Burton @ Worcester on December 16th 2007

Game.1: Worcester 0 v 25 Falcons

The Falcons arrived at Worcester excited to be playing against boys coached under the guidance of a premiership club. They took no time in settling down and took the game confidently to the Worcester boys. Jacob Abraham was immense in the tackle as was Cameron Scobie and Alex Dutoy.

Right from the first whistle the boys wanted to play as a unit and looked for the off-load before running into trouble. James North and Dominic Phillips lead the way with some fine handling and passing of the ball.James North benefited from his hard work, running half the length of the pitch to score the opening try.

Then came the move of the day. A fine pick-up by Dominic Phillips, a splendid run and eventual off-load to Luke Greenhill who was rewarded with his first try of the season having provided excellent support to Phillip’s surging run.

In the second half the Falcons produced yet more excellent team play. Charlie Newcombe drove forward as did Josh Suddaby and Cameron Scobie, setting up some very good rucks from which the next phase of the attack could begin. Alex Dutoy continued to work hard with some excellent defensive tackling. Tackle of the day belonged to Jacob Abraham with a fine, text-book tackle which left his opponent wondering what had hit him!

Three more trys were run in second half: A lovely pass from James North set up Jacob Abraham to run over. Then James North scored his second after another long run-in. Finally, a strong, aggressive rip of the ball by Dominic Phillips allowed him to steal possession and run for the try line.

The boy’s channelled their excitement in a controlled and positive manner producing some excellent rugby, culminating in the best team effort of the season so far.

Particular mention goes to man of the match, and series, James North for his usual high work rate but also his willingness to look for the pass and play as part of the team. Also, Luke Greenhill for his best personal display of the season – rewarded by his first try – well done!

Man of the match and series:      James North

 

The last competitive game of 2007 for the Eagles was the long awaited away fixture with Premiere Club Worcester Warriors.  The invite to line up against the Warriors in their own back yard gave the Eagles coaches the ideal opportunity to measure progress against opposition of the highest calibre.  The Eagles were psyched up after drill and took to the field for game one.

Game 1: Worcester  10 v Burton Eagles 20

The opening ten five minutes witnessed some of the Eagle best rugby of the season.  Warriors showed their premier class with good running/passing rugby, however, the Eagles withstood the early onslaught and determined defensive play in the middle by Jacob Buxton, Jammie Dutton and Alex Dutoy kept the Warriors pointless despite the majority of possession. 

Then the tables were turned.  A warriors attack was stopped short of Eagles line by a massive tackle by William Hulbert, Jonathon Kingston drove the ball forward and passed to Joshua Hart who put on the gas for a spectacular straight run through the Warriors defensive line.  The try gave Eagles the impetus to attack the Warriors defence and they were soon rewarded with the second try.  Tommy Collingwood and Joel Dolman drove the ball forward and opened the Warriors defensive to be breached once more by a flying Joshua Hart who ran the ball home for his second. 

The Eagles were on fire and soon scored their third try.  Great defensive work by William Hulbert and Calum Launchbury halted a Warriors attack.  Tommy Collingwood drove the ball forward and passed to Alex Dutoy who fed Joshua hart for the third and his hat trick try.  Warriors were determined to get on the score card and scored a deserved late try despite the efforts of Joel Dolman and Jacob Buxton on the line. 

The second half witnessed early doors pressure by the Worcester Warriors who were determined to show who was the premiere club.  William Hulbert and Tommy Collingwood frustrated the Warriors with last ditch tackles to deny them points.  Alex Dutoy and Jammie Dutton held up the wing inches from the line on their next move. 

Then the inevitable Worcester drove the ball over the Eagles line despite fantastic defensive work from Jonathon Kingston, Connor Wood and Nadan Cox.  The Warriors could be excused for thinking this was the beginning of their revival, however, the Eagles displayed their own premiere pedigree with the try of the match.  Another crunching tackle by Connor Wood turned ball over.  Calum Launchbury picked up the loose ball and was supported by Tommy Collingwood, Alex Dutoy and Joel Dolman in the maul.  The ball was set up for Jonathon Kingston to drive further towards the Warriors line.  Connor Wood finished the move with a straight determined run through two defenders to register a try right on the whistle. 

Man of the Match:     Jacob Buxton a great display of defensive awareness and unselfish forward running.  A mention for Joshua Hart who scored three excellent tries.

Game.3:       Worcester 25 v 0 Falcons………Second half only

A turn around in fortunes! Due to the cold December conditions, The Eagles and Falcons shared the final game.

The Falcons provided second half opposition and found themselves fighting a defecit of 10 points to nil.

This was a much stronger Worcester team and the difference showed as the Burton boys began to feel the cold and became tired. However, a valiant effort kept the score respectable.

Worcester ran in 3 further trys but only after some excellent defensive work from Jacob Abraham, Alex Dutoy, Cameron Scobie and Dominic Phillips.

Charlie Newcombe demonstrated some good set-up play as did Craig Plummer. However, the Falcons couldn’t find the same rhythm as that of the first game as the Worcester boys gave them no time to settle.

The game finished in defeat. However, the boys did not go down without a fight and left the pitch with their heads held high.

Man of the half:       Jacob Abraham (more high energy tackling, driving and leading from the front.)