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Primo Drinks Shield Final - Heaton Moor 2nds 36 – Broughton 1sts 8
David Todd13 May - 14:59
On the Double
Moor 2nds, having secured the NOWIRUL WMD Division 4 East title some three weeks before, played in the Primo Drinks Shield final against Broughton 1sts at Macclesfield on Bank Holiday Saturday, attempting to make it a double for the season. In the event, they achieved this without too much trouble. On a bright, yet slightly chilly afternoon, it was obvious from the outset that the key to the game would be to keep the ball away from the much sturdier Broughton forwards and spread it wide at every opportunity, allowing the young, speedy Moor backs to make inroads into the opposition, much as they have done all season. As it turned out, this is what transpired, producing five tries in all, although by the end, it was their forwards who outscored the backs – 3 to 2.
Broughton kicked off and having secured the ball, Moor went straight on the attack and a breakout by lock Luke Snell took play up to their opponent’s 10-metre line, where he passed to hooker Danny Ireland on his outside and the latter out-sprinted the cover to score a somewhat spectacular try, which was converted by fly-half Jack Tyley, to give Moor a 7-0 lead with less than two minutes played. Five minutes later, Moor were awarded a penalty just over the halfway line, which Tyley kicked to touch some five meters short of the Broughton line and although the subsequent lineout was overthrown, the defenders failed to clear the loose ball and flanker Ollie Hubbarde pounced on it and dived over for the second try, converted by Tyley. After this somewhat hectic start, much to the delight of the large contingent of Moor supporters, play then settled down in midfield for the next quarter-of-an-hour and Broughton came back into the game and, unsurprisingly, their play was based around their forwards, with repeated close-quarter drives up the middle, sucking in the Moor defence. From one of these, the ball was eventually recycled along their back line, creating an overlap, for one of their players to run through and score; the conversion just falling wide. Play continued in a similar manner, with Moor having to defend, but able to cancel any threat from Broughton and on the half-hour mark, the Green Lane side found themselves back in opposition territory with a scrum just outside the 5-metre line. Winning this, the ball was shipped down the blind-side for left-winger Will Roe to collect and score in the corner, followed by an excellent conversion from the touchline by Tyley. As it transpired, this was Roe’s 25th try of the season, adding to his tally that has made him the club’s top try and points scorer. Following the restart, Broughton reduced the deficit with a well-taken penalty goal, and as it turned out, their last points of the match, with the interval being reached with a comfortable 21-8 lead for Moor.
Turning around following the break, Moor extended their lead within five minutes with their fourth try. This came following a penalty kick to touch on the left and on winning the subsequent lineout, Moor ran the ball along their three-quarter line, where Roe, looping around from his wing, gave the final pass to his fellow winger, Dylan Stakie on the right, for the latter to dot down in the corner; the conversion being missed by Tyley, which turned out to be his only miss of the day. The remainder of the game was played mainly in the Broughton half of the field and the latter’s task was made even harder when, fifteen minutes in, they had a player red-carded for extreme foul play. Following this, Moor added a penalty goal from the boot of Tyley and the game, now effectively over as a contest, lost a lot of it’s impetus, due in part to tiredness creeping in on both sides, as the temperature had increased as the afternoon wore on. With both sides having emptied their replacement's bench, Moor kept battling away and Broughton, to their credit, managed to keep them out, but eventually with five minutes to go, Moor scored their final points of the afternoon. This came after they were awarded a penalty not far from their opponent’s line and elected to take a scrum. On winning it, their forwards proceeded to push their opposite numbers backwards, allowing No. 8, Tom Ireland, to pick from the base and drive over for a try when a metre or so short of the try line, again converted by Tyley. The final score of 36-8 for Moor, with the lead never seemingly threatened, was just rewards for a remarkable season.
In scoring the double, the 2nd XV lost only one game all season, ironically back in early October to Broughton, and emulated that of the 1st XV in season 2007/08 when they too only lost a single game and also ended up winning both their league and cup competitions. Having played more matches then, the 1sts achieved a win ratio of 96.55% compared to 95.83% of the 2nds this season. However, in scoring 1259 points for and 227 against, the 2nds have possibly set a points record in the club, certainly in living memory, for any Moor team.
Broughton kicked off and having secured the ball, Moor went straight on the attack and a breakout by lock Luke Snell took play up to their opponent’s 10-metre line, where he passed to hooker Danny Ireland on his outside and the latter out-sprinted the cover to score a somewhat spectacular try, which was converted by fly-half Jack Tyley, to give Moor a 7-0 lead with less than two minutes played. Five minutes later, Moor were awarded a penalty just over the halfway line, which Tyley kicked to touch some five meters short of the Broughton line and although the subsequent lineout was overthrown, the defenders failed to clear the loose ball and flanker Ollie Hubbarde pounced on it and dived over for the second try, converted by Tyley. After this somewhat hectic start, much to the delight of the large contingent of Moor supporters, play then settled down in midfield for the next quarter-of-an-hour and Broughton came back into the game and, unsurprisingly, their play was based around their forwards, with repeated close-quarter drives up the middle, sucking in the Moor defence. From one of these, the ball was eventually recycled along their back line, creating an overlap, for one of their players to run through and score; the conversion just falling wide. Play continued in a similar manner, with Moor having to defend, but able to cancel any threat from Broughton and on the half-hour mark, the Green Lane side found themselves back in opposition territory with a scrum just outside the 5-metre line. Winning this, the ball was shipped down the blind-side for left-winger Will Roe to collect and score in the corner, followed by an excellent conversion from the touchline by Tyley. As it transpired, this was Roe’s 25th try of the season, adding to his tally that has made him the club’s top try and points scorer. Following the restart, Broughton reduced the deficit with a well-taken penalty goal, and as it turned out, their last points of the match, with the interval being reached with a comfortable 21-8 lead for Moor.
Turning around following the break, Moor extended their lead within five minutes with their fourth try. This came following a penalty kick to touch on the left and on winning the subsequent lineout, Moor ran the ball along their three-quarter line, where Roe, looping around from his wing, gave the final pass to his fellow winger, Dylan Stakie on the right, for the latter to dot down in the corner; the conversion being missed by Tyley, which turned out to be his only miss of the day. The remainder of the game was played mainly in the Broughton half of the field and the latter’s task was made even harder when, fifteen minutes in, they had a player red-carded for extreme foul play. Following this, Moor added a penalty goal from the boot of Tyley and the game, now effectively over as a contest, lost a lot of it’s impetus, due in part to tiredness creeping in on both sides, as the temperature had increased as the afternoon wore on. With both sides having emptied their replacement's bench, Moor kept battling away and Broughton, to their credit, managed to keep them out, but eventually with five minutes to go, Moor scored their final points of the afternoon. This came after they were awarded a penalty not far from their opponent’s line and elected to take a scrum. On winning it, their forwards proceeded to push their opposite numbers backwards, allowing No. 8, Tom Ireland, to pick from the base and drive over for a try when a metre or so short of the try line, again converted by Tyley. The final score of 36-8 for Moor, with the lead never seemingly threatened, was just rewards for a remarkable season.
In scoring the double, the 2nd XV lost only one game all season, ironically back in early October to Broughton, and emulated that of the 1st XV in season 2007/08 when they too only lost a single game and also ended up winning both their league and cup competitions. Having played more matches then, the 1sts achieved a win ratio of 96.55% compared to 95.83% of the 2nds this season. However, in scoring 1259 points for and 227 against, the 2nds have possibly set a points record in the club, certainly in living memory, for any Moor team.
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