Newcastle 2nds Vs Stafford 2nds

The 2nd XV were on the road again at the weekend, as they made the short journey up the A34 to Newcastle. Having managed to negotiate the traffic, it was a short and sharp warm-up then straight into the action. The pitch was not in the best of conditions, heavy rain and poor drainage meant that it was going to be hard to maintain any sort of following rugby. Stafford had made changes throughout the side, the pack in particular were much lighter and lacking experience in positions.
It was Newcastle to take the kick off, the early exchanges were proving difficult for both side to maintain any sort of possession. Mistakes came from both sides and in the scrum it was hard to keep stable. The bounce of the ball was not ideal for kicking for touch and many attempts to do so often failed for either side.
A Newcastle try gave the home team the upper hand yet they failed to convert to take full advantage. Stafford responded, working well to retain the ball and gain yards up the pitch. After kicking for touch Newcastle had to defend their own try line. From the lineout the ball was tapped back and in an attempt to clear the ball away it was hacked into the air. As the ball fell into the waiting hands of the Stafford backline, this allowed the ball to be run in under the sticks by centre James Atkinson. James Brown easily slotted home the conversion to give Stafford the full 7 points. Soon after Brown was again on the score sheet with a penalty. Stafford began to dominate play for a period, hitting the tackles hard and forcing the errors. The Referee gave the signal for a Newcastle player being offside at the ruck and Captain Gaz Phillips opted for the penalty kick on goal.
Half time score Newcastle 5 – 10 Stafford
The second period continued much as the first half had ended. Stafford were attempting to play with some structured set plays and Newcastle using their strength to power through tackles kicked up the field to defend their lines. Newcastle made significant changes within their team, fresh legs and wise heads meant Stafford became under increased pressure at times. Yet they defended in numbers and showed promise to increase their lead. Fly half Phil Dewick was unlucky to be denied a second try for the Stafford side after a one on one chase for a charge down ball with the Newcastle fullback. Stafford did however finally manage to gain a further 3 points from the boot of Mark Bissell. He calmly struck over the posts a difficult penalty, much to the disappointment of the home supporting crowd.
During the last few minutes of the game Stafford were camped out within their own 22 metre area. As the final seconds run down Newcastle were awarded a penalty and as a result they managed to squeeze through for a second try. The following kick was the last action of the match, which they failed to convert.
Final score Newcastle 10 – 13 Stafford
Not the prettiest of games, but another big W for the Development XV.