Stafford 1st XV welcomed Cleobury Mortimer 1st XV for the inaugural match between the two teams at Blackberry Lane. The newly promoted Shropshire side had recovered from their opening game league loss to secure a solid five points last week. With similar results the two teams were tied on points but with Stafford sitting one league place above the visitors. A wickedly gusting wind howled across the county town ground, holding back the rain clouds but making for difficult playing conditions.

It was the visitors who took the initiative when some missed tackles allowed the Shropshire side through for a try. The response from Stafford was immediate and steering the play around the pitch, they soon found a strong foothold in the opposition half. The visitors were finding it difficult to subdue the aggressive attack but did find a way to slow down the play. Stafford continued to probe and when the defence eventually took a step back, bodies flew in from all over the pitch to crash across the line. Dan Watts rose from the bottom of the pile to claim the equalising try. Cleobury Mortimer continued to put in a good shift but were visibly struggling in the set piece, the Stafford scrum was proving particularly dominant and earning some good results. The momentum swung between the sides before the Blackberry Lane XV slowly started to regain the upper hand. Running rugby put the visitors on the back foot and some of the ensuing kicks were defying the wind to find a punishing touch. Now plying their trade deep in hostile territory, the County Town team again had sight of the whitewash. A quick call led to the players smashing against the hard workking defence. More bodies were summoned and the visitors buckled and then were scattered across their own line. Dan Watts dotting down for his second of the afternoon, converted by Henry Ralphs. A dominant period ended with what could have been a penalty try for the home side. Instead, there was a brief flurry of handbags which ended in a yellow card adding to the Shropshire woes. But Cleobury Mortimer had come to play and with a period of decent rugby closed the half with a try to equalise the scores. Stafford went into half time drawing 12 – 12 in a close game which had seen both sides having their chances.

Buoyed up by a brief rest a refreshed Stafford came bouncing into the second half looking to play at a high tempo. This immediately caused chaos with the visitors and a scrambling defence was now rapidly moving backwards. With the try line in sight Stafford returned to what was proving to be an effective ploy. A driving maul ripped through the remaining defence for Dan Watts to take his third of the afternoon. As Stafford went looking for their fourth an unfortunate rugby incident led to Dan Watts competing so hard that his shirt was left behind. Now bare chested, the Vice Captain streaked across the pitch to terrorise the mesmerised defence. Distracted by the flesh on show, the visiting XV soon ran out of numbers. With some deft passing the ball found its way to Morgan Cassells who drifted across the line for the bonus point try, converted by Henry Ralphs. Incurring their second yellow of the afternoon, Cleobury Mortimer should have had to batten down the hatches for the next ten minutes. However, a change in gear saw the visitors playing some of their best rugby of the afternoon laying siege to the clubhouse line. In a ferocious period, the visitors crossed twice only to be judged as held up by the referee. The Stafford defence was purely defiant and patience saw the ball eventually being cleared from the danger area. As the momentum swung it was Staffords turn to manage the game. Some good running tore a couple of large holes, but the visiting defence proved equal to the challenge. In the end the home side settled for a penalty which Cristian Ureche slotted between the uprights to push the margin out beyond two scores. With sparse time left on the clock, the teams continued to jockey for possession. But neither could find any significant advantage until the referee’s whistle closed off a great game of rugby.

Next 1st XV Match: Saturday 17th October, Telford Hornets 1st XV. Away League. KO 15.00.