Match Report

League Match

Kingswood v Cheltenham Saracens

Back in league action this week, Kingswood were visited by fourth placed Cheltenham Saracens and with Kingswood sitting in third on equal points, it meant that the winner would have an advantage over the other in the pursuit for 2nd place.

With several key players missing through injury, there were first team call ups for Paul Bennett, Tim Brain and Jim Hacker.

Kingswood started well and it only took them 5 minutes to get on the score sheet.  Mike Oakley went on a trade mark run using his pace and power to burst through several tackles which set Kingswood up nicely, unfortunately, Kingswood knocked on and Cheltenham had a scrum 5m from their own try line.  Kingswood’s pack were powerful in the scrum however and drove the Cheltenham pack back, this forced their scrum half into a quick pass, but the ball was fumbled and Steve Trevelyan dropped on the loose ball and secured Kingswood’s first points.  The wind made the kick attempt difficult and Ian Kirley was unable to convert. 5-0

3 minutes later, Cheltenham were awarded a penalty and they opted to kick for goal, however the wind played a major part again and the conversion dropped short.

10 minutes gone and Cheltenham were starting to get back in the game with a good spell of possession.  They were awarded another penalty which they kicked to touch and secured the resulting lineout.  From the maul the ball was passed along the line, however one pass was a bit flat and this allowed Rich Francis to burst forward and secure the ball in mid flight.  With the Cheltenham players caught off guard, Francis ran nearly the whole length of the pitch unchallenged and he placed the ball underneath the posts.  The conversion was a lot simpler for Ian Kirley who converted and Kingswood held a 12-0 lead.

On 15 minutes, Cheltenham were again awarded a penalty but in a much easier kicking position than their last.  No. 10 converted and the score was now 12-3.

Both teams then had some injury problems to contend with and this had an affect on the game and as a result there was not a lot of action for the 10 minutes that followed as play was continuously interrupted.

It was going to require something special to wake the teams back up and this came on 25 minutes when from a lineout, the ball made its way out to Paul Bennett who surged forward and crunched into an attempted tackle which brought a chorus of “ouch” from the sideline.  An excellent passing move followed before Mike Oakley took the ball over the line.  Ian Kirley once again converted and the score was 19-3.

Kingswood heads were raised once again and they continued to push forward, 2 minutes into injury time and Kingswood had a scrum 10m out.  Ben Phillips whipped the ball out to Paul Allen who made good ground before passing it out to Rich Francis who went over for his 2nd and Kingswood’s 4th.  Ian Kirley kicked his 3rd conversion and the teams went in at half time with the score 26-3.

Half Time: Kingswood 26 - 3 Cheltenham Saracens

Cheltenham started the brighter team in the second half and put Kingswood under a lot of earlier pressure, who were not helping themselves by giving away a sting of penalties.  Although Kingwood’s defensive scrummaging was excellent, they gave away one penalty too much and on 54 minutes, a quick tap penalty was sent out to No. 11 who had a clear run in over the Kingswood try line.  The kick was missed but Kingswood’s lead was now cut to 26-8.

With Kingswood now finally out of their 22, they got their heads up and went for another try.  On the hour mark they were awarded a penalty which they tapped quickly and straight away were awarded another penalty as Cheltenham had failed to retreat 10m.  Paul Bennett opted to kick to touch and Kingswood had a lineout not far from the Cheltenham try line.  It was a text book lineout from Kingswood which they secured before driving the resulting maul over the Cheltenham try line before Mark Oakley got the ball down to secure Kingswood’s 5th try of the game.  Kirley could not convert but Kingswood had regained their 23 point advantage. 31-8

Liam Stinchcombe, who put in some excellent runs on the wing, was the replaced by Tim Brain.

70 minutes gone and Kingswood were awarded a penalty when Cheltenham were penalised for coming in from the side.  Kirley went for goal and converted to give Kingswood a 34 points to 8 lead.

With 10 minutes left, Dan Nicholls and Jim Hacker came on and replaced Al Green and Tim Brain who both played their part in the excellent performance.

Cheltenham did pressurise Kingswood for the last moments of the match buy Kingswood held out to claim their 5th league win of the season.

Full Time: Kingswood 34 - 8 Cheltenham Saracens

Quote of The Week: "I Didn't Touch It Ref!" - Al Green After Blatantly Playing The Ball On The Floor