Old Scouts 8 Heathens 40

 

December 12th 2009

 

Scouts hosted their local rivals in what is always a fiercely contested local league derby, however in what can only be described as a poor performance, the Scouts were humbled by their neighbours. The Heathens pack did the damage in the first half with the Scouts pack on the back foot at every scrum. The Scouts forwards did match up at the ruck and maul but poor tackling gave the Heathens too much ground and they made good use of their advantage scoring three tries to a single Scouts penalty to lead at half time 19-3.

 

The second half saw several changes to the Scouts line-up who started to even things up in the scrum but again, inconsistency and poor tackling let the Heathens dominate and rack up the points. The Scouts did put some good plays together with Martin Dunn making some excellent breaks in the centres but without the support to finish anything off. Ollie Pentalow gained a consolation try for the home side but it was too little too late for the Scouts.

 

Tries: Ollie Pentalow

Penalty: Simon Lewis

 

Old Scouts 3^rd 3 Huntingdon Stags 2^nd 24

 

December 5th 2009

 

Scouts faced a tough encounter hosting the current league leaders. The visitors took the game to the Scouts from the start and it was only due to some excellent defending by forwards and backs that Huntingdon did not score. The Scouts got themselves into the game with some good runs being made by the back row, with Stu Sturton and Ollie Pentalow making good yards through the Huntingdon defence. After some sustained pressure by the Scouts they were awarded a penalty which was converted by Ruari Robertson to give Scouts a slim half time lead.

 

The second half was a completely different story for the Scouts side, who could not get into gear whereas their opponents used the ball effectively between their backs and forwards. There was more woe to follow after several injuries forced the Scouts to make four changes throughout the half giving them even less chance to build a platform. This played into the Stags hands who ran in four tries to effectively seal the game and the points.

 

What started brightly turned into a disappointing afternoon for the Scouts who will have to step up a level when they host local rivals Heathens next Saturday.

 

Scorers:

 

Penalty: Ruari Robertson

Wellingborough 3^rd 28 Old Scouts 3^rd 14

 

Scouts travelled to their Wellingborough in what is a traditionally fiercely contested match. The Scouts started brightly with their pack dominating and not allowing the Wellingborough forwards to gain an momentum. With the majority of the play in the first 15 minutes the Scouts tore into their counterparts and were first on the score sheet with Martin Dunn cutting through the Wellingborough defence to score under the posts.

 

From then on the tables were turned and the momentum shifted to Wellingborough who were beginning to play much more aggressive rugby, with their back row making good yards into the Scouts half. This produced the results they were with two tries in quick succession. The Scouts could not seem to get back into the groove and strong defence from both backs and forwards prevented Wellingborough gaining any more points.

 

The second half did not start brightly for the Scouts who were missing tackles and allowing the Wellingborough side too much room. This resulted in further scores for the home side, effectively taking the game away from the Scouts., however in the last few minutes, new boy Tony Bassey showed his pace to completely outstrip the Wellingborough back line and score under the posts.

 

All in all a frustrating match, as the Scouts showed moments of brilliance and team work but these were few and far between.

 

Man of the Match, as selected by the Wellingborough captain, goes to Alan Slater.

 

Tries: Martin Dunn, Tony Bassey

Conversions: Ruari Robertson 2

Old Scouts 3^rd 10 Westwood 12

 

October 31st 2009

With Bletchley calling off the scheduled league encounter early in the week, Scouts entertained Westwood in a friendly at Rushmere Road. With 4 players becoming unavailable in the morning, the Scouts put together a 15 at the very last minute.

 

The game started at a frenetic pace with the Westwood side attempting to assert some authority but some stout defending from the Scouts prevented them from turning possession into points. The Scouts in turn tried to exert some influence but much of the first half was a stalemate with both sides snuffing each other out.

 

After facing some continual pressure from the Westwood backs, who were well marshalled by their outstanding no. 10, the Scouts marched up the field after a couple of penalties. Following a couple of phases of play, Alan Slater crashed over the line to open the scoring for the Scouts.

 

Westwood raised their intensity and after several of their own phases, scored a try of their own to even the score.

 

Westwood continued to attack with their backs having much of the ball and it was only for some heroic defending, especially from Martin Langley at fullback that the scores remained level at half time.

 

The second half was a virtual mirror image of the first, with the Scouts doing most of the defending and holding out their opponents who continually tried to attack through their centres and kept running into a solid Scouts wall. Penalties were being exchanged keeping play within the middle of the pitch, however after a quick lineout the Scouts backs managed to stretch their legs and after the resultant ruck near to the Westwood line, Stu Sturton crashed through to put them into the lead.

 

Westwood were undeterred and after a missed penalty clearance their fullback attacked and after some link play they crashed over in the corner to again equal the score, with the no. 10 slotting the touchline conversion to take the lead.

 

With minutes remaining the Scouts tried to exert some pressure and neared the Westwood line only for an unforced error handed possession back. With the final play of the game the Westwood pack stole the ball at a Scouts lineout and cleared to touch for the referee to blow the final whistle.

 

The Scouts showed their defensive resolve again in a highly contested game and can take this forward into their league encounter against local rivals Casuals next Saturday.

 

Man of the Match, as nominated by the Westwood captain, goed to Matt Bodsworth, however Martyn Langley gave him a close run with some superb defensive tackling.

 

Scorers

Tries: Alan Slater, Stu Sturton

 

Daventry 3^rd 0 Old Scouts 3^rd 73

 

October 24th 2009

 

Having scraped together 16 players at the very last minute, the Scouts travelled the short distance to Daventry. Without a recognised front or second row, the game was played with uncontested scrums from the start much to the dismay of Daventry.

 

From the start the Scouts, playing into the wind, played with pace and excellent interplay between forwards and backs. The pace and skill of the Scouts backs was far superior to their opponents and within a few minutes centre Danny Laws cut his way through the Daventry defence to score.

 

The Daventry pack attempted to assert themselves in the game but were continually stopped in their tracks with some resolute and firm defending from the whole Scouts 15 and as soon as the Scouts turned over any ball they fed it out to the backs who ran their opponents ragged with further tries in the first half from John Coowar, skipper Ruari Robertson and Martin Dunn.

 

Daventry could not keep up with the pace and after several minor injuries, the half was abruptly cut short, with the score at 26-0, after the Daventry no. 10 was involved in a collision rendering him unconscious and requiring hospital treatment.

 

After switching to another pitch so as not to leave everyone standing around and as a gesture of sportsmanship, Daventry were given the choice of half and the Scouts found themselves again playing into the wind. This did not deter the players who from the kick-off ran their opponents off the park running in 7 tries. Daventry, to their credit, did not give up and had a couple of good attacking moves only to be thwarted by the Scouts defence.

 

The final whistle came much to the relief of the Daventry team with the final score being 73-0 to the visitors.

 

The key points to this game were the defence, with some excellent first-up tackles being made by both forwards and backs. The close support for the ball carrier was also excellent and hopefully will be carried on next week in our league encounter versus Bletchley 3^rd.

 

Man of the Match, as selected by the Daventry captain, goes to Danny Laws. He caused havoc in the centre and made some excellent tackles.

 

Our thoughts also go to the Daventry no. 10 and we hope that he is back on his feet as soon as possible.

 

Tries: John Coowar 4, Martin Dunn 2, Ruari Robertson 2, Danny Laws, Tim Linnell, Stu Sturton

 

Conversions: Ruari Robertson 9

 

Bedford Ath 3^rd 5 Old Scouts 3^rd 41

 

October 17th 2009

 

Scouts recorded their first league win of the season with a comfortable result against a depleted Bedford Ath. Arriving at their ground with 18 players at the Scouts disposal they soon discovered that their hosts had only 10 players available. With this in mind the Scouts loaned their hosts 3 players and the game was played 14/13 a side with uncontested scrums.

 

In the initial exchanges it was evident that the Scouts thought this was going to be an easy 80 minutes, but credit to Bedford, they put up a fight from start to finish, with their forward pack continually frustrating the Scouts forwards and stopping any clean quick ball from set pieces. The damage was done by the backs, who were far superior to the Bedford back line and when they were given decent ball from the forwards they ran amok.

 

Overall it was a good result from what can only be described as a frustrating game.

 

Special thanks goes to Warren Grundy, Ian Polhill and Alex Cruickshank who played for our hosts and put in some creditable performances.

 

Man of the Match goes to Brian Mujanja who, playing in an unfamiliar position in the pack, gave an outstanding performance.

 

Scorers:

 

Tries: Matt Bodsworth, Martin Dunn, Alon Clunes, Ruari Robertson, Tim Linnell 3

 

Conversions: Stuart Dan, Ruari Robertson 2

 

Old Scouts 3^rd 26 UCN 22

 

October 3rd 2009

 

Scouts fielded a more solid side this week and were bolstered with the assistance of Bob & Alex Foster from the vets. In contrast UCN arrived with 30 players and this was there first real encounter for the youngsters.

 

It was decided to play four 20 minute quarters to allow all players some game time and from the start the UCN boys looked to use the pace and youth at their disposal scoring the first try within 5 minutes. Scouts were undeterred by this and began to use their strengths effectively. The pack dominated in the set piece and were causing havoc in the loose, however UCN continued to fluster the Scouts by slowing down the breakdown. After some consistent pressure from the Scouts forwards they found themselves awarded a penalty 10 yards out from the UCN line. Zac Roche took the ball and walked straight through the UCN defence to score under the posts.

 

The scouts attacked again with some good interplay between backs and forwards which resulted in a further try for Jordan Slater. After several changes were made on both sides the UCN boys made a better start and managed to put pace on the ball and scored a neat try covering the whole length of the pitch.

 

In the second two quarters the Scouts pack were continuing to dominate and due to the pressure being told the UCN pack reverted to uncontested scrums. This did not play into the UCN’s hands as they were not given the room to allow their centres to create anything. After a couple of tries apiece for both sides the game was over.

 

This was a good solid performance from the scouts against a younger and fitter side and is in stark contrast to the same fixture the previous year where the UCN boys ran amok.

 

Scouts return to league action next week against local rivals ON’s and this should be a good spring board to take them into that game.

 

Scorers:

 

Tries: Zac Roche, Jordan Slater, Bob Foster, Alex Foster

Conversions: Jack Turner 3

 

 

Old Scouts 3^rd 10 Leighton Buzzard 3^rd 34

 

September 26th 2009

 

Having lost several key players to the 2^nd’s during the week and two of their front row to illness on the morning of the game, it was always going to be a tough encounter. With the help of Neil Friedman from the vets the Scouts scraped together 15 players, with two brand new backs having to play in the pack. As a result the first half was played with uncontested scrums.

 

After a delay awaiting the arrival of two Buzzard players the game kicked off and can only be described as error strewn on both sides. Buzzard set out their stall and found themselves camped in the Scouts half with their outside half controlling the game. After some exerted pressure near to the Scouts line, a driving maul crashed over only for the referee to be unsighted. From the resultant scrum they did not make the same mistake and scored a well worked try out wide.

 

Scouts attempted to fight back and made some good in-roads into the Buzzard half but could not finish it off with points. Buzzard came back strongly and their outside half again outwitted the Scouts defence to score their second try.

 

Scouts raised their game and after a mazy run from centre Jordan Slater, Matt Bodsworth was on hand to carry the ball over the line and score for the Scouts.

 

Half time approached and with it the arrival of two more players. In a gesture of sportsmanship, the Scouts made a replacement and switched to contested scrums.

 

The second half was much more of a battle for the Scouts, who were now on the back foot at every scrum. The Buzzard forwards used their advantage effectively and they began to take hold of the game and dominate possession. The Scouts did show moments but after three unanswered tries the game was effectively over. To their credit the Scouts kept going and were rewarded with another try after wing John Coowar pounced onto a dropped ball by the Buzzard backs and ran in for his fourth try of the season.

 

Injuries forced Matt Bodsworth and skipper Ruari Robertson from the field and for the last 10 minutes the Scouts battled as hard as they could to limit the Buzzards to only a couple more tries.

 

Overall a disappointing start to the league season but a brave effort by those that took to the pitch.

 

Tries: Matt Bodsworth, John Coowar

 

Old Scouts 3^rd 26 Long Buckby 2^nd 19

 

September 19th 2009

 

Scouts took to the field, in their first home game, with a bare 15 players after losing some key players to the 2^nd’s. This did not deter the team who started the game confidently taking it to the opposition. In what can only be described as a frantic first 15 minutes, the Scouts forwards were regularly overpowering their opposite numbers but were guilty of trying to force one pass to many. During this session Long Buckby took advantage of the Scouts errors and crashed over for the opening try.

 

This was just the wake up call that the Scouts needed who began to play some forceful forward rugby which Long Buckby could not counter. Following a scrum on the Buckby 10 metre line, scrum half David ‘Piggy’ Markie picked up the ball and broke through the first line of defence. He then off-loaded to Matt Bodsworth who galloped over the line to score the Scouts first try under the posts, which was converted by skipper Ruari Robertson.

 

From the re-start the scouts took the fight straight back to Long Buckby and after some good interplay and some excellent work by all the forwards, created several chances but could not make them count.

 

In the second half the forwards continued their dominance in the set piece, giving no quarter to their opposite numbers. After some sustained pressure and several minutes camped in the Long Buckby 22, the ball came out to the backs. Martin Dunn placed a neat chip over the Long Buckby backs, for flying winger John Coowar to collect and score his third try in as many games. The conversion was knocked over by Ruari Robertson and the scouts were now in the driving seat.

 

Scouts continued to attack through the forwards but after some sloppy errors Long Buckby found themselves gaining some rare momentum and crashed over for their second score.

 

Undeterred the Scouts went straight back up the pitch and put right the previous errors with David Markie crashing over for a well deserved try.

 

The Long Buckby forwards were struggling to cope with the dominant Scouts pack and again they found themselves defending in their own 22. After some neat work at the line-out, Martin Dunn danced and rolled his way from the 22 and over the line to score the Scouts 4^th try, converted by David Markie as his reward for playing at scrum half.

 

The Scouts then switched off and after some very slack tackling allowed Long Buckby a further try, however there was no chance of a recovery as the ref blew up for the end of the game, with the Scouts maintaining their winning start.

 

Next week Old Scouts 3^rd begin their league campaign when they host Leighton Buzzard 3^rd. This will be a tough encounter but with new found confidence and hopefully the return of some key players will see them continue their good fortune.

 

Man of the Match, as nominated by the Long Buckby captain, goes to Matt Bodsworth.

 

Tries: Matt Bodsworth, John Coowar, David Markie, Martin Dunn

 

Conversions: Ruari Robertson 2, David Markie

Old Laurentians/Long Buckby 14 SCOUTS 3RDS 17

September 12th 2009

Scouts 3rd travelled to Old Laurentians expecting to play their 3rd team and due to the home side being unable to field a team played a Long Buckby side with the assistance of 5 OL's players.

The game was played in a good atmosphere from start to finish and the Scouts did find themselves down at half time, but pulled their socks up in the second half to over come the deficit and sneak the win in the last few minutes.Special mention goes to Ian Barber who, at the last minute, stepped in as acting Captain and gave a stirling performance in the absence of current skipper Ruari Robertson.

Man of the Match goes to Alan Slater, playing his first full game in the back row and was exceptional in defence.

The 3rd's now have two wins from two games and look forward to building on their success when they host Brackley at home next week in their final friendly prior to the league campaign beginning.

Scorers: Tries: Ollie Pentelow, Dave Tridgell, John Coowar Conversion: Stuart Dan

 

BBOB 3rds 15  SCOUTS 3rds 26

 

September 5th 2009

 

In their opening encounter of the new season, Old Scouts 3^rd travelled the short distance to their near neighbours for this friendly. Having 22 players at their disposal, it was an ideal opportunity to develop the side for the season and to blood some new players.

 

From the start the Scouts tried to be adventurous with the ball, looking to off-load at every opportunity and attempted to use the pace at their disposal in the backs. It did not always pay off and rustiness was evident as BBOB did a good job of spoiling any quick clean ball for the Scouts. In the end this paid dividends for BBOB who scraped over the line after a Scouts error to open the scoring.

 

Scouts started to get their act together and began to gain momentum. The backs were making line breaks at ease but could just not make that final pass count. However after some constant pressure the ball was fed down the line for Martin Dunn to crash over.

 

Scouts again tried to run with the ball but errors and constant hands in the ruck allowed BBOB to steal another try. Scouts used their forwards to good effect and after continued pressure Stu Sturton steam rollered over the line for a try.

 

The second half was much a mirror of the first. Although BBOB attacked straight from the re-start and with the Scouts defence half asleep scored their third try. The Scouts pack began to dominate in the tight and at set piece and a quick ball to Jack Turner allowed him to break through the BBOB defence and score the Scouts 3^rd try.

 

In the last few minutes the pressure again told with the ball going through the hands for newcomer John Coowar to outpace hos opposite wing and score in the corner for the Scouts 4^th try.

 

Overall a good game was had by all and with some more games under their belts will begin to gel together and have more success.

 

Scorers

 

Tries:

 

Martin Dunn, Stu Sturton, Jack Turner, John Coowar

 

Conversions:

 

Ruari Robertson 3