Celebrations for Saddlebacks and Old Boars

THE Saddlebacks entertained Frome in a friendly on Saturday. Frome have switched from the Somerset to the Dorset and Wilts Leagues and are currently top of Dorset and Wilts One, while Devizes are second in a league above, Southern Counties South.

Kicking off in wet and windy conditions,Devizes dominated the early exchanges and fully deserved to take a five point lead when Charlie Rudler touched down from a line-out drive.

Surprisingly, Devizes failed to capitalise on this early score and their evident forward superiority largely because they gave ground through a succession of unnecessary infringements.

Nothing much changed after half-time until the 70th minute when Gavin Curnow used his strength to score from another forward drive. This gave Devizes a cushion of I0pts which they quickly extended with the best try of the game.

Darren Burbage took a neat reverse pass on the Frome 22 and accelerated clear of the defence. Nathan Davies converted to give the Saddlebacks a I7-0 victory .

This was an encouraging performance, although weaknesses still remain, particularly conceding penalties when in good attacking positions. If Devizes are to challenge the top four teams in the League they will need to develop more attacking ploys.

Devizes Old Boars 49, Bridport 3

DEVIZES veterans came away with a fine win from their inaugural fixture, overcoming not just the opposition but the elements as well in a wet and windy afternoon.

Bridport drew first blood with a penalty, but if wasn't long before the visitors started to display their silky running skills and Nick Aslett romped over for the first of Devizes' seven tries, converted by the reliable boot of Andrew Lloyd-Webb.

The Boars evergreen front row were flourishing in the paddy field pitch conditions, Taff Hadden, Mark Butts and Ian Crosshawk providing the platform for the speedy back line to launch a series of attacks which resulted in two tries for Tom Bathe, both converted by Lloyd-Webb, and one for Dyton, again converted.

Scrum half Will Crosby provided the ammunition and Aslett skipped in for his second, Lloyd Webb yet again adding the extras.

Despite playing into the gale for the second period, the Boars continued to keep the ball in hand and were rewarded with two more well created tries, the first a stunning breakaway score by Tim Hill and the second to give Bathe his hat-trick. Lloyd Webb finished both these tries off with the kicks to achieve an impressive 100 per cent record .

The match ended on a memorable note as a flowing move along the back line culminated in skipper Cork receiving the ball and dancing his way over the dead ball line. This performance bodes well for the Boars' next tripto take on the Isle of Wight.

Swindon Supermarine under 13s 60, Melksham and Devizes under 13s 5

A SOLID scrummaging from the Melksham and Devizes boys, together with intelligent passing, were not enough to prevent Supermarine from scoring six breakway tries in the first half, three of which were deftly converted.

The very nature of these tries caused some concern amongst the spectators and coaches, many of whom began to query the age of some of the Supermarine players.

Spirited play from both teams saw the home side with a comfortable advantage at half-time.

The second half saw Supermarine take the field with four substituted players, with Nathan Hamley and Nick Henny coming on for the visitors. Most of the remaining 50 minutes was now comfortably played in the Supermarine half with Melksham and Devizes grounding the ball over the home try line following some textbook ball retention and sustained forward pressure. A fine try for young Chris Scruton, the conversion kick ricocheting from the woodwork.

Good cover play and blistering tackling from David Finley helped to secure possession for the Melksham and Devizes boys who put together some impressive moves. Four further tries and two conversions secured the game for Supermarine.

Full credit must go to all the players on the day who gave 100 per cent commitment right to up to the final whistle. They produced their best display of ball control, never once loosing the ball in the tackle. Their support play and handling was the best so far, always looking to attack.

Aylesbury 19, Chippenham 8

IN gale force winds and driving rain Chippenham went down to their second league defeat of the season against a mid-table Aylesbury side better suited to the conditions who maintained their unbeaten home record.

Chippenham started well and after winger Gary Squires was stopped metres short of the line quickly recycled ball allowed flanker Kevin Thornton to score in the corner on his return to first team action.

This second minute try was soon overhauled as Aylesbury, with the wind behind them, plugged away at the Chippenham line. With the referee's decisions frustrating Chippenham, the home side kicked three easy penalties to go into a 9-3 lead after 20 minutes.

Chippenham continued to defend well, despite the efforts of the referee who among his more pedantic decisions even managed to penalise the Chippenham bench for back chat.

Aylesbury finally made the pressure tell when a catch and drive from a line-out close to the Chippenham line saw their scum-half dart over to score.

With the sides turning round at only 14-5, Chippenham looked well placed with the elements behind them to take control in the second half. but sadly this failed to happen.

While Aylesbury had little to offer outside, the conditions negated the effectiveness of Chippenham's threequarter line and allowed the heavier home pack to take control.

With the referee continuing to blow his whistle at every opportunity the small crowd huddled in the stand had little to cheer as full back James Barnard added a penalty to reduce Aylesbury's lead to 14-8.

The turning point came with 15 minutes to go when, after sustained Chippenham pressure, a kickable penalty was awarded but was turned down in favour running the ball. The tap penalty was spilled and with it Chippenham's chance to cement the mounting pressure on the Aylesbury line.

Chippenham's frustration then hit boiling point as second row Jon Todd was sent off for stamping after Aylesbury continued with their spoiling tactics.

With Chippenham down to 14 men and the game drawing to a close an intercepted pass saw Aylesbury clinch victory with a second try.

This weekend Chippenham will be looking to put this performance behind them as they entertain Abbey for the first of two visits in successive weekends.

Abbey, who gave Chippenham a particularly torrid time in last year's campaign, will be hoping to continue this in the third round tie of the NPI Intermediate Cup on Saturday, kick-off 2.30 p.m.

Malmesbury 12, Chippenham B 5

IN a game played in atrocious conditions, Chippenham's failure to capitalise on their chances proved costly at the final whistle.

Playing into the strong wind and driving rain in the first half, Chippenham initially tried to play in their usual running style when a tighter game would have suited the conditions better.

The home side took the lead after a loose Chippenham pass went to ground and after the ball was hacked forward, a Malmesbury player won the race to the line.

Only after Chippenham conceded a second try shortly afterwards did they finally switch tactics and immediately put together some good passages of play. The Malmesbury defence though was well organised and saw out the remainder of the half without conceding any points.

With the elements now in their favour, Chippenham put in a much better display in the second half but still found the home defence in determined mood.

After Gilles Faure finally broke through to score a try for Chippenham, the visitors upped their game but Malmesbury held firm and despite being held up over the try line twice in the final minutes, Chippenham failed to find a way through.

Minety 6, Westbury 7

IN appalingly wet and windy conditions, Minety entertained Westbury in the first round of the Dorset and Wiltshire Cup. on Saturday.

Showing good form and great spirit, the home team battled hard for 80 minutes only to be beaten by the margin of just a single point.

With the two sides evenly matched and at times almost indistinguishable in

the welter of thick Minety mud, it was Westbury who scored the only points of the first half, using ball won from a scrum in the home team's 22.

Attacking up the blind side, the Westbury winger just managed to wriggle in to score in the corner. A successful conversion attempt from a difficult angle then gave the visitors a seven point lead at the interval.

Working well as a team, Minety closed down their opponents and prevented them from scoring again in the match. Continually pressing, they forcibly extracted penalty opportunities, allowing fly half Tweedale to kick the two goals which brought his team to within a point of Westbury's total.

With time running out, Minety gained one last penalty. From a difficult angle, Tweedale got the line right despite the gusting winds, but the ball dropped short of goal and Minety were out of the cup.

Minety 3rds 14, Supermarine 2nds 10

The Minety 3rd XV played their first game of the season on Saturday, getting off to an excellent start by beating Supermarine Seconds.

Playing down the hill, the visitors were the first to score, running in an unconverted try to give them a five point lead at the interval.

Growing in confidence as the match went on, Minety gradually began to exert greater pressure on their opponents. Playing sensibly in the wet and windy conditions, they kept their passes short and when winger Matti Clark got his hands on the ball, he knew just what to do. Side-stepping inside the opposing winger and then the full-back, he jinked his way to line to score Minety's opening try.

Adrian Fisher added the conversion and scrum-half Alistair Grierson followed up by burrowing over for another try, driven forward by his pack's determined mauling.

Fisher again slotted the conversion, and although Supermaring came back strongly at the end and ran in another unconverted try, Minety kept a firm grip on their lead.

Minety Thirds are due to play again this Saturday, this time travelling to take on the Swindon 4th XV.