Drybrook Rugby Club

Drybrook R.F.C 27pts
Brixham R.F.C 16pts

Drybrook moved to fifth in the league courtesy of a second-half performance that far outweighed the lack-lustre showing in the first forty.
It goes without saying that this is a difficult league and to build yourself up for every game is not as easy as it sounds.
Maybe the fact that Drybrook had battled so hard the week before to get the win at Bracknell, and this week they were playing at home against bottom of the table Brixham, played a part in the usual intensity that they bring to the field, not being as high fuelled as we are used to seeing.
On a bright afternoon with perfect playing conditions, and in front of a good crowd Drybrook kicked off towards the clubhouse.
With four minutes played the home team had already given away two penalties which the Brixham fullback converted, to put his side six points in front and give his team an extra impetus in their approach to a game they were desperate to get something from.
If you were a neutral watching you would have been hard tasked to decipher which of the teams had made the long trip up on the coach before kick-off.
The usual slick handling of the Drybrook backs deserted them as a loose pass to Danny Price cost the Drybrook side a certain try, and they were forced to defend as Brixham broke away upfield.
To add to the Drybrook woes they then lost young prop Harry Daynes with a knee injury, then stood by as the Brixham loose-head strolled over between the posts for a converted try that saw his team move into a thirteen-point lead.
At last Drybrook were stung into action and they began to put the phases together and take play into the opposition’s half.
On thirty minutes the home team scored their first points as Tim Stevenson converted a penalty after good pressure led to the visitors failing to get onside at the ruck, and four minutes after he doubled his tally after more pressure resulted in Brixham handling on the floor in front of their own posts.

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The half time whistle blew with Brixham holding a deserved thirteen points to six lead.
With the words of encouragement from Chris Fortey still ringing in their ears Drybrook came out for the second period a different team.
They constantly bombarded the opposition line and it is a credit to the Brixham defending that the home team were unable to get across the whitewash.
With eighteen minutes of the second half gone Drybrook mounted another assault and second row Toby Powell took the ball into contact. In what looked a fairly innocuous challenge Powell picked up a very nasty injury to his ribs. The ref Neil Sweeney who was having an excellent game immediately stopped play so the player could be attended to and an ambulance was called.
Play restarted with an attacking scrum and the visitors were forced to concede a penalty close to their line following a number of drives from the Drybrook forwards.
Tim Stevenson kicked the ball to the corner and from the lineout Drybrook drove the maul to the Brixham line. Scrum-half Regan Marsh broke blind and fed Mitch Baldwin who stole in at the left-hand corner to get a well deserved Drybrook try. Stevenson converted to bring the scores level at thirteen apiece.
The home team were now firing on all cylinders and with the Brixham effort starting to flag the swing in momentum was all too evident to see.
Drybrook attacked again and a typical barnstorming run down the left touchline by Mitch Baldwin resulted in play moving up to the Brixham twenty-two metre line. The ball came swiftly back from the ruck and Stevenson put in a pin-point Crossfield kick to find replacement flanker Sam Peaper lurking on the right-hand side. He collected the kick and managed to ground the ball despite being tackled by the Brixham wing. The referee consulted the touch judge who was in an excellent position and the try was awarded to take Drybrook into the lead for the first time in the game. A superb conversion from Stevenson saw the home team open a seven-point gap.
After a battling performance Brixham were

determined their efforts should not be in vain and after winning a penalty at the ruck they kicked the ball to the Drybrook ten-metre line.
From the line-out they broke infield and when Mitch Hale took the Brixham hooker a little higher than he should of, they kicked the resulting penalty to reduce the deficit to just four points.
From here though Drybrook went on to control the remainder of the game.
Good drives by Hale and Frowen took the play into the Brixham half and with Mitch Bourne and Mikey Addis also punching holes. Brixham were forced to cling-on as the game entered the final stages.
The pressure proved to much and with three minutes remaining Peaper added to his earlier score by breaking through the middle of the ruck to touch down just to the right of the posts. Stevenson who had an excellent day with the boot kicked the conversion to bring the final score to 27 pts to 16 pts to Drybrook.
On this showing I am sure that the Brixham team will be confident that they can improve their standing as the season progresses and hopefully, they will be better positioned when we visit them next year.
For Drybrook despite not being at their best in the first -half there were still plenty of positives to be taken from the game.
The set piece was solid with Dean Jelf doing an excellent job after replacing Daynes. The impact from the bench was a telling factor as Peaper in particular brought an attacking edge to the team. Also, when you know you are not at your best, to be able to haul yourself back from a thirteen-point deficit, to win comfortably is certainly not a bad thing.
The victory though was tinged with regret as the Injury to young Toby was far more serious than we had first suspected, and will take a long time to recover from. We wish Toby all the best, and our thoughts and wishes go out to him and his family at this time.
Drive on Dry and up the Squirrels!

Drybrook – MOORE, ROBERTS, PRICE, LARGE, BALDWIN, STEVENSON, MARSH, BOURNE, FROWEN, WATTS, GREENWAY, POWELL, HALE, ADDIS, DAYNES, JELF, PEAPER, TINGLE