Ormskirk u14s 55pts - Eccles u14s 0pts
With Edge Hill out of action after some light drizzle this game was moved to Burscough Priory, Eccles probably hoping it had been a real priory as divine intervention was their only answer to an Ormskirk side who played some enterprising rugby on a day suited more to a dour forward battle. However, the Eccles team must hold their heads up for showing great character and never giving in as the contest was all but over inside the first quarter of the game.
Kicking off into a strong breeze, the intention was to exert as much pressure on the visitors’ receivers as possible. However, the sight of Eddie Webster catching the ball as the Eccles forwards waited for it to drop and sprinting away to score after 10 seconds took everyone by surprise and the team from Manchester never really recovered. Jonny Dunn’s conversion just made it over. 4 minutes into the game and Gavin Griffiths scored down the blind side after great rucking by the pack. Eccles then dug in and put in some excellent tackles to thwart countless Ormskirk attacks. a No.8 pickup by Aidan Charlton saw him break clear and then time his pass perfectly for Gav to power way and score, adding a dropped goal conversion. From a scrum on half way quick ball to the centres saw Chris Nicholson well tackled, the forwards arrived to ruck quick ball and Griffiths chipped over the on-rushing backs for Dan Bailie to collect at speed and show good pace to leave three defenders and score in the corner. On half time a charge by Matt Sloyan was developed into a tremendous driving maul by the pack, then taken on by Aidan Charlton and good ruck ball saw Dan Bailie jink his way to the line before slipping the ball back to Aidan, he was stopped short but the ever-present Eddie Webster was on hand to scoop the ball up and plough over.
The second half followed a similar pattern with the forwards creating great quality ball for the backs, whose handling made a mockery the awful conditions, another Chris Nicholson break was finished off in fine style by Griffiths with Jonny Ford adding the conversion for his first points for Ormskirk. From a line out close to the line and simple catch and drive set up George Lightfoot for a try that was excellently converted by Nicholson from wide out. A deep kick off from Eccles had the idea of pinning Ormskirk back, but it dropped straight into the welcoming hands of Eddie Webster, who set off from his own 22 to score one his specials under the posts, leaving would be tacklers scattered all over the pitch. Extras added by Lightfoot whose conversion was sweet and true and questioned his desire for a pair of Dan Carter boots. Joe Wright broke away down the blind side and scored in the corner, only to see his team mate Sloyan (who was running the line) standing with his flag raised and a big smile on his face - upholding the tradition of good sportsmanship with a touch of humour. The final score was one of those tries that gets any crowd on their feet - a prop in full flight. Cecil Fairhurst put the cap on a great display with a barnstorming run the line.
Ormskirk used all their six replacements, took the opportunity to rest some of their stronger players and play people out of position without resulting in any drop in the level of superiority over an Eccles team that should be applauded for the way they stuck to their task and even came off the pitch with smiles on their faces. This Ormskirk squad is really developing well and on their day can give any side a good game. Next week’s home fixture with Lymm should be another good opportunity to build on recent success.
Tries: Eddie Webster 3, Gavin Griffiths 3, Dan Bailie, George Lightfoot, Cecil Fairhurst. Cons: Jonny Dunn, Jonny Ford, Gavin Griffiths, Chris Nicholson, George Lightfoot
Team: M.Sloyan, M.Tasker (c), S.Higgins, J.Morris-Holland, M.Swords, S.Maloney, E.Webster, A.Charlton, J.Dunn, A.Kirk, J.Ford, C.Nicholson, G.Griffiths, A.Cheung, D.Bailie. Replacements: S.Brazier, C.Fairhurst, M.Bradbury, B.Watherston, J.Wright, G.Lightfoot
