Windsor 1sts 34 v Bicester 1sts 5
14th Nov. 2009by Syd Allen
The listing was posted by Windsor RFC
Coach Paul Britton was again determined to archive the ugly rugby of the previous week’s tryless game at Newbury, but conditions of a strong crosswind and rain squalls were against attractive, running rugby, though the pitch looked in good condition. Bicester have not won in the League all season and their supporters were not expecting this to change today.
Windsor welcomed back Club Captain Ed Bell for his first game this season and he made his presence immediately tell with an early crunching tackle after Andy Van Terheyden’s kick-off. Tom Strauss made the first break and pressure from a scrum forced Bicester to kick it dead, giving Windsor a 5m. scrum. Graham Fleming charged the line and looked to have scored, but it was adjudged by Referee Steve Hardwidge to be held up.
From the scrum, Bell then Owen Flisher also tried to go it alone, but it came out from Scrumhalf Tom Collins to VT who dummied and cut through to score and then converted to make it 7-0, Tom Strauss bravely holding the ball for him.
Windsor looked to have scored from a 22m. drive from a lineout, but again it was adjudged held up, denying Fleming again.
Bicester cleared after Collins was penalised for feeding, but it was a poor kick straight to Wing Chris Daplyn, who fed Fullback James Driscoll. He beat 4 tackles to put his forwards onside, to Britton, Collins then VT, tackled 2m. short. Fleming drove over from the ruck, but again it was held-up! Denied 3 times, it was left to Owen Oxlade to show him how to ground the ball after a couple of rucks.
VT converted, Ollie Smith holding the ball as Strauss chickened out.
Driscoll then produced a cracking try after Bell had picked up from the back of a scrum on Windsor’s 10m. line and fed him at pace. Starting with an outrageous dummy, he left both the Bicester Fullback and Wing groping tacklers in his weaving 60m. run to the line, sliding over ‘Superman-style’ from 2m. out as the third tackler came in.
Over adjusting for the gusting wind, VT hit the top of the upstream post and the ball bounced out.
19-0 after 30 minutes.
Oxlade started the next exciting piece of play from the kick-off, Bell taking it on, through the halfbacks to Driscoll, who kicked this time for Taks Zwandewere to run down the Bicester Fullback on his 22m. line. They cleared infield to Driscoll on half way to Daplyn, then VT, who fed Smith on the charge for 10m., but Collins then kicked it straight into touch!
After not straight at the lineout, Oxlade burst from the scrum to Bell, who spilled the ball as he was tackled. Asking his partner Jo what she thought of that, she came up with the excuse that he’d been on the Beecham’s Powders with Man Flu all week!
Bicester at last got up to Windsor’s red zone, following a penalty kicked for a 5m. lineout. Fleming deliberately knocked the ball forward into touch at the throw-in and should have been carded, but the Ref. must have been unsighted. Bicester attacked from the reset line, but Windsor’s defence held, a typical Smith tackle causing their centre to spill the ball and Oxlade was away again to the 22m. line to Collins for Paul Nunn to get his first good run of the match, the attack spoilt by another unnecessary kick this time from Driscoll.
The rain and wind intensified over halftime and it needed hardman Ray Cox to put Windsor on the attack from the restart with a good 20m. charge. Smith stole the ball from a Bicester maul, fed with short passes along the backline for Daplyn to make the run up the right wing and inside to Oxlade for his second try of the match despite desperate Bicester defence. VT again converted.
Cox made another good run, even managing to impress Keeley! Bicester then got back into the game with the help of 4 penalties, the last of these on Windsor’s 5m. line, allowing Prop James Davies to take a quick one and dive over.
Britton now made two substitutions, putting ‘pinch hitter’ Jonny Hayhurst on for himself and Craig Stewart for Ray Cox, but it was Hooker Oxlade again who made the next break, tapped down to him at a lineout on Bicester’s 22m. line for a blindside run to the line. A try was disallowed, denying him a hat trick. What do you think?
Owen Flisher hurt his knee, but wanted to carry on. With no direct substitution Britton allowed him to continue, but eventually he was hobbling so much that Neal Kennedy had to go on, Strauss going to Flanker. And it was Kennedy with his first touch, who scored the best try of the match, belying the conditions. Daplyn and Driscoll came into the line as VT went blind from a scrum. Driscoll passed out to Wing Taks Z, who passed inside to Kennedy, who scored 20m. out. This was a try with pace, passing with the wind and extra men in the line. Unfortunately, the light was too bad for Tracey to get a good photo shot. VT missed the conversion against the wind. That made it 34-5 and the Ref blew up shortly after.
Considering the conditions, this was not a bad score, though scores from several trips over the line were denied. Bicester kept going but did not look like challenging without the aid of the Ref.
For his two tries and general running play, the Savill’s Man of the Match award went to Owen Oxlade, despite his reputation, according to fellow scorer Kennedy, that he never passes the ball once he gets it!
ps. Monday - Owen Flisher's knee is just bruised, with no longterm injury.
Team: - Driscoll, Daplyn, Nunn, Strauss, Zwandewere, Van Terheyden, Collins, Bell (Capt.), Flisher, O. Smith, Fleming, Britton, Rawlings, Oxlade, Cox. Subs: - Kennedy, Stewart, Hayhurst.