball in tight with their forwards. Still penned into their 22 they kicked long but Big Mac had retreated in time to recover the loose ball. The ball came out to Will who kicked over to Billy's flank again and was duly recovered by Billy. He ran out of space and passed inside to Keyan who was unlucky to knock-on as another chance went AWOL.
Bath knew they were in a battle for sure. They won their scrum restart on the 22 and attacked left. They managed to get up the left flank and try scoring chance but Alex snuffed them out and then Stroud managed to turnover the ball and Will kicked long and a great kick chase penned them deep in their own 22.The quick Stroud defensive line was putting pressure on them and the ball kept going backwards. A Bath knock-on deep in their 22 was missed by the ref and as play continued Bath managed to run it up the pitch as tired bodies started to litter the pitch. Stroud were penalised and a quick tap penalty gave Bath an easy run to the try line. The conversion was good and the game was drawn again at 19 a piece as the ref blew for half time.

Half Time: Bath 19 – 19 Stroud

As the players stopped for a well earnt rest the sub changes were made and coaching advice offered. We like to think it was absorbed in the heat of battle !

Bath kicked off – this half wind assisted – and Mr T caught it well. Attacking runs by Keyan, Liam and Fin followed as Stroud made progress up the pitch. Bath were not backing down though and eventually forced a turnover that gave them the attacking platform to come back into the Stroud half as more tackles were missed. These injured flankers can’t come back quick enough! At a subsequent breakdown Jedd showed great technique to rip the ball and force a turnover. Stroud were turned over themselves though but Bath couldn’t capitalise as they knocked on as Stoner smashed in with a big hit. Stroud won their scrum restart and Flash set Wil away well. Wil drew the defenders and another backs move threatened but the ball was knocked on again. Bath had a threatening scrum on the Stroud 22 which they duly won and their #8 went down the blindside and scored a try as a few more tackles were missed – like the conversion. Bath now had their 1st lead of the day at 24-19 and the wind in their sails – quite literally. It would be tough for Stroud to stay in the game at this rate.

Stroud kicked off and again another good runback – but again Stoner was waiting with a crunching tackle. Quick counter rucking earnt Stroud a penalty and Wil kicked for touch on half way. Laurie was again the lineout master and fed clean ball to Flash. Ball out to Will and a sideways kick – wind assisted we think. No worries as Alex plucked it out of the air and kept the attack alive. The forwards were supporting well and more expert rucking from Lucas and Orgy kept Stroud in charge. Darion went Rhino, followed by Mr T. The ball came out to the backs and Dave went for a little kick over the top but Bath recovered it well and kicked long. Somehow Laurie was the first there and managed to keep the ball under Stroud control. Soon though Bath managed to take control of the ball and a scrum restart. They attacked left and right with Finn and Jedd doing well in defense. Bath were closing in on the line and had a penalty for offside. They took a tap penalty and were camped on the Stroud line but Stroud did great to keep them out and force a knock-on.

On their own 5 metre line Orgy did a fantastic hook to win the scrum. The backs attacked from under their posts with Dave, Keyan and Fin making good distance. Bath though forced another turnover and came back strongly into the Stroud 22. Another good Stroud turnover (probably dark arts master Orgy claiming credit with an able assist from Arthur) unleashed the backs and Keyan powered up the right wing. Instead of keeping the ball alive to the right and releasing Big Mac an inside pass was tried and Bath intercepted it. Bath kept the ball alive and worked their way back into the Stroud half with inventive passing to keep the ball alive. A kick to the 22 was well handled by full back Fin who called the mark and then kicked long for touch to give Stroud some breathing room.

Bath won their lineout on halfway and attacked to the left. More missed tackles let them advance into the 22 but eventually a good tackle from Laurie and Liam forced a Bath knock-on. Stroud won their scrum on their own 22 and more precision passing through the backs got the ball out to Big Mac on the right wing and he managed to avoid a number of desperate tacklers and scoot down the wing and then have the foresight to run it under the posts to give Will an easy conversion. Stroud now led 26-24. As they retreated back for the kick-off a yellow card was shown to Dave relating to a disagreement he had with the ref over how good that try was they had scored from deep. Stroud would now be down to 14 men – just as they had regained the initiative.

Bath kicked long and Stroud made a number of handling errors as they readjusted for the missing Dave. Bath pounced on these errors and took over the ball and pounded the Stroud line. Just as another try looked inevitable Stroud won a penalty and Will kicked quick and long into space. Arthur was quickly there and forced a Bath knock-on at half way. The next few minutes was dominated with Stroud scrums and rucking in the central areas. Eventually Will kicked right but it ricoched off a Bath player and gave Stroud a lineout. Laurie was reliable with his catching again and the forwards then drove forward. The ball came out to Will and he had to turn it upfield himself as the backs were still reorganising into the gaps that Dave would take. Bath defended well and held up the maul and were awarded a scrum that they duly won. They attacked deep into the Stroud half but were eventually slowed down by James and Arthur. Good counter-rucking from Callum and Jedd forced a turnover and Stroud attacked right from their own 22. Big Mac got the ball and was quickly isolated. Bearing homage to his fast food nickname (his choice!) he offloaded from the ground to a Bath player who took the takeaway service and ran it unopposed to the Stroud line. A desperate Keyan tackle in dead ball area seemed to have denied the try but the ref judged he grounded it OK in the narrow area. The easy conversion was missed as Stoner charged it down and forced the kicker to screw it wide. Bath now back in front at 29-26. Dave’s sin bin expired and the cost was 5 points.

Will kicked long and Bath knocked on at their own 22. Stroud went to pounce but Bath kicked it out the back off their try zone. Instead of a Stroud scrum 5 it was set back as a Stroud scrum for the original knock-on. Stroud won the 1st scrum but it was reset because of an early Bath push. Bath then won the 2nd scrum and kicked long. Stroud controlled the ball and Fin attacked down the right. Bath were immense in the tackle though and forced another rip-turnover. They then attacked the Stroud 22 themselves but more stout defending by Stoner and Mr T forced a Stroud turnover. Callum pounced on the ball and went on a powerful run. Stroud managed to keep the ball alive and work it out to Big Mac on the wing. Bath were alert to his pace and forced him into touch on halfway.

Bath won their lineout and attacked right and eventually they were turned over by Mr T. Stroud back on the attack with Keyan crashing up inside. A clever inside ball at the next ruck to Liam was unluckily knocked on. Bath won the scrum restart and their backs attacked left and right and exploited the increasing gaps in the tired Stroud defense. Eventually they broke through a gap and scored a try in the left corner. The kick was missed but Bath were now 8 points up at 34-26.

Stroud kicked off and Bath immediately kicked for touch and celebrated as the full time whistle blew.

Full Time: Bath 34 – 26 Stroud

Both teams applauded each other off the pitch. Stroud had controlled the majority of the first half with expert kicking and pacy runs by the Stroud backs. All made possible by great defensive organisation and good forward play. Bath edged the 2nd half aided by the strong wind and the larger subs bench that exploited our tiring limbs. The lack of match fitness since early December caught us up at the end, but the team performance was tremendous throughout the game and puts us in good position to take on Clifton next weekend and go for County Cup revenge!

Bath were upto match fitness faster than us because they had played Minch last week. They had beaten them 64-7 so that shows how well we had played to only lose at the death, and for a few missed tackles, or missed attacking opportunities we could have come out on top. Bath were fully deserving of their victory though because they kept the ball alive well and were strong in the tackle and the breakdown.

Good luck to Marling boys in their national cup 5th round cup game vs Wellington College on Tuesday. They are down to the final 16 teams in the country. Do Stroud RFC and Gloucestershire proud and give it your best against perennial champions Wellington.