Old Williamsonians 32 V Foots Cray 16

Battle of the promotion sides saw the Old Boys take on Foots Cray at the Fortress this weekend in an eagerly anticipated match. This fixture last season saw Cray walk away with the points and the Old Boys were keen to show that was a one off.

Both teams would of looked at this match as a must win and no doubt Cray would of put the time in on the training ground the week before just the same as the Old Boys.

And so the scene was set for a great game of rugby…..if only the weather had decided to turn up!!!

The game kicked off with the Willies playing up the slight slope but into driving rain and a very strong head wind. With the conditions so poor this half would be about containing Cray and limiting their time spent in the Willies half. Any kick down field was gaining an extra 15+ meters and was very easy for the opposition to turn defence into attack with a swing of the boot.
The game played out in the middle of the park for the first 10-15 minutes with both teams looking to find their feet and come to terms with the conditions. Cray clocked pretty quick that even with the full back giving himself an extra 10 meters the ball was still sailing over his head and so started to work the ball up the field with clever kicks to the corners. From one of these kicks the scrambled Willies defence gave away a penalty well within kicking distance, the Cray kicker stepped up and slotted the ball between the posts to put the first points on the board 0-3.
From the restart the Willies knew they must work harder to close Cray down and limit their time with ball in hand allowing them to work themselves into a kicking position. The Willies forwards worked tirelessly battling the head on wind to contain Cray within their half. But with the wind in their favour Cray knew that a few good kicks would again put the Willies on the back foot. From another one of these kicks Cray found themselves deep in the Willies 22 and from the resulting phase play went over for the first try of the game. No conversion added 0-8

With half hour gone and the score at 0-8 to opposition Willies heads were high and the game plan of containment was working....just. The Willies knew that if they could put some points of their own on the board in this 1st half they would go some way to securing the points at the end of the game.

Again the forwards worked hard at the break down and the car ball was working well, gaining yards at every attempt. With the weather playing its part in the game the backs too had to play their part in keeping it simple and staying close to the pack, working together to break the gain line. Just inside Cray’s half a scrum was awarded for a knock on by Cray. Tight to the touch line the Cray winger left too big a gap for the pace of Willies scrum half Will Burton who picked up from the back and out sprinted the winger and the covering full back to go over just to the right of the posts. Quite where this turn of pace came from no one knows? With the extras added Willies went in at half time down by 1 point. 7-8.

Not a great first half and certainly a lot of room for improvement. The Willies had however put this game in their favour with the score late on in the 1st half. With no coach this week due to work commitments the half time talk fell on the captain and club stalwart Squechy. With some wise words on board and the knowledge that they would now have all the elements in their favour the second half kicked off.

A high ball from Packwood put early pressure on Cray in the 2nd half and Cray soon realised that they would not be kicking themselves out of trouble quite as easily as the had in the first. Willies started where they had left off and began to put good phase play together in the middle of the park. From a break down just inside the Willies half Cray were pinged for not releasing. Quick to put the Willies in front the captain, perhaps a little optimistic opted for a kick a goal. The kick fell just short and Willies regrouped to receive the 22 drop out. Cray knew this half was going to be a battle and soon began to put phase play of their own together, keeping the ball tight and using their pack well to work good field position. Willies had other ideas though and with the wind behind them put in a strong 20 minutes of play that saw 4 very well worked tries scored. Excellent support play from all the forwards saw them blow Cray away and create space out wide for the backs to run in the tries that would put this game to bed. Some slick hands saw Sanger go over followed by Smithers who kept up his great try scoring run with a quick fire brace and to round it off scrum half Burton added his second of the game from close range. Captain Bowie added one out of the four conversions and the game went from being very tight to wrapped up in a brilliant 20 minutes of play from the young Willies.

A little bit of our friend Mr Complacency reared his head late on in the game that saw the Willies switch off and allow Cray to go over one more time but the clock was running out of time and the Willies played smart, tight rugby for the last 5 minutes to see the game out. Cray added a penalty along with their second try that saw the game finish 32-16 to the home side. Cray battled right to the end and the game was played in the right spirit by both teams.

A much needed win for the Willies which sees them remain in 5th position in the league. With 2 away fixtures on the trot in the following weeks away to Cranbrook and Hastings positives can be taken from this game going in to two top of the table clashes.

The result today came from an all round team effort. Yes the backs scored all the points but if it wasn’t for the hard work of every forward this would not of been possible. So well done to the pack. It looks like the hard work on the training ground is starting to pay off.

MOTM – The captain saw fit that there be no DOTD this week with everyone putting in a strong performance and so elected 2 men of the match awards. The first went to scrum half Burton who had a great game controlling his pack and setting the backs on their way to some great tries. He also managed to out sprint a winger and a full back on the way to his first of two tries. The second went to Jar Head himself Reece Price. Not the biggest prop in the world but a player that more than makes up for the weight loss in his ability to get under his opposing number and keep the scrum steady, his all round work rate around the park also set him in this game. Well done young Willies!

With news coming through that the 2nd XV had won their game away to Anchorians 7-14 all the boys were in high spirits for the clubs Halloween Party that night. A great effort was made by the bar girls Ruth and Lyndsey who decorated the club with some Halloween related decorations and everyone made a great effort with their costumes.

Ranging from the more traditional Skeletons, Vampires and Zombies to a Dinosaur and a rather naughty Sylvester the Cat, who must of got hungry on his way back to the club house and eaten Tweetie Pie!!!
A great night was had by all with some very entertaining drinking games played thanks to club master of Ceremonies and 2nd XV Captain Tom Fielding. This saw the 2nds beat the 1st in a boat race, nothing out of the ordinary there I hear you say. Ok, well how about the girls of the club who then proceeded to beat the 1st in a boat race as well (the girls did half pints) but not the point, they still knocked back half a pint of Stella quicker than the boys beating them by one full pint. If you are reading this and are from an era of the club where every bloke on the team could down 10 pints and still stand (Brassell) don’t worry the 1st were heavily punished for their poor form with copious amounts of RUM!!!

Pictures and videos of the night can be found on the Facebook page along with pictures of the game.

UP THE WILLIES!!!!!!!