Evesham won the toss and decided to play with the wind in the first half. From the start it was obvious that the wind would play a big part in the first half play as Stafford failed to gather the initial kickoff and had to defend their own line. Stafford then built momentum and moved the ball steadily up the pitch and got a foothold in the Evesham half. Then from a Ruck 7m out from the Evesham line Archie Paul cut back against the gain to catch the Evesham defenders off guard to score the opening try. Stafford again failed to deal with the re-start inviting pressure on their own goaline. As they built up field the ball was turned over and one of the elusive Evesham centers weaved his was through the Stafford defence to score a try under the posts. Stafford immediately hit back with a converted try of their own when after 13 minutes center Fin Osman made a strong run carrying several Evesham defenders with him into the opposition 22 and from the ruck scrum half Archie Bent spotted a hole in the defence and dashed through it to score near the Evesham posts. Seb Conaghan adding the conversion.

Stafford were now starting to play some very nice rugby with the forwards and back combining with some lovely flow handling moves. However, playing into the wind was difficult and Evesham were able to clear their lines easily by kicking the ball deep into the Stafford half forcing the colts to build from deep time and time again, Fullback Ollie Croft and wingers Aiden Barker and Alex Sheard running the ball back from deep. Stafford’s 3rd try came when Ollie Croft again ran the ball back from deep but was able to connect with the forwards who kept the momentum up and tipped the ball through several pair of hands. Then the ball was popped back on the inside shoulder and wing forward Daniel Clements ran under the Evesham posts to finish the score off, a lovely whole team try, Seb Conaghan added the conversion. Stafford were now well and truly on top and pilled the pressure on the home side. A kick to the corner and resulting 5m lineout saw Stafford mauling the ball towards the line, Evesham were forced to collapse the maul but Stafford played the advantage and Oscar Hall-Davies forced his way over the line in the left hand corner for his first try for Stafford Colts. From the re-start Stafford again failed to catch the ball cleanly and with the last play of the half Evesham were able to force their way over. First half finished with Stafford leading 12 – 24.

Stafford now playing with the wind in the second half immediately put Evesham under pressure. From the kickoff it was Evesham’s turn to fail to clear their lines and from a ruck close to the line second half substitute Gurman Seehra forced his way over. However, Evesham hit back straight away when their strong running center broke several tackles to run from half way to score out wide. Stafford then started to play quicker rugby taking the opportunity to run the ball at every opportunity and kick behind Evesham. Seb Conaghan broke from his own half and chipped over the Evesham defenders, he gathered his own kick and sprinted into the Evesham 22, just as he was being tackled he passed the ball to winger Alex Sheard for a certain score but he was unable to gather the ball and knocked it on. Stafford were not to be denied though and were awarded a penalty in front of the Evesham post which they decided to run a penalty move from and Hugo Sutton was on hand to dive over under the posts. Seb Conaghan added the simple conversion. Stafford were now stretching away and Gurman Seehra added a second try wide on the left. The Evesham centers had been the main opposition threat all game and when the elusive number 12 broke into the Stafford backfield it looked like a certain try only for speedy winger Alex Sheard to race all the way across the pitch to make a try saving tackle, much to the delight of all the coaches and supporters. The Stafford scoring was completed when center Dan Poultney picked up a loose ball and skipped his way past the Evesham full back to score under the posts, Seb added the conversion. The game ended with a score line of 17 – 48 to Stafford and another bonus point league win.

It was a great performance from Stafford Colts against an Evesham team that were second in the league. Forwards and backs worked well together and the handling and off loading was outstanding. Evesham struggled to deal with the Stafford centers Fin Osmant and Dan Poultney both making numerous strong runs. Gurman Seehra had a strong game coming off the bench and Oscar Hall-Davies also had some strong carries. Oliver Downe nearly broke his try scoring drought but was denied close to the Evesham line. All in all it was an excellent performance from Stafford with excellent scrummaging and lineout play and elusive running and interplay from the whole side.

Well done lads keep up the momentum and See you all at training
Next up is a home league game against Worcester on Sunday 5th March

Mark