STAFFORD 1ST XV vs CREWE & NANTWICH 1ST XV. 21ST DECEMBER 2019. LEAGUE MATCH.

Stafford welcomed Crewe & Nantwich to Coopers Park for the final league match of 2019/20. The game was also the last in a gruelling eleven fixtures comprising the first half of the season. The teams came into the game at opposite ends of the league, the hosts in a good fourth-place position and the visitors having a complex season second from bottom sitting in eleventh place.

Stafford came barrelling into the game with an opening elusive run by Sam Egerton almost ripping through the still settling Crewe & Nantwich defence. The visitors responded with some effective attacking rugby ending in the first try of the game. The Stafford riposte pinned the visitors on their own line causing Crewe & Nantwich to be temporarily reduced to fourteen as they grudgingly conceded a yellow card. The county town forwards threw themselves into the fray, swamping the defence and Isireli Qasenivalu crashed across to ground the ball, Louis Dewsbury’s conversion tying the scores. The momentum was relentless, Carl Williams carried hard leaving a few of the opposition lying prone as he forced his way through for the next try, Louis Dewsbury adding the conversion. Stafford were creating the room to run and Crewe & Nantwich were struggling to contain the fast-paced assault. Taraiasi Wara was the next to turn the defence inside out, the final pass just being fielded by the fingertips of Louis Dewsbury for a try, which he then converted. The restart crashed the ball back up the field with a brutal run by Sefanaia Bulumakau bouncing visitors all over the pitch before he crossed for the bonus point try, converted by Louis Dewsbury. An excellent period of attacking play by Crewe & Nantwich took two well deserved tries to narrow the gap to a single score. As the half meandered to a close, a Louis Dewsbury run finished with an outstretched hand reaching for the line but the linesmans flag signalled touch. The subsequent line out was disrupted by Stafford opening up a small gap which Sam Egerton flew through to take the final try of the half, converted by Louis Dewsbury. Stafford went into half time leading 33-19, in control but contesting against a Crewe & Nantwich XV showing a lot of heart.

Stafford resumed the game by stretching a battling Crewe & Nantwich thinly across the pitch. A couple of forays were absorbed by the visitors before the defence ran out of numbers and Nick Oxley stepped through for a try, converted by Louis Dewsbury. The hosts continued to build on their lead when Jerry Qasenivalu burst through a hoard of opposition players eluding any attempted tackles to race across the line taking Stafford’s seventh try of the afternoon, converted by Louis Dewsbury. The intensity of the afternoon caused frayed tempers to erupt ending in a yellow for Crewe & Nantwich and an unfortunate red for Stafford. The visitors were the first to take advantage with some gritty play taking their final points of the afternoon to secure a much-needed bonus point. The Stafford forwards added the next try, bullying their way around the pitch, a couple of sorties against the fighting defence propelled the pack over the line and Stephen Frost grounded the ball, Louis Dewsbury adding the conversion. As defending legs started to tire Sefanaia Bulumakau and Alosio Yamoyamo terrorised the defence ripping open huge holes and the final pass was unselfishly given to Nick Oxley for his second try of the afternoon. A penalty try to Stafford added to the sizeable lead before some frantic Crewe & Nantwich defence incurred a red card to reduce the visitors to fourteen on the field. The Stafford forwards continued to keep the visitors under territorial pressure with a prowling back line lurking menacingly in the background. The next try came from a ferocious Dan Smith charge which broke through the seventy-point barrier, converted by Louis Dewsbury. In the last play of the afternoon Stephen Frost eluded the hard working defence to set off on a lung busting run. As the visitors hauled him down a final pass allowed Alosio Yamoyamo to brush through the opposition for the final try of the afternoon, converted by Louis Dewsbury.