1st XV
Matches
Sat 01 Feb 2020  ·  Midlands 2 West (North)
Stafford RUFC
1st XV
92
5
Shrewsbury
STAFFORD 1ST XV vs SHREWSBURY 1ST XV. 1ST FEBRUARY 2020. LEAGUE MATCH.

STAFFORD 1ST XV vs SHREWSBURY 1ST XV. 1ST FEBRUARY 2020. LEAGUE MATCH.

Steven McLuckie2 Feb 2020 - 18:32
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Stafford keep up the pressure in second-place with a fourteen try win over bottom of the league Shrewsbury.

Stafford welcomed a travelling Shrewsbury to Coopers Park for the opening league game of February. The Salopian team were having to endure a difficult run of form following their promotion from Midlands 3 West (North) the previous season. Shrewsbury had only managed two wins in the current campaign but had held Stafford to thirteen points at Sundorne Castle in the away fixture last year.

The referee’s opening whistle unleashed a prowling Stafford XV who were looking to play at a high tempo. Free flowing rugby ripped through the opposition to close with a looping pass from Rich Martin picked up by Nick Oxley who stepped through for the opening try. The restart offered no respite as hard carries by the home side forwards grinded out a succession of penalties. With the line in sight a couple of feints stretched Shrewsbury before Christian Ureche ghosted round the defence for a try which he then converted. The visitor’s afternoon started to deteriorate further when a subsequent yellow card reduced them to a temporary fourteen on the pitch. As the game resumed a superb line by Gareth “Obi” Ley ripped through everything to leave a clear path to the line but the strident tones of the referee’s whistle denied the prestige as play was called back. Shrewsbury continued to scrap for everything and put in some hard hits to try and stem the flow. The assault was relentless, an elusive Quade Bol jaunt the next to create havoc against a desperately retreating defence. The final ball releasing Nick Oxley for his second of the afternoon, converted by Christian Ureche. The match had barely resumed when on the opposite wing the play found its way to Jerry Qasenivalu who broke through a couple of tackles before tearing past the remaining opposition to claim the try bonus point, converted by Christian Ureche. The visitors settled to play some of their best rugby of the afternoon, heart and teamwork earning Shrewsbury a very deserved try. Stafford went into half time leading 26-5 and very much in control despite the effort the visitors were putting in.

Shrewsbury opened the second half with some testing rugby which Stafford had to work hard to contain. The momentum was eventually broken up when Gaz O’Connor, Stephen Frost and James Wilkinson tackled Shrewsbury into submission allowing Carl Williams to crash the ball back up the pitch. As the play broke down Callum Jones pounced on the ball to tear off half the length of the pitch for a try, converted by Christian Ureche. The Stafford forwards were fighting for every inch of territory and were they couldn’t get possession, we’re equally successful in spoiling the Shrewsbury continuity. A turn over ball found its way to Rich Martin who tied up the opposing centres before throwing another looping pass for Christian Ureche to run onto for his second of the afternoon. The visitors were harassed off the ball from the restart, Alex Rock and Angus Hamplett combining to frustrate the opposition from building any platform. This was followed by a brutal charge from Sam Chatfield charge which was eventually dragged down just short of the line. The game dissolved into a slightly disjointed affair when both sides suffered minor lapses in concentration, but it was the visitors who benefited the most from a couple of penalties. The wind thwarted a Shrewsbury clearance kick and the ball dropped into the waiting arms of a Stafford back line. Dan Mills set off on a scything run which carried the ball across three quarters of the pitch before the pursuing defenders managed to bring him to ground. The Stafford forwards poured through to secure the ball and set the platform. The proximity to the line was enough for Carl Williams to unleash a trademark surge which ran through the defenders for a try. With twenty minutes left on the clock, the game began to take its toll on the visitors who started to noticeably drop off the pace. A Callum Hoy direct line was strong enough to take the next try as anything in his path was brushed aside, Christian Ureche adding the conversion to put fifty points on the board. Shrewsbury responded by trying to carry hard but tortuous resistance caused them to clear their lines but created one of the moments of the afternoon. With the ball drifting over the side-line, Jerry Qasenivalu leapt high to flick it back into play. Dan Mills picked up kicking for territory and Jerry Qasenivalu outstripped all the defenders to secure the ball. A series of quick passes released Callum Hoy for his second try of the afternoon, with Christian Ureche continuing to add the conversion. The subsequent Shrewsbury restart was caught by Callum Jones who landed into a sprint which took him across nearly the full length of the pitch for his second try of the afternoon, with another conversion by Christian Ureche. With less than ten minutes remaining the visitors had nothing left against the almost relentless attack. Tries from Dan Mills and Louis Dewsbury along with two tries from Tom Williams helped along by four Christian Ureche conversions closed off a successful afternoon of rugby for the Coopers Park faithful.

Match details

Match date

Sat 01 Feb 2020

Kickoff

TBC

Competition

Midlands 2 West (North)

League position

4
Stafford
12
Shrewsbury
Team overview
Further reading

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