LIGHTNING AND BUILDING SERVICES PLATE – ROUND 2
TYLDESLEY 3rd XV 40 – 7 PGRFC 5th XV
The sun was weak and pale as the Hoppers 5ths took to the field against Tyldesley 3rds on Saturday.
Things got off to a disorganised start as only twelve of the fifteen shirts arrived! After a brief negotiation, the visiting team was kitted out in the home team’s away kit and the game could commence, but it was a start that was to set the tone for the rest of the Hoppers game.
The defence was certainly asleep for Hoppers and Tyldesley quickly capitalised on the sleepy stance of the visitors. After losing the kick-off ball, twenty long minutes of hard rugby ensued, the Hoppers scrambling to defend against the organised and determined home team, conceding three tries in seemingly rapid succession.
An early injury meant Ben Markland had to come off with a torn hamstring, followed quickly by his replacement Nathan McNamara who suffered from a broken nose and a concussion after a questionable flying tackle knocked him for six. Battered, but far from beaten, the Hoppers struggled on.
As the defence settled, a saviour duo in the form of Danny Whalley and Tinny Taylor streaked up the wing towards the end of the first half. Danny, making clever use of the available space, drew the now complacent defenders out of position, roaring towards the touch line to pull them out even further as they struggled to come to grips with the change of pace. On the inside line Tinny sprinted in support, hands at the ready. A crossover and quick offload meant that all that stood between Tinny and the try-line were two Tyldesley defenders, who found, to their dismay, that grabbing hold of this spectre of the pitch is no easy feat. He made it look all too easy as he twisted out of one tackle, side-stepped the next and was over the line! The conversion was child’s play for the Hoppers number ten, Thomas Davies, making the score 15 points to 7.
Sadly, that would be the last time the Hoppers would cross the line. Beleaguered by a plague of handling and judgement errors, the visiting team found victory out of their reach. To their credit the visitors defence put in a stellar effort at times, with Callum Burnes making a fantastic tackle midway through the second half, complimenting his crashing run minutes earlier that planted a Tyldesley defender squarely in the mud. Man of the match Eric Wade also made some big hits and didn’t fail to challenge every Tyldesley attacker that came his way, dashing back to defend, hanging on sometimes by the skin of his teeth. The attacks from the visitors were also, at times, dangerous, but they failed to make use of these opportunities to score and were ultimately frustrated in their attempts.
In the end, the errors and the attacks by the home team proved to be too much, and Tyldesley walked away with a well-earned victory and progress to the next round of the prestigious L&B Services Plate with their dreams of success still intact.
Would you like to play rugby for the Hoppers? We accommodate players of all ages and experiences, from new starters through to veterans looking to keep fit within an organised but fun environment. If you’re looking to start or return to the game then please contact the club by email on info@pgrfc.co.uk providing your contact details and we’ll get back to you straight away.
