Sat 9 Nov 2024
Wallingford welcomed Reading to the Hithercroft on an overcast day in south Oxfordshire as they looked to continue their winning run against Reading.
In selection, Wallingford were missing several backs due to Twickenham ‘commitments’ but were able to welcome back the quality of Murray Bellis, Peter Clayton-Chance and Chris Greig-Jenkins, whilst veteran Ralph Smith filled in at full back.
It was clear from the off that Reading, also missing a few regulars, had a simple game plan of utilising their big ball carriers in the pack and centres and kicking for territory when it was on.
After weathering some early pressure, Wallingford worked their way into the game and soon found themselves on the front foot as Reading began to fall foul of the referee. After several penalties for which the visitors were fortunate not to lose anyone to the bin for, Wallingford eventually crossed the whitewash as the in-form Nathan Chapman burrowed his way over from close range. Conversion missed.
It was then Reading’s turn to benefit from ill-discipline as Wallingford began to infringe on a regular basis, enabling Reading to enjoy a sustained spell of pressure in the Wallingford twenty-two which culminated in a short range try by the Reading prop. Try converted.
The back and forth nature of the game continued as Wallingford promptly struck back. This time, from an attacking scrum in the Reading twenty-two, the backs executed a move to put Greig-Jenkins, playing against his former club, in space and the powerful winger did the rest as Wallingford regained the lead with an unconverted try.
The remaining 15 minutes saw Reading dominate as Wallingford were fortunate not to pick up a yellow for a series of penalties in their twenty-two, but excellent Wallingford defence kept the visitors at bay for the rest of the half as Wallingford went into the break 10-7 up.
With only 3 points in it, the game was very much in the balance, and it only took 5 minutes for Reading to regain a narrow lead. After a clearance failed to make touch, the Reading nine spotted a gap behind the Wallingford defence and put in an excellent dink down the left wing for the Reading captain to race on to and score for an unconverted score.
The lubricated VP crowd didn’t have to wait long for the next score, as Wallingford struck back almost immediately. This time, from a ruck just outside the Reading twenty-two, Chapman took advantage of some AWOL guards to pick and run in for a converted try.
Reading’s direct approach was still proving effective, and after some strong carries from their big forwards, they worked their way towards the Wallingford line before grinding their way over the line from short-range for another unconverted try.
With the scores level at 17-17 with 20 minutes to play, it was all to play for.
At this points, the Wallingford backline came to the fore as they produced a devastating 15 minute spell that ultimately determined the result.
First up, from a Wallingford scrum just outside their twenty-two, the ball was moved wide to Bellis who took it forward 30m before expertly feeding Greig-Jenkins. The big winger still had plenty to do from 40m out, but he promptly saw off 4 would-be tacklers before finishing in the left corner for a trademark score.
Next up, an offload inside the Wallingford half again put Bellis in space down the left. This time, he fed Sam Botting who offloaded in the tackle to Greig-Jenkins 15m out and again the winger muscled his way over the line for his hat-trick try.
With Reading heads starting to drop, Wallingford added one final try. This time, from an attacking line-out in the Reading twenty-two, the ball was moved to James Porter who powered his way through the Reading defence before brilliantly off-loading to debutant Jack Gower-Jackson who finished for a debut try.
That effectively killed the game off, as the game ended 34-17 to Wallingford.
This was an entertaining game of rugby played in excellent spirits by both sides and refereed in such a way that the game was able to flow throughout.
The Wallingford pack did a good job of dealing with a powerful Reading pack and scrum, whilst the backs showed their class when given the chance, with Greig-Jenkins almost unplayable at times, whilst Clayton-Chance did an excellent job filling in at scrum-half for the first time.
Young George Thomasson had probably his best game yet for the seniors while fellow U19 Jack Gower-Jackson showed everyone why he was the Colts player of the season last year with an excellent debut off the bench.
But man of the match, as voted for by numerous sozzled VPs in the bar after game, was awarded to Murray Bellis who was excellent in defence and oozed class in attack.
