Sat 3 Sep 2022
Rugby returned to Woodhead on Saturday with the visit of the Bees and the Brods' fielded a team barely recognisable from the side which appeared last season. The Woodhead boys had no less than 8 players under the age of 20 and with 13 of the squad graduates of the club’s junior section. It was certainly going to be an unknown test in the knowledge that Bees had been recruiting strongly in order to avoid the travails of last season.
The game opened in frantic fashion with the enthusiastic Brods playing at pace on a very firm surface. The home side opened the scoring following a powerful run in centre field by Loketi Manu, with Bees infringing at the breakdown Callum Bacon stepped up to convert the penalty from over 30 metres.
In the tight the sides looked equally matched although Bees certainly had the bigger more experienced pack of forwards. Despite this, Brods held their own in the scrum and were efficient in the lineout enabling a good supply of ball to their youthful half backs. From this solid base Brods' enthusiastic running was met by some equally enthusiastic defence in midfield. However Brods applied the early pressure and from a well taken lineout a maul moved in field to threaten the line. When the ball was released from the drive it was moved swiftly to the left where Brods had an overlap and Pete Ashton strolled in to touch down. Manu stepped up to take the conversion and struck the ball well from the touchline to add the extras. 10-0 after 15 minutes play.
Brods continued to dominate the early exchanges to secure territory in the Bees 22 and proceeded to press in the right hand corner with a succession of line outs. The pressure created was repelled by the visitors however the young Brods pack stuck to their task and, following a succession of line outs on the Bees line, a well-formed drive from some ten metres out was finished by Elliot Craven who touched down when he broke from the back of the maul. The conversion was missed but a 15-0 lead was due reward for the Woodhead boys early efforts.
Bees responded immediately from the restart with some strong ball carries from their back row however Brods defence was good and when the ball was turned over in the home 22 it was swiftly moved to the left flank where an excellent pass found George Gillgrass in space. The young winger showed real pace to outflank the defence however he had to limp over the line following what looked like a pulled hamstring. The conversion was kicked by Loketi and after 26 minutes the score-line was 22-0 to the Woodhead boys.
Bees response was immediate and they looked dangerous when their strong running back row and second row forwards combined to carry the ball deep into Brods territory. Brods defence was broken when the ball was moved to the left hand corner and Bees secured an important try up the hill.
The signs were there that this Bees side had plenty of spirit and would give the Brods problems in the second half if they built up some momentum.
As it was the second half opened with Bees immediately on the offensive and they proceeded to camp in the home 22 dominating possession however their handling let them down repeatedly in their desperation to score. Brods defence maintained its discipline throughout and captain Bob Sykes led his youthful side by example working overtime in all aspects of play.
Brods could not break the stranglehold of the Bees offence however the enthusiastic defence was instrumental in forcing the Bees errors. Bees looked sure to score on several occasions however once more their handling let them down until after some 25 minutes good interplay in the Bees forwards led to the visitors getting their reward when second row forward no 5 …… scored on the left. 22-10.
With 10 minutes remaining Brods finally worked their way up field and with a penalty awarded Brods happily accepted the opportunity to kick at goal and increase the score to 25-10. Bees response was immediate as they ran the ball out of their own 22 deep into Brods territory. Some desperate defence by Callum Bacon and Matty Briggs forced Bees into touch. From the lineout Brods could not clear the ball and following a comedy of errors Bees took their chance to touch down when they dived on the loose ball.
With the successful conversion it set up a stirring finale to a very competitive game however Brods saw out the remaining minutes with no further scares and could be happy with the overall effort and enthusiasm of this very young and relatively inexperienced side.
The Woodhead faithful recognise that there is much work to be done but also appreciated some excellent attacking play in the first half followed by stirring defence in the second.
Brods now look forward to traveling the short distance to Old Crossleyans next Saturday when the two clubs resume their long held local rivalry.
The game opened in frantic fashion with the enthusiastic Brods playing at pace on a very firm surface. The home side opened the scoring following a powerful run in centre field by Loketi Manu, with Bees infringing at the breakdown Callum Bacon stepped up to convert the penalty from over 30 metres.
In the tight the sides looked equally matched although Bees certainly had the bigger more experienced pack of forwards. Despite this, Brods held their own in the scrum and were efficient in the lineout enabling a good supply of ball to their youthful half backs. From this solid base Brods' enthusiastic running was met by some equally enthusiastic defence in midfield. However Brods applied the early pressure and from a well taken lineout a maul moved in field to threaten the line. When the ball was released from the drive it was moved swiftly to the left where Brods had an overlap and Pete Ashton strolled in to touch down. Manu stepped up to take the conversion and struck the ball well from the touchline to add the extras. 10-0 after 15 minutes play.
Brods continued to dominate the early exchanges to secure territory in the Bees 22 and proceeded to press in the right hand corner with a succession of line outs. The pressure created was repelled by the visitors however the young Brods pack stuck to their task and, following a succession of line outs on the Bees line, a well-formed drive from some ten metres out was finished by Elliot Craven who touched down when he broke from the back of the maul. The conversion was missed but a 15-0 lead was due reward for the Woodhead boys early efforts.
Bees responded immediately from the restart with some strong ball carries from their back row however Brods defence was good and when the ball was turned over in the home 22 it was swiftly moved to the left flank where an excellent pass found George Gillgrass in space. The young winger showed real pace to outflank the defence however he had to limp over the line following what looked like a pulled hamstring. The conversion was kicked by Loketi and after 26 minutes the score-line was 22-0 to the Woodhead boys.
Bees response was immediate and they looked dangerous when their strong running back row and second row forwards combined to carry the ball deep into Brods territory. Brods defence was broken when the ball was moved to the left hand corner and Bees secured an important try up the hill.
The signs were there that this Bees side had plenty of spirit and would give the Brods problems in the second half if they built up some momentum.
As it was the second half opened with Bees immediately on the offensive and they proceeded to camp in the home 22 dominating possession however their handling let them down repeatedly in their desperation to score. Brods defence maintained its discipline throughout and captain Bob Sykes led his youthful side by example working overtime in all aspects of play.
Brods could not break the stranglehold of the Bees offence however the enthusiastic defence was instrumental in forcing the Bees errors. Bees looked sure to score on several occasions however once more their handling let them down until after some 25 minutes good interplay in the Bees forwards led to the visitors getting their reward when second row forward no 5 …… scored on the left. 22-10.
With 10 minutes remaining Brods finally worked their way up field and with a penalty awarded Brods happily accepted the opportunity to kick at goal and increase the score to 25-10. Bees response was immediate as they ran the ball out of their own 22 deep into Brods territory. Some desperate defence by Callum Bacon and Matty Briggs forced Bees into touch. From the lineout Brods could not clear the ball and following a comedy of errors Bees took their chance to touch down when they dived on the loose ball.
With the successful conversion it set up a stirring finale to a very competitive game however Brods saw out the remaining minutes with no further scares and could be happy with the overall effort and enthusiasm of this very young and relatively inexperienced side.
The Woodhead faithful recognise that there is much work to be done but also appreciated some excellent attacking play in the first half followed by stirring defence in the second.
Brods now look forward to traveling the short distance to Old Crossleyans next Saturday when the two clubs resume their long held local rivalry.
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