Drybrook Rugby Club

Drybrook 32pts
Kingsbridge 7pts

Drybrook got their season back on track with this bonus point victory over first time visitors Kingsbridge.
The South Devon men proved a tough nut to crack in the first half where Drybrook had most of the territory, possession and opportunities but the first score was a long time in coming.
Some lovely play and good support lines invariably ended with a last ditch tackle or an unforced error though Sam Peaper went close on number of occasions and Robbie Faulkner’s effort was disallowed for a forward pass in the build up.
The game was held up for a period because of a knee injury sustained by the visitor’s hooker but once it got underway again Drybrook finally scored.
A catch and drive in the corner led to No 8 Mitch Bourne breaking off with the ball and although he was initially held he managed to reach out and ground the ball.
With half time approaching the lead was extended when a quick tap penalty caught the visitors by surprise and a maul in the corner led to Peaper burrowing over for the try.

Half Time;
Drybrook 10pts
Kingsbridge nil

Drybrook pressed hard at the beginning of the second half and replacement prop Elliot Beattie was next over the whitewash when he took a stray throw at the tail of the line out before crashing over.
Tom Treherne converted and it was not long before Drybrook grabbed the bonus point try with a cracking score. A long build up of pressure led to Mitch Bourne making the initial inroad before skipper Ben Large sent winger Harry Howard scything through under the posts with a well executed inside pass.
Treherne converted but the game then changed completely as Kingbridge hit back with a long period of sustained attacking.
Drybrook withstood every thing thrown at them and finally made their way back down field.
Some great approach play was then rewarded when winger Mitch Baldwin squeezed in at the corner and Treherne put over a fine conversion to increase the lead.
Beattie, who was enjoying a fine debut, almost got on the score board again when he was put through close to the sticks but the score was not allowed because of crossing.
The visitors then got some reward for their efforts in a fine game of open rugby with a converted try after a thrilling kick and chase.
Into injury time Drybrook sealed an excellent afternoon’s work with try number six when Ben George took a quick tap penalty before creating the space for prop Alex Wolfe to crash over in the corner.
This was a very good all round performance from Drybrook with a number of individuals enjoying particularly fine games. Winger Mitch Baldwin looked electric at times; George was sharp and accurate at scrum half whilst the return of Faulkner to the backs brought a cutting edge.
Of the forwards, Wolfe had his best game in Drybrook colours and Will Greenway and Sam Peaper were prominent throughout.

Drybrook 1st XV: Tom Treherne, Harry Howard, Robbie Faulkner, Henry Darch, Mitch Baldwin, Ben Large(capt), Ben George, Mitch Hale, Ashley Howells, Alex Wolfe, Will Greenway, Glenn Nott, Sam Peaper, Danny Price, Mitch Bourne.
Replacements: Elliot Beattie, Jack Combes, Leonard Mulhane.

Old Centralians 2nds 27pts
Drybrook United 26pts

For the second week running the United XV suffered the disappointment of a narrow defeat but unusually they managed a try scoring bonus point as well as a losing bonus point in the process.
Drybrook kicked off and it was clear to see both teams wanted the big W. Old Cents however seemed to be winning everything at the break down in the early stages and scored after just 3 minutes through some powerful and fast paced attacking. This resulted in an early substitution for Drybrook with winger Luke Roberts suffering an eye injury which led to him leaving the field and Jimmy Smith making a 2nd team appearance after a few seasons absence.
A few nice runs and big carries from Drybrook stand in number 8 Simon Rugman gave Drybrook some forward momentum but a quick turnover and pace combined with some missed first time tackles saw Old Cents cross again after just 7 minutes 12pts -nil.
Some honest words from the skipper were given to the lads to ensure that heads didn’t drop or it could have been a one side game.
As the match wore on and as expected the Old Cents team were not able to keep playing at the pace they had started with, some great defence from Dean Jelf saw Drybrook start to come back into the game. A powerful scrum saw the boys in green winning ball and starting to control play and from a line out some lovely forward play led to a ruck and Simon Rugman spotted a gap and powered though to score Drybrook’s first try (5pts – 12pts 16 minutes gone)
Drybrook’s backs continued to look sharp and some lovely running from Nathan Tucker & Rhys Evans in the middle continued to test the Old Centralians’ defence whilst Rhys Gardner was a constant threat with his pace and guile.
In the 21st minute, a strong Marcus Cowles carry followed by a superb offload to Rhys Gardner led to the speedy fullback beating the winger and full back to touch down under the posts and Milner converted to bring the scores level.
Some poor defence then enabled the Old Cents scrum half to dance though some tackles and increase the score to 19pts -12pts.
Drybrook were unlucky not to be leading but continued to look good in certain areas and from a ruck, scrum half, Gareth Holdsworth attacked and got his reward with a lovely interchange with Rhys Evans to score just before the half time whistle.

Half time:
Old Centralians “A” 17pts
Drybrook United 19pts

The second half carried on in the same vein as the first half but a few more strong scrums and slick moves from the backs lead to a penalty which should have led to 3 points to Drybrook, However, after Milner stepped up and started his run up, the Old Cents 2nd Row started to charge down the kick which sailed wide of the posts as a result. Despite the close proximity of the referee he allowed the game to restart with a 22 drop out much to the amazement of the both teams. To rub salt into the wound the Old Cent’s 2nd row then crashed over for a try shortly afterwards to regain the lead for his side. (22pts-19pts)
Drybrook were then reduced to 14 men when Nathan Tucker was sin binned for being offside. More pressure and the extra player eventually took its toll and Old Cents scored on the 60 minute mark to make it 27pts -19pts.
Drybrook continued to work hard in search of getting something from the game and the final few minutes were spent attacking the Old Cents line. After a series of pick & goes flanker Matt Freeman got the try with Milner converting to bring a close to the game.
This was another sickening loss for the 2s, who must learn from the last two games to get their season back on track.
Better news on the horizon however is the news that match winning prop and cockney talisman Anthony Suter looks to return to training following 16 weeks out injured. He has finally had his clip board and laptop removed which is a massive bonus for the boys in green.
It was also good to see Alex Smailes return from injury to ensure healthy competition for places and a headache for the selection panel.

Drybrook United XV: 1.Connor Auker-Howlett 2.Dean Jelf 3.Huw Rimmer 4.Marcus Cowles 5.Jonathon Pritchard 6.Matt Freeman 7.Connor Hale 8.Simon Rugman 9.Gareth Holdsworth 10.Andrew Milner 11.Jack Freeman 12.Nathan Tucker 13.Rhys Evans 14.Luke Roberts 15.Rhys Gardner
Replacements: Jimmy Smith, Jason Jones, Alex Smailes

Ross 2nds 5pts
Drybrook Extras 15pts

After a large defeat last week the Extras were keen to get the season back on the rails.
Drybrook played up hill towards the changing rooms in the first half on what was a warm dry afternoon.
Within the first 10 minutes some great team work from Drybrook created a two v one on the right wing but unfortunately the
ball was dropped over the line and no score resulted.
Both sides were trying to play expansive rugby however the game could not flow naturally due to the amount of mistakes leading to scrum after scrum.
With only 2 minutes left on the clock in the first half Drybrook were awarded a penalty 30 meters out to the right of the sticks, but James Ryder’s kick unfortunately hit the right post square on

Half time;
Ross 2nds 0pts
Drybrook Extras 0pts

The second half kicked off with Drybrook looking more determined with a massive hit from the re­start.
On the 8th minute great hands saw James Ryder score on the right wing.
10 minutes later it was Peter Meek’s turn to cross the line after three great forward phases from a penalty awarded on the Ross on Wye 22 metre line.
The next score came from former 1st XV manager Chris Rawlings from the back of a driving maul 10 meters out.
However Ross kept plugging away and 6 minutes from the end of the match they managed to break Drybrooks defence to score a well­earned try.

Drybrook Extras; Jordan Eaccups, Andrew Warren, Craig Lancett, Steve Turley, Greg Collins, Ben Warren, Peter Meek, Richard Roberts, Christopher Rawlings, James Ryder (captain), James Colwell, Nick Lewis, Sam Grant, Will Bailey, Steve Skelton.
Replacements; Chris Skelton, Mitch Williams, Adam Harris