Thorns battled manfully against a strong and well-drilled Weston side that deserved their win but the score flattered them. Weston ran in three converted tries in the dying stages to secure their first cup title as Thorns tired.

With the cup regulations permitting seven replacements Thorns were able to choose a side that included most of the players that had played in recent months. The front row welcomed back Johnny Heaven from suspension and he was chosen at tight head prop and with Kieran Wilson recovering from an operation Henry Low came in at loose head following a good performance off the bench at Bridgwater. Chris Moseley and Ollie Critchley continued at lock and Tom Williams joined Louis Osborne and Jim Massey in the back row. Jak Evans returned at scrum half with Harry Glew moving to the wing. Alfie Richardson was restored to fullback and Jake Wood and Dai Matthews made up the centre partnership. On the bench Jack Summerfield and Luke Panting covered the front row with schoolboys Max Harper and Charlie Squier the rest of the pack. Dan Hussey and Gez Asante were joined by Rich Bennett as backs cover. The match was to be the last for Dai Matthews after twelve seasons acting as the midfield target.

Thornbury kicked off and Weston ran the ball back through the forwards and Thorns had to carry out fierce tackles from the outset. They then broke down the left and kicked the ball ahead but Jim Massey covered and grounded the ball over the line. But Thorns couldn’t get their hands on the ball to clear their lines and after constant pressure Weston No.8 Brad Talbot crashed over after four minutes. Player-coach Glenn Dickson, in his last game, converted.

Thorns hit back shortly after the restart with a try direct from set piece. Following a scrum on half way Dai Matthews burst through midfield, fed Jake Wood who took play to the Weston ‘22’ before moving the ball to Harry Glew who cut inside the cover and shrugged off a tackle to core. Wood’s conversion hit the post.

The Weston pack continued to control the game and Thornbury were on the back foot for ten minutes at the end of which Talbot picked up and drove over from a dominant scrum on the Thornbury line. Dickson converted for a 14-5 lead.

Jake Wood and Jim Massey combined to nearly convert some rare attacking possession into a score then as the half-hour approached Alfie Richardson ran back a clearing kick. Louis Osborne burst clear and after the ball was recycled and moved across the backs Massey made good ground deep into the Weston ‘22’ before Louis Ogilvie was put clear down the blind side and he ran in for a second unconverted try.

Thornbury tails were up and they attacked ferociously. Wood tackled the Weston fullback on the Somerset club’s ‘22’ and Thorns secured possession and the forwards passed and charged for the line. After several drives on the line Massey looked to have grounded the ball on the line before it bounced clear but the referee disallowed the try for a knock on. From the Weston scrum their backs tried to run clear but were penalised in the tackle and Wood kicked a penalty to reduce the deficit to a point at 14-13.

But Weston had the final say of the half attacking from the restart and hooker Charlie Brabham burst away from a poorly-defended breakdown to score between the posts. Dickson added the extras for a 21-13 halftime lead.

Thornbury showed attacking intent from the restart of the game when Matthews and Tom Williams exchanged passes to open up the Weston defence on the left but Williams suffered an ankle injury and was replaced by Charlie Squier. Shortly afterwards Thorns attacked close the line but Osborne was prevented from joining a driving maul by a Weston player hanging on to him on the ground. The touch judge intervened but the referee ignored him and as Thorns were unable to recycle the ball Weston were awarded a scrum. Thorns were becoming frustrated. Jak Evans, who had been having treatment regularly in the first half, hobbled off and Rich Bennett came on with Glew moving to scrum half.

The Weston scrum was now well on top and Thorns were struggling to retain possession. With limitless possession Weston attacked again and after some good handling under pressure former Thornbury junior Richard Bignell scored. Dickson’s conversion extended the lead to 28-13.

Thornbury then scored the try of the match. Matthews broke through on a powerful drive in midfield and then excellent quick passing moved the ball to Richardson who stepped and swerved through the cover defence and raced clear to score between the posts for an outstanding try. Wood converted to reduce arrears to 28-20. Gez Asante come on for Matthews shortly afterwards.

With twenty minutes to go it was game on but the Thornbury defence, which had been outstanding for an hour, began to show signs of wear and tear. Dickson stepped through the defence after the forwards had pounded the Thornbury line to score then wing Harry Jones touched down between the posts after constant pressure on the Thornbury line. Both tries were converted to put the match out of Thornbury’s reach at 42-20.

Thornbury emptied the bench with Max Harper coming on for Ollie Critchley and Luke Panting and Jack Summerfield replaced the starting props with Dan Hussey emptying the bench coming on for Louis Ogilvie.

But Thorns looked generally weary now and centre Cameron Maslen scored Weston’s seventh try as Thorns’ first up tackling wasn’t strong enough. Dickson concluded the Weston scoring with his seventh conversion.

However, Thornbury refused to give in and battled away. With time running out Wood made a clean break but his pass out to Hussey was deliberately knocked on by a Weston defender who was yellow-carded. Thorns continued to attack and both Squier and Harper made good round allowing Sam Poustie and Rich Bennett the chance to get close before Wood twisted out of a tackle, handed off a defender and scored between the posts. He converted the try but there was no time for further scoring and at 49-27 it was Weston who became the 2019 Combination Cup winners.

Weston were more dynamic and clinical than any side Thornbury had faced this season and it is a great credit to Thornbury that they defended so well for most of the game to keep their illustrious opponents out. Every player put in a thunderous performance and looked the better side with the ball in their hands, but the tight and compact Weston eight dominated the game. The old adage that it’s the forwards who decide who win, the backs decide by how much applied to Weston.

The match was a fitting occasion for the final game played for Thornbury by Dai Matthews. After 206 senior appearances, of which 198 were for the first XV, and 107 tries becoming the first back to score 100 tries for the first XV, he is hanging up his boots. He has been a great servant to the club, a player who regularly demonstrated he was playing a level below his ability. He had previously formed a devastating centre partnership with Tim Stephens and is undoubtedly one of Thornbury’s greatest players. Thanks Dai. Happy retirement.

Scorers:
Thornbury: tries – Harry Glew, Louis Ogilvie, Alfie Richardson, Jake Wood; conversions – Jake Wood (2); penalty – Jake Wood.

Weston-super-Mare: tries – Brad Talbot (2), Charlie Brabham, Richard Bignell, Glenn Dickson, Harry Jones, Cameron Maslen; conversions – Glenn Dickson (7)

Teams:
Thornbury: Alfie Richardson; Harry Glew, Dai Matthews, Jake Wood, Louis Ogilvie; Sam Poustie, Jak Evans; Henry Low, Sam Evans (c), Johnny Heaven, Ollie Critchley, Chris Moseley, Tom Williams, Louis Osborne, Jim Massey.
Replacements: Jack Summerfield, Luke Panting, Max Harper, Charlie Squier, Dan Hussey, Gez Asante, Rich Bennett

Weston-super-Mare: Robbie MacKay; Harry Jones, Cameron Maslen, Glenn Dickson, Alex Howman; James MacKay, Kaidin Brocks; Sam Coles (c), Charlie Brabham, Ollie Streeter, Thomas Sugg, Callum Kingscott, Sam Fisher, Richard Bignell, Brad Talbot.
Replacements: , George Bamsey, Mike Hocking, Ashley Russell, Ross Bennett, Archie Tilsley, Huw Morgan, Matt Watkins

Referee: Ben Wood (Bristol Rugby Referees’ Society)