Dubs 15 vs. Reeds Weybridge 5
Having beaten Reeds fairly convincingly in the first half of the season, hopes were high for the return fixture at home despite somewhat erratic performances of late. Coops was crocked and so for the first time this season the captaincy was passed over, Rob taking up the mantle at no.10. The warm-up saw good application and concentration and the team took to the field in good spirit on an unusually fine day with blue skies and bright sunshine the order of the day and the pitch holding up well.
The first few set plays soon exposed the problem areas we knew we would have - playing light in the pack saw us under pressure in the scrums and without our regular jumpers the lineout was a 50/50 affair at best. In open play we fared better but the large Reeds backs were also running strongly and defences were put to the test early on. We got our noses in front first with a unconverted try through the forwards courtesy of Neil. Reeds came back strongly late in the half and a drive off the lineout saw the heavier pack eventually roll over for a score which was converted to see Reeds take the lead 7 - 5. We then scored again through the forwards, good offloading saw the ball go cleanly to Ben Phillips to crash over with Neil in close support, again unconverted.
In the second half Callis came on to add some much needed weight to the front row and the scrum settled somewhat. Steve and Darren came on in the midfield to take up tackling and carrying duties which they did well. With their two large rugby leaguers in the backs, Reeds were playing everything through the centre with the fullback joining in and only continual solid defence in midfield nullified their threat throughout the game. Early in the second half good hands saw Rob hit the gap well and go over unopposed out wide to give us some breathing space. The remainder of the game was pretty scrappy and doesn't really warrant further description - we could and should have done better and perhaps scored a few more!
The game was a fair reflection with Reeds fielding a better side than first time around and our much-changed team having to fit around each other on the day and make the best of it. On a weekend which saw two walkovers conceded in our league, both teams can take some credit for having fulfilled the fixture.
No photos are available for this game, apologies.
RFU.com 
Club Search
