Sat 23 Oct 2021
A much changed Wallingford side took on Bicester on a fine October afternoon, looking to put the disappointment of the Abbey defeat behind them.
Coach Henry Day made a number of changes to the starting line-up, most notably dropping himself from fly-half in favour of club stalwart Rolf Smith; bringing U19 Joe Nisbet into the line-up for his first senior cap; and recalling Kris Blaszko to the side after a couple of games out the 1st XV. With George Marffy selected in the centres in place of the injured Botting, the club have now fielded 6 different centres, 4 fly-halves and 4 scrum-halves in the 4 league games to date – what are the odds on Ali Reay lining-up outside Sid Slinn before the New Year?!
With a lack of continuity in selection, it was no surprise that the game began in a disjointed manner for the hosts. Strong, direct carries from Jeffreys and Searle ensured Wallingford had early go-forward ball and Dan Sadler, returning to the side at full-back, added creativity with some good early touches and excellent footwork in traffic. However a combination of solid Bicester defence and handling errors meant any phase play fizzled out before it could properly develop.
Bicester, for their part, had a similarly direct style of play and their heavy front-row and excellent number 8 made ground around the fringes, while their back-line – though slightly lateral with much of their play – looked to move the ball to their rangy outside-centre and energetic wingers. With both sides cancelling out each other’s’ strengths, it soon became apparent that much of the game would be played between the 22 meter lines and that it would be a stop-start match.
When the deadlock was finally broken, it was through the excellence of Nathan Chapman, who picked from the base of a ruck on the right wing and barrelled his way through a number of defenders before linking with Jeffries, who in turn found Blaszko unmarked to dot down with aplomb. Over the last three games the strength of Chapman’s pick-and-go game has been obvious and his quick feet, low gravity and speed make him a potent weapon when the defence is disorganised. Sadly, the conversion effort drifted wide.
Bicester had their chances to reply and their powerful tight-head made a barrelling run down the left wing that they will feel they should have made more of afterWallingford executed an excellent choke-tackle inside their own 5 meter line to turn over possession. Coach Day must have had the boys working on this tactic at training, as Wallingford were able to effect three such turnovers in the first half, each time denying Bicester promising attacking platforms.
The half ended 5-0 and, whilst there was a lot of endeavour it wasn’t the most free-flowing spectacle for the fans on the side-line, in whose minds the memories of Abbey’s comeback were still fresh. Carl Tappin was introduced to the game in place of Ed Searle early in the second half and, following a leg injury to Marffy, Andy Hoggins entered the fray to make his club debut.
The second half opened following a similar pattern to the first, with a lot of stoppages, a lot of whistle and a general sense of stalemate. Bicester began to develop a territorial edge as the half developed, with Wallingford – missing an experienced game manager and kicker – struggling to exit their half and inviting pressure. Several times Bicester made ground into Wallingford’s 22, however excellent defending, poor hands and an ineffective line-out meant they were repelled time-and-again. During these periods of pressure, James Norris excelled with his low position over the ball and excellent line-speed as did Rolf who defended superbly all game, bringing down much bigger men with his lasso tackles and withering smack-talk.
With 20 minutes to go and seemingly in control of the game, Bicester had a series of pick-and-go drives down the left side of the pitch and made ground through their powerful and energetic number 8. With Wallingford struggling to defend, the visitors were awarded a penalty and, in what felt like a dubious decision as they had so much momentum, they opted to kick the goal to cut the gap to 5-3.
Sparked into life, Wallingford were a team reborn and extended their lead through a try that was as direct as it was simple. A good break by Hoggins was followed by a stunning surge by Jeffreys (including a fend this reporter will long remember), a great carry by Tappin and a powerful finish by Irwin. Smith added the extras from in-front of the posts and Wallingford found themselves 12-3 up with 10 minutes to play – a gap that seemed cavernous given the low-scoring nature of the game.
Bicester, however, had other ideas and – despite losing their fly-half to the bin for a ruck infringement - poured on more pressure, eventually winning a penalty in the Wallingford 22 which saw Norris go to the bin for an accumulation of offences. Kicking to the corner, the away team had a great position to strike, however their line-out let them down once more and Wallingford were able to clear. However, Bicester were not to be denied for much longer as soon after a loose clearance went straight to the visiting number 11 who dummied to kick, stepped off his right foot and broke free to run 60 meters through the home midfield almost untouched. It was completely out of character with the game and an excellent example of heads-up, broken field running and also the last notable play of the game.
Whilst this wasn’t one for the fans to remember, there were a lot of positives to take from the game for Wallingford. The defensive effort throughout was excellent and it is hard to imagine a team putting too many points on us this season. There were strong performances from Irwin, Jeffreys and Chapman upfront and a very promising game from young Nisbet who provided quick and accurate service to Smith all game. There was also a promising debut from Hoggins, who made several incisive runs with the ball in two hands and who seemed to have real strike in the midfield. For me though, the real standout takeaway was the togetherness of the team as with injuries and players out of position it is easy for a side to slip into negativity when the game begins to get hard. The boys stuck together really well and I think in the end it was this togetherness, particularly in defence, that won the game.
Man of the Match - He’s now at an age when he should really be coming into his prime and it was great to see Bungle out there again; he tackled well, hit the rucks, got his meat pie and even took over the kicking duties… could this be the start of an Indian Summer for one of the club’s all-time greats?
