Stafford 40 – 5 Cannock

Stafford entertained Cannock in what was their first league game of 2016. Despite the recent wet weather, the pitch was in a passable condition but did not lend itself to expansive rugby. The game plan for Stafford was to use their mobile forwards as much as possible to gain territory and create a solid platform for scoring opportunities. Cannock did not travel with a full team so the home side kindly leant them two of their own players to make the contest a more even affair from the start. As a consequence this meant that the game had to be played with un-contested scrums, however the home team refused to let this distract them from their game plan.

The first half could not have started any better for Stafford as a mistake by the opposition scrum half allowed Matty Lake to kick the ball through and score the opening try, which was converted by James Brown. Stafford continued to dominate in all departments and scored their second try through Phil Dewick, converted by James Brown. Complacency then began to set in for the home team, as Cannock started to string together a few decent phases of play and deservedly scored a try of their own. Both teams then continued to squander positive phases of play before the home team went over for their third try as Matty Lake grabbed his second of the game, converted by James Brown. Stafford went into half time leading by 21 -5 and having dominated the majority of the game.

Changes were made at half time and this resulted in a period of sloppy play as Stafford adjusted to the new personnel. The team settled and it was not too long before Stafford had scored their fourth try of the game through Matt Manion. This seemed to knock the stuffing out of Cannock as two more tries quickly followed through James Hegarty and another from Phil Dewick, both converted by James Brown. The home team pushed for their seventh try in the final few minutes but to no avail. Overall a solid performance had resulted in a well-deserved victory.