Fylde over-run Macc in rugby 'El Classico'

What a game! Fylde supporters this season have had a great introduction to National League One, and I know that parking up on Ansdell Road every other week at 2 o'clock, I'm letting myself in for a great afternoon in front of me.

The fireworks during the second half of the game against Coventry in November saw a brand of rugby that the home support have savoured, but the second half turnaround yesterday, in my humble opinion, eclipsed that performance, and showed why sport at any level is just the purest form of entertainment.

Having lost both locks to injury the week before, Mark Nelson had to reshuffle his pack, bringing both Grant Ferguson and captain Sam Beaumont into the second row.

A real backs-to-the-wall performance during a first half which saw the visitors pile the pressure on the home side, it took Fylde a full ten minutes before they moved forward past their own 22 metre line.

Reporting for The Rugby Paper, this was another day where the rugby on view just couldn't be justified with a limit of 400 words, but here is what appeared in this morning's edition.

Fylde 48 Macclesfield 23

The final scoreline tells a different story to the reality of this match, as Fylde blew away Macclesfield in the final quarter with four tries to demolish the visitors’ hopes of taking anything from the game.

Mark Nelson was delighted with his side’s battling qualities throughout: “At half-time I told them to just keep putting them under pressure, and they did exactly what I asked of them” he said.

“The Fylde pack was magnificent today, against a huge pack. We showed a lot of tenacity, commitment, at the scrum, at the line-out, against much bigger opponents, and with those drive over tries, it shows that we can score from anywhere.”

That defensive tenacity was in view from the start, as Macclesfield were camped in the Fylde 22 for the first nine minutes. 

After weathering the early pressure, it was Fylde who scored first, as Jonny Roddam emerged from the bottom of a drive over after 13 minutes.

Macclesfield though, turned the screw, and answered five minutes later, when Josh Fowles accepted a pass from Ross Winney, running over on the left.

Winney added extra points from a neat drop goal and penalty, before Jack Moorhouse extended their lead on 30 minutes, while Richard Kenyon pulled back the deficit just before half-time, for a 16-10 lead to Macclesfield.

The visitors started the second period as they had the first, with Moorhouse scoring on 43 minutes, but that was to be their final score of the game, as the penalty count against them started to mount.

Oli Brennand started the comeback on 49 minutes, before getting his second on 60. Roddam added his second, after Tom Lavelle had thundered down the wing, to move Fylde into the lead on 65 minutes.

What really saved the game for Fylde however, was a try-saving tackle by Sam Beaumont on Fowles with ten minutes to play. 

That gave the home side the belief that they could hold out, and so it proved, as Brennand got his hat-trick minutes later, and set up Nick Royle to score the final try of the day.

Macclesfield’s Geoff Wappett thought his side should have taken something from the game: “I thought we got a bit silly or generous towards the end. I was disappointed at conceding the final points, and that we didn’t come away with a four try bonus point” he said.

For eagle-eyed readers out there, I failed to report on Evan Stewart's try-scoring contribution. He went over on 78 minutes, in another drive over the line against the club he left at the end of last season, and now sits in third place in the club's try-scoring list, with 16 tries. Not bad for a back rower!

Also missing was the detail of Macclesfield's Gavin Woods yellow-carded on 78 minutes for killing the ball in a ruck.

That result leaves Fylde level-pegging with Ealing in second placed, and a comfortable lead over fourth-placed Rosslyn Park. 

With six games to go, Fylde now have only two home games left, against third-bottom Birmingham on 31 March, and Ealing on 21 April, with a visit to table-toppers Jersey on the last day of the season, 28 April.

Teams:

Fylde: Royle, Viney (Waywell 68), Briers C, Briers S, Brennand, Kenyon, Wallwork (Depledge 73), Livesey (Griffiths 61), Roddam, Loney (Lavelle 49), Beaumont (McGinnis 80), Ferguson, Stephenson, McGinnis, Stewart

Macclesfield: O’Regan, Stobart (Hughes 57), Moorhouse, Davenport, Fowles, Winney, Eaton, Mantell, Moss (Kent 77), Robinson (Woods 40), Marsh, Williams (Roddy 73), Owen, Parkinson (Marsden 73), Barker

Scorers:

Fylde

Tries: Roddam 13 66, Kenyon 37, Brennand 49 60 75, Stewart 78, Royle 80

Conversions: Kenyon 49 66 75 80

Macclesfield

Tries: Fowles 18, Moorhouse 30 43

Conversions: Winney 43

Penalty Goals: Winney 27

Drop Goal: Winney 22  

Penalties Conceded:  2 - 12

Lineouts Won:          10 - 5

Lineouts Lost:          4 - 0

Scrums Won:            3 - 10

Scrums Lost:            0 - 0

Sin Bins:                  0 - 1 

Half-time: 10 - 16

Star Man: Grant Ferguson (Fylde)

Referee: Wayne Fella

Attendance: 824

Young Grasshopper mastering his game

Preston Grasshoppers have benefited this season by the presence of the exciting young scrum-half, Nathan Fowles. Signed on a dual registration with his parent club Sale Sharks, the 18-year-old has had a season of highs and lows, as he told me this week.

Pic: (c) Aviva Premiership

Nathan, you’ve been the regular scrum-half since joining the club in the summer. How has the season panned out for you personally first of all?

Well my main reason for going to the club was to get experience at an open age level, at a reasonable standard. Obviously Preston being in National League Two is quite a decent standard, and with the past players who have been at the club, I thought it was a really good opportunity to better my ability and gain more experience.

You joined them in the summer. How did that happen?

I’m dual contracted with Sale and Preston. I train every day at Sale with the first team there, and then train a couple of times a week at Preston, and play for them on a Saturday, unless I’ve got a game for Sale on the Monday night.

You were out with a bad injury for a while earlier in the year. What happened there?

We were playing Luctonians away, and it happened in the first ten minutes. I broke a bone in my foot, and was out for about three months. I missed all of Sale’s A League games. It was a pretty bad time to get injured, but it’s not been too bad since I’ve had the injury. Things have healed up, and I’ve done quite well.

Was that the worst playing injury you’ve had?

It’s the longest I’ve been out. It’s very demotivating going into training and doing the same thing every day, you just feel like you’re getting nowhere. But then eventually it all comes together, and you’re back fit as if nothing’s happened.

Does coming back from injury affect your mental approach to playing?

I was playing really well before I did it, my confidence was high. With the physios and medical staff at Sale, they ease you back into training and just do what you’re comfortable with, so it didn’t really phase me that much. I just listened to them and they said it was fine. I thought that if it’s fine to them, then it’s not going to worry me, so I just got on with it. I’ve seen cases of lads at Sale who have got really down and really wary, but no, I was fine. Sometimes an injury can affect your game, but the way Sale are run, they have the highest quality medical staff, and they rehab you until everything is perfect and back to normal. 

You were part of the Sale Academy at Myerscough College for the last couple of years, how well did that time bring you on as a player?

Massively! I remember when I started at Myerscough I was the third choice scrum half for Lancashire under 16s, never got a start with them, and by the end of my time at Myerscough I had played for North of England, played in the divisional festival to go into the England squad, played for England Colleges, got a contract at the Sharks, and played for the Sale Jets. My career escalated in such a short period of time. I wasn’t academic at school, I was more practical, so for me to go there and do rugby and learn about sport was just the perfect combination really.

Pic (c) Lancashire Evening Post

And since you’ve returned from injury, you’ve made your Sale Sharks debut, away at la Vila in the Amlin Challenge Cup. How was that experience?

It was incredible. To do it in my first year at the club was beyond what I had expected, and also beyond what a lot of people had expected of me, so it was quite nice to prove to myself and others who have watched me in the past and helped me to get to this stage that I am good enough, and I’m heading in the right direction. It gave me a lot of confidence, because it was only two weeks after I had come back from the injury. I had played one game for Hoppers and then I was picked for that one, so I couldn’t believe it really.

And how did that call-up come about?

I honestly don’t know, I remember sitting in a team meeting, and it was just another squad being read out to the players. I didn’t expect it, I was just thinking I was going to be playing for the Hoppers at the weekend, and when I heard my name read out, the staff told me to go and find my passport. The way I thought about it was that they wouldn’t pay for me to go over there if they didn’t think I was capable and worth keeping at the club and having a future there. It was good for my confidence because although I get reports after games, I don’t know whether I’m going to be staying for the next five years or what. It’s good to know that I’m in their thoughts.

So how long are you contracted at the Sharks?

It was originally a year, when I left Myerscough, because I had ambitions of going to UWIC university, but the club have offered me an extension for twelve months, and I’ve accepted that now, so I’ll be at Sale until March next year. A lot of the lads the same age as me are going to be there until the same time, so the club have to decide whether they are going to offer me another contract, and I have to think about where my future goes from there.

So is your plan to stay at Preston next season then?

I couldn’t tell you, it depends on how Sale think I’m developing, if they feel it’s right for me, and if I think it feels right for me. We might agree that it is right for me, because I do get on with all the coaching staff and all the lads down there. I’m enjoying my time playing for Preston, but Sale might turn round and say ‘we want to push you a bit more’ so might take me to a higher level. I’m more than happy at Preston though, it’s a great place to play, the way they’ve boosted my profile and all that they do for me, I couldn’t appreciate it more.

Preston have had a decent season by their own standards have they not?

We’ve had some good results over the season, with players playing really well. Everyone has blips in a season but we’ve come into some good form and the lads work really hard down there.

And are the club aiming for a play-off spot perhaps?

We just have to see how the next couple of games go. With it being the back end of the season, injuries might take their toll, but we’ll see how it pans out because we’ve got a good squad. Even the second team are doing really well in their league, we’ve always got players pushing the first team lads for their spot so it’s a good sign for the future.

Finally, playing alongside a rugby legend like Sean Long, at a club like Preston Grasshoppers, is that all a bit surreal?

I remember as a youngster I used to watch rugby league more than union, and I actually had a season ticket at St Helens with my granddad, so we watched the home matches, and now playing alongside someone that I watched for years as a kid growing up is a bit of a surreal experience, but it’s the same sort of scenario as my first day at Sale. Training with the first team, that was unreal as well, having watched them from being young. I think it just becomes a friendship really, and it’s just like having any other friend eventually. It’s just a bit strange the first couple of times.

2011/12 Season Stats (as of 2 March 2012)

Appearances:

Sale - Amlin Cup 1 (1 x sub)

Preston  - 11

Scoring:

Preston – 6 tries

My Cumbrian Valentine's Date

A lunchtime call from the Sportsbeat press agency saw me travel up to Brunton Park, home of Carlisle United for their Valentine's Day fixture with Tranmere Rovers. My remit was to provide copy to the Liverpool Echo the next day.

Having only had the call during the day, I was still in lectures, so had 15 minutes at home after university had finished, before setting off at 5:30, through Preston rush hour traffic, up the M6 for the 90 mile journey.

I had never seen either side play before, so was a bit nervous about my work, as I was to provide 200 words at half-time, with a further 200 just before the final whistle, and another 200 words of quotes from Les Parry, the Tranmere boss.

Another unknown for me was Brunton Park - I had seen it numerous times from the M6, travelling south from Scotland, but was unsure whether it was easy enough to find once off the motorway, and whether I would have had a parking spot set aside for me.

Arriving at about 7:00, I had plenty of time to get settled, although the guy on the gate didn't have me down on his list, I was allowed to park anyway. A walk round the other side of the ground to the main entrance, and I collected my pass for the night, and made my way inside the main stand.

Now, when I've been to other grounds, there is a room that the press can sit in and have a coffee and a bite to eat, so it was with some surprise (a bit more than that to be honest!) that I was told that we were only allowed in the media room after the game, and to go straight up to the press box.

The box was well enough appointed, with its own light and power socket, although a little cramped. So, it was time to set up the laptop and get to grips with the teamsheet and programme.

Being unfamiliar with both sets of players, I had hoped to see Lee Miller (ex Aberdeen) but he was suspended for the night, having been sent off in Carlisle's last match.

Although there was no food available, Carlisle did have their own press helper, Jordan, who ran round with the brews, so that was something at least.

On to the match, and Tranmere surprised the home crowd, having the best of the possession and chances. Having lost their last seven away matches, and still to record a win in 2012, they were the underdogs at the start of the match, with Carlisle in the hunt for a play-off place.

A nil-nil draw was how it ended, and having sent my half-time copy without a hitch, just at the full-time whistle, my laptop slowed to a standstill, and I was left waiting for it to warm up, when perhaps what could have been the turning point happened, when Williams in the Tranmere goal made a point blank save from a header right on 90 minutes. The match report was available on the Liverpool Echo website the next morning.

I finally got that copy away after the whistle, before making my way downstairs to interview Les Parry. A quick chat in the dug-out, and I was able to plug the earphones in to my Olympus, and type furiously away in the media room while Carlisle boss Greg Abbot was giving his thoughts on the game to their local media. His quotes were also published the next day.

It was 10:30 by the time I had packed my bag, and started making my way round the ground to the car park, to be met by a padlocked gate! Panic was averted once I found the boardroom and a kind gent walked back round the ground with me, to unlock the gate, and wait while I retrieved my car from the field a half mile down the road. Thanks to Arthur - you are one of life's gentlemen.

By now, with a gap of ten hours between meals, it was time to hit the 24 hour Tesco on the outskirts of town, to wolf down a sandwich before the hour and a half drive home. Home for 12:30, I was thinking ahead already to my next assignment, the familiar surroundings of Park Lane, Whitefield, for the National League One rugby fixture on Saturday between Sedgley Park and Jersey.

Tigers looking for winning ways at Birmingham

After last Saturday's home defeat to Lancashire rivals Fylde, it's time for the Tigers to get back to winning ways again, as they travel to the Midlands to face up to bottom side, Birmingham Bees.

Having started the year on the front foot, with that amazing second half comeback at Coventry, the defeat to Fylde left head coach Richard Senior feeling that: "The score didn't reflect the game, and we did well to go in at half-time with two men down at 10-8"

With two yellow cards late on in the first half, Sedgley defended well, and stopped the visitors from scoring again until the second period, when the game opened out.

Number 8 Juan Crous scored his first try of the season to get the ball rolling, and his side will be hoping for more of the same, as his carrying over the gain line during the season to date has been fantastic, and is one of the big forward threats in a game that, given the wet weather that is predicted, will surely be dominated by the packs.

Coach Dave Peet gave his thoughts ahead of the game at Damson Park: "Birmingham are the in form team, with two wins so far this year, beating Wharfedale and Stourbridge. The Birmingham pack are dominant, and we know that our pack has got to front up tomorrow"

The Bees of course, have the ever-dangerous Mark Woodrow kicking from fly-half, after his contentious move from local rivals Stourbridge. He kicked six penalties last weekend in the win against his former club, and is the man who could cause problems for the Tigers.

Peet spoke about the penalties that the side have been giving away, and knows that they have to be careful in the breakdown: "We need to keep our discipline in our own half, not giving away penalties, as Woodrow kicked six from six last week, and scored a load more the week before"

The starting line-up shows one change from last Saturday, with Simon Parrott replacing brother Chris at fly-half, as he is attending the funeral of former Sale Sharks winger Selorm Kuadey.

Starting Sedgley Park line-up -

15 Richard Wainwright, 14 Michael Dutton, 13 Mark Jennings, 12 Matt Riley, Jamie Harrison, 10 Simon Parrott, 9 Will Runciman; 1 Dan Birchall, 2 Richard Oxley, 3 Nick Flynn, 4 James Lloyd, 5 Louis McGowan, 6 Henno Venter, 7 Dave Livesey, 8 Juan Crous
Replacements - Ben Black, Scott Wright, Adam Lewis, Greg Smith, Fergus Owens

Tigers hunt for revenge on Fylde

This Saturday sees Lancashire's two top sides lock horns once more at Park Lane, as Sedgley Park look to avenge their 43-10 thrashing in September.

The home side are on a high after their second half performance at Coventry, where they overturned a 14-0 half-time deficit to win by 24-14, while Fylde beat a determined Stourbridge side at the Woodlands by 31-21, after losing three players to yellow cards.

Fortunately for Fylde, two of those cards arrived with less than five minutes of the game remaining, and although they conceded a last minute try, they already had the game sewn up.

The Tigers had their own discipline problems to contend with, as prop Dan Birchall saw yellow five minutes into the second half, but while he was off the pitch, his team-mates pulled a try back through man of the match Matt Riley.

Sedgley are still without club captain Garth Dew, who suffered a knee injury before Christmas that will most likely see him out for the rest of the season. The armband has gone in his absence to Nick Flynn, who spoke about the second half comeback.

“For me it was what was said at half time in the dressing rooms that made the difference. There was no punching of walls or ‘hairdryer treatments” from Richard Senior.

“As a team we knew what we had done well and not so well and were just given the direction what to do to put that right.

“Credit where it is due, there was never an ounce of panic at half time or throughout the second half; we just needed that kick start to get us going. Danny Birchall going to the sin bin seemed to do the trick for us! Cheers Danny.”

That victory keeps the Tigers in mid table, with a 50% win rate, while their visitors from the coast lie in third place, having jumped ahead of Ealing after their win on Saturday.

The top of the table remains too close to call, with only four points separating the top four sides; Rosslyn Park and Jersey having overtaken early pacesetters Fylde and Ealing.

Among the top four, Fylde appear to be the poor relations, given the financial clout of the other three clubs.

But, their first season back at level three for a number of years has seen them upset the applecart, especially after their first five games, when with a 100% record, they led the pack.

It’s the January fixtures which Fylde need to make count, as the run-in to the season sees them host Ealing before their final game of the season at Jersey.

Sedgley Park on the other hand, face the big two next month; visiting Ealing before hosting Jersey. Shock results here would certainly upset the applecart.

Back to this Saturday, the pressure will be on Fylde to keep the momentum going, while the Tigers will be looking to get their home form back, after losing in a disappointing performance to Macclesfield in their last home match of 2011.

Sale Sharks Press Conference - Tuesday 3 January 2012

Co-owner Ian Blackhurst today announced that Steve Diamond has been appointed Chief Executive of Sale Sharks from 1 February 2012.

In a lengthy press conference, the two men outlined their vision for the club's playing strategy for the future.

Both men reiterated during the meeting that they want to see the Sharks become a "Super Club for the north west". With the points raised during the announcement, they outlined their visions.
This involves the increase in the Academy structure at the club, which during Diamond's 11 month tenure at the club has seen the number of junior players at the club rise from 16 to 90 players.

As a mark of intent, Diamond stated that while he is at the club, they will not be making any further marquee signings, something that Blackhurst confirmed.

Blackhurst spoke of the club's past, in relation to their previous success of winning the Premiership title in 2006, having brought in foreign players to boost their chances of success. That title success he said, was "not sustainable as a result of the foreign players".

Currently operating well under the salary cap limits imposed by Premiership Rugby, and to make his point about the club now moving on the road to becoming a more sustainable financial model, Diamond stated that "You will not hear us bleating on about salary caps ever!".

Blackhurst confirmed that Diamond's "prime responsibility now is the success of the business". The coaching team will remain, with Tony Hanks as Head Coach being assisted by the current team already in place.

Manager Ray Unsworth, and assistant Pete Anglesea will continue to manage the Academy.

The new Salford Community Stadium, which hosts
its first fixture on 7 January.

On other matters, Blackhurst admitted that the club are still in negotiation about a move to the Salford Reds new stadium at Barton. Nearing completion, the stadium will be ready for the start of the 2012 Super League season, and there has been much talk of Sale becoming joint tenants with the Super League club.

"We're quite far in negotiations" Blackhurst advised, but it should be confirmed very soon, perhaps only in 6-8 weeks time.

Another move announced today was that the Carrington office block will be doubled in size, in order to accommodate all of the club's admin staff, who are to move from the offices currently in the Edgeley Park ground in Stockport. This move will happen in the next 12-18 months.

I think that this announcment gives a clear indication of where the club's future lies in terms of its Friday night home in the coming years.

The conference was recorded, and is available to listen to on the link below.



The Sale Sharks Director of Sport, Steve Diamond is announcing to the press plans which the club have for the future of the club at 12 noon on Tuesday 3 January.

A brief announcement was made in The Telegraph on 30 December, and comments in that report have already created much discussion within community rugby circles in the north west.

I'll be attending the meeting, and hope to broadcast the announcement live using the ipadio system.

Clicking on the embedded link below, you should be able to hear it live!! If there is a problem in any way, I'll also be recording it separately, and will upload it later in the day.

It would be great to hear some comments and feedback about it!

Sedgley Tigers hold on against Barking

 

Sedgley Park 23 Barking 8

National League One

Saturday 3 December 2011

Sedgley Park beat Barking at the weekend in their National League One match by 23-8. Poor weather conditions lead to handling errors and wayward kicking, but the teams still served up a great game.

The report below appeared in The Rugby Paper on Sunday 4 December.

Sedgley Park withheld second half Barking pressure to keep pace with the leading pack in the table after this match which was played at times in atrocious conditions.

Behind early on to a Chris Ashwin penalty goal, the Tigers lost captain Garth Dew and full back Richard Wainwright to injuries with less than ten minutes played.

The Tigers took the lead when Chris Parrott chipped for Fergus Owens to chase and touch down after 15 minutes.

Matt Riley converted, and added two penalty goals before half time, while Ashwin missed the chance to reduce the arrears on the whistle, to send the home team in 13-3 at the break.

Barking started the second period in the ascendency, and immediately put pressure on the Sedgley Park line, which led to penalties given away in dangerous positions. 

Riley’s kicking from hand was often found wanting, and was pounced upon by William Nelson on the left wing, who chased his own chip kick, and put down just in time before the ball went dead after it rebounded off replacement full-back Tom Leader.

Excellent running through the gain line by Oxley paid off for him on 67 minutes when he scored after stretching over the whitewash, before Riley converted, and added the final touch, kicking a 45 metre penalty goal with three minutes left.

Scorers:

Sedgley Park

Tries: Owens 15, Oxley 67

Conversions: Riley 15 67

Penalty Goals: Riley 23 29 77

Barking

Tries: Nelson 50

Conversions:

Penalty Goals: Ashwin 3 

Half-time: 13 - 3

Star Man: Richard Oxley (Sedgley Park)

Referee: Richard Kelly

Attendance: 215

Teams:

Sedgley Park: Wainwright, Dutton, Owens, Riley, Harrison, C Parrott, S Parrott, Birchall, Oxley, Flynn, Hopa, McGowan, Venter, Dew, Crous

Replacements: Black, Wright, Livesey, Urmston, Leader

Barking: Burcham, Nelson, Henderson, Broughton, Davey, Ashwin, Gash, Mullins, Bloomberg, E Ambrose, Burns, Smith, Sinfield, Ngan, Davies

Replacements: F Ambrose, French, Kersey, Jones, Neale