Consett 2s 31 Durham City Saracens 26

Saturday 26 March 2022
Consett and District 2nds v Durham City Saracens (2nds)
(Away - Amethyst Park 2) 3:00 pm KO
Result : Consett 31 - 26 Durham City (HT 19 - 12)

Team sheet :

15 Ben Speight 2 cons
14 Oggy Chai
13 Fran Silveira
12 James Cook
11 Michael Huntington
10 James King 1 con
9 James MacLaurin
1 Jim Earley
2 Jack Bengochea
3 Tim Mackay 2 tries
4 Liam Davies
5 Tom Davies
6 Dan Spence
7 Jack Moralee
8 Rhys Powell (Captain) 2 tries

Replacements

16 Andrew Kirkup (Junior)

Physiotherapist None

Referee Derek ‘Doc’ English

It was so disappointing to lose it at the death 26-31 (4 tries to 5) when having been 12-24 down and then leading 26-24 only to have captain Rhys Powell yellow-carded and ‘letting’ Consett run a penalty from their own half to score the winner at the posts.

With little advantage from the elements on a gloriously sunny warm day, City kicked off to the Shotley Bridge end on a hard dry pitch with only seven players from the 21 who turned out a week ago in the home County Cup win against the same opponents. The sequence of main events were as follows :

5 minutes
Rhys Powell scored an unconverted try after a City scrum on the Consett 10 metre line led to repeated good carries and re-cycling. Consett 0-5 City.

10 minutes
After City missed a kick to touch, Consett scored an equalising unconverted try in the left hand corner that owed a lot to their ‘route one’ driving and re-cycling phases that gave them an easy score when City ran out of defenders. Consett 5-5 City.

20 minutes
Consett got a converted try at the posts that followed their opting for a scrum on the City 10 metre line rather than kicking a penalty to touch and thereafter good ball retention doing the job. Consett 12-5 City. Andrew Kirkup (‘Junior’ - his Dad was playing for the 1st team on the adjacent pitch helping them win it 26-44) then made his senior rugby debut when he replaced Jack Bengochea until half-time.

20 minutes
From City’s re-start Consett missed touch and the side-stepping Ben Speight ran the ball back at them and was only stopped on the home 22 by a high tackle for which a Consett defender was yellow-carded.

35 minutes
A City penalty took the visitors to a line-out ten metres from Consett’s line and Rhys Powell forced his way over from the catch and driven line-out. Ben Speight’s conversion drew the sides level at 12-12.

37 minutes
Consett re-took the lead just before half-time with a seven pointer after they benefitted from their forwards’ ball retention and driving play. Consett 19-12 City.

Jack Bengochea came back on for Andrew Kirkup at the start of the second half but Consett quickly stretched their lead to 24-12 with an unconverted try following more driving play from their pack that was well supported by their backs. Not untypically the conceding side’s restart then did not go ‘the ten’. However the Saracens benefitted from Consett’s inability to move the ball from their scrummage - something that was down to James MacLaurin’s harrying of the home scrum-half and wasn’t put right until Consett used one of their replacements.

50 minutes
Andrew Kirkup replaced Tom Davies in the 2nd row - Tom having tackled his heart out against the home side’s heavyweight forwards.

62 minutes
A Tim Mackay try followed a City penalty that gave the visitors a line-out deep in the home 22 and a catch and drive over the line. Ben Speight’s conversion reduced City’s deficit to 24-19.

65 minutes
Tom Davies then came back on for Ben Speight who had injured his shoulder (with Dan Spence moving from 6 to 13, Fran Silveira from 13 to 15. Liam Davies to 6 from 5 and Tom to 5)

70 minutes
More City pressure with the team scenting a win was rewarded when Tim Mackay claimed a second try after another catch and drive from an attacking line-out. James King converted beautifully for City to take a 24-26 lead.

77 minutes
Rhys Powell got a yellow card, I think for repeatedly slowing down Consett’s ball.

80 minutes
To use a footballing expression, the Saracens failed to see the game out when Consett scored the winning converted try, running a penalty from their own half when their replacement scrum-half, with not a little skill, carved open what there was of the Saracens defence to win the game 31-26.

I’m a sore loser and hopefully I’m not too sour about the game but it was a bit like the first 20 minutes of last week’s County Cup Semi-Final against the same opposition when City couldn’t hold on to the ball and had little continuity except that this week, with a few purple patch exceptions, it lasted for virtually the whole 80 minutes. Beaten at scrummage by a heavier Consett pack ; a line-out that was an unreliable source of possession ; and missed touches from penalties all contributed to a below par performance that on a dry pitch called for pace rather than a game of stop and start.

And so it was a stuttering performance that would have been a steal if City had won it. However, though it was hard to take, Consett just about deserved it against a very spirited but depleted City side who had some players who had stand-out performances. Rhys Powell and Tim Mackay with two tries each performed so well with neither of them taking a backward step except in the scrummage where City were under pressure all game ; Tom Davies with his brother Liam formed the second row partnership ; the ‘skeletal' Ben Speight who played so well in attack but the Man of the Match was Jack Moralee. He was terrific.

My topical points from the afternoon included :

1. Like last week Consett had a replacement on their left wing for most of the second half who looked like more of a second row forward and the City right wing would only have to have had a one on one on him to score. However Mike Powell summed it up very well on the touch-line when he said that on the day the Saracens were never going to string enough passes together to make it happen.

2. It was a pleasure for me to meet one of City’s keenest supporters, Wilf Moralee, who pointed out that he was no relation to Jack Moralee — though with their shared and uncommon surnames they would have to be if we were to go back long enough.

3. It was also a pleasure for me to meet Rhys Powell’s mum on the touchline - she was keen to point out that Rhys had inherited his skills from her rather than his Dad Mike.

4. A word here too for the referee, Derek ‘Doc’ English, who although he refereed the scrums fussily, was at least consistent and his game did not reflect on his now portly stature.

We hope to play Horden at home in our re-arranged home League fixture this Saturday the 02nd April - check for updates on the Club’s website. More importantly the Saracens County Second Teams Cup Final will be a 3pm kick-off on Hollow Drift against Durham University’s Palatinates on Saturday 30th April for a fitting end to the Saracens’ season.

The result of this League game takes this season’s Saracens playing record to :

Played : 12 W : 6 L : 6 Points F : 350 Points A : 250 Tries for : 58 Tries against : 38

of which the ‘Candy League 2 South’ record is :

Played : 8 W : 2 L : 6 Points F : 173 Points A : 204 Tries for : 28 Tries against : 31

SE
Wednesday 30 March 2022