Grimsby 43 Neyland 5
Welsh touring side Neyland had convincingly thrashed Cleethorpes the day before, but due to a combination of injuries sustained during the course of that match and the general attrition of a tour diet, the visitors were only able to field 10 fit players. However, Grimsby were able to bolster their numbers to the required level and allow the game to go ahead.
Grimsby were able to test out various players ahead of the league programme, with debuts being awarded to Marc Burke, Kevin Dufton and Nathan Price-Salleh. This season the Blues will be facing much better drilled opponents and need to be able to play at pace and with increased power. This pre-season friendly was the ideal opportunity to test out some of the tactics the side have adopted throughout the closed season training sessions.
Neyland kicked off, and Grimsby immediately went on the offensive. The ball was moved smoothly and quickly through several pairs of hands, making good progress until a last pass went astray to give the visitors a scrum.
It soon became obvious that Grimsby were exceedingly ring-rusty, with many promising attacks failing due to poor passing. However good lines of support eventually saw Martin able to crash over in the left corner for the try. Daly was unable to convert, but the first score had been recorded.
The next try was a well-worked affair, with both forwards and back interlinking to force Neyland onto the back foot. As Dufton and Daly both made incisive runs, openside Davies was on hand to receive the last pass to touch down over the line. Daly again missed the tricky conversion.
With the simple mistakes being cut down, the Blues were starting to put more and more attacks together. The next try came from last seasons top try scorer, Stringer the Winger, who blasted down the right wing, rounded his opposite man and touched down. Daly was able to convert and the match official blew for half time shortly afterwards.
A slight reshuffle saw Lowery come on for Saunders, who had played his first rugby since dislocating his shoulder in Grimsby's classic match against Solihull back in January.
Grimsby were determined to increase the pace of the game, and the first try of the half came from a penalty just outside the oppositions 22. A quick ball was called for out wide, and as the visitors desperately scrambled across the pitch, a clever inside ball back to Knight allowed the scrum half to stroll over unopposed and touch down under the posts. Daly easily converted the simple kick.
The next score came from Captain Marvellous Darren Edwards. Cutting in on the angle to slice through the defence, the svelte hooker was unstoppable, and powered his way over for a nice try. Daly was able to convert.
The next try was to come from debutant Dufton, with the backs linking well and drawing in the defence, a quick pass saw Dufton streak in against the flow to touch down under the posts. Daly once more kicked the conversion.
Neyland were not to be underestimated though, and they soon struck back with a jinking run from the tall left-winger, who managed to score a lovely individual try. The conversion attempt was missed.
The final score of the day was to come from the home side. The Blue forwards once more worked into the opposition half, before a scrum was awarded about 30 metres out. The Grimsby 8 picked up at the base, passed onto Knight, who drew his man and then fed Stringer to streak in at the corner. Daly converted the difficult kick and the match was over.
This was a fair start to the season, but Grimsby know that they need to cut out the handling errors and poor decision making if they are to have a chance in the rapidly approaching league programme.
Grimsby 28 Loughborough 10
A glorious day of sunshine saw Grimsby record a glorious win against the previous season's high flyers Loughborough. The home side have never played at such a high level, and with several unavailability's, the prospect of last years 3 rd placed team was quite daunting. However, Grimsby are a team who perform best under pressure and a committed performance saw them justly take the match.
The game started with a bang, as the home defence flew into the faces of the visiting back line, with big hits unsettling the Loughborough backs almost immediately. In fact, with only 5 minutes of the game played, a booming, inch perfect up and under from Bradley allowed the timid right winger to fumble the ball, allowing West the simplest of tasks of picking up the ball and falling over to register the opening try. Daly was unsuccessful with the conversion, but one could sense Grimsby giving a sigh of relief knowing that normal league rugby, i.e scoring, was back!
Loughborough were rattled by this, and despite a sudden surge which was defended well, the home side kept up the pressure. After a good scrum 30 metres out, quick hands from the backs rapidly send the ball wide for last years top try scorer Stringer to have a go. Drawing his man well, the clever little chap popped an inside pass back for Thomas to take and gallop over the line without a finger laid upon him. Daly again missed the conversion.
Loughborough refused to sit back and take all the punishment, and immediately camped in the Grimsby half. Possessing a steady scrum they tried to launch several attacks, all of which came to naught, until a poor Grimsby clearance kick allowed the ball to be run back with plenty of space. The visitors quickly moved it along their back line, before off loading to their right winger, who managed to touch down for the try, although full back Daly was unlucky not to force him out of play. The Loughborough kicker missed the tricky conversion.
With the hot sun beating down, the referee called for a water break, allowing the players to cool down and take on much needed refreshment, and also for a quick tactical dissection of the game so far and a few tweaks to the game plan.
The game soon settled into a bit of a stalemate, with neither side able to make inroads into the others half. This remained until Loughborough handled in the ruck 30 metres from the line, directly in front of goal. Up stepped Bradley, keen to show what a summer of hard training had done to his previously unreliable goal kicking. With a thunderous boot, the ball flew true and good to bisect the posts cleanly. This was to be the final play of the half.
The next half started with the visitors unable to make any impression in the home defence. Grimsby were keen to take the initiative, and a series of strong runs forced an error 35 metres from the Loughborough line. Bradley stepped up, and coolly slotted the 3 points on offer. Loughborough were now starting to crumble, and the next score was to hammer the final nail into the coffin. Good hands allowed Daly to break away on the right wing, and as the covering defence piled across, Daly chipped ahead. The first Loughborough defender pulled up, and turned to try and race towards the ball, however, the slightly less intelligently minded player, the outside centre, decided to pull Daly to the ground. The match official had no hesitation in sprinting under the posts to signal the award of a penalty try, judging that neither of the defenders would have outraced Daly to the touchdown. Bradley took the simple conversion and added the extra 2 points.
The next series of attacks led to the enforced removal of Pharaoh for a blood injury after the plucky scrum half nearly caused a nasty injury to a Loughborough players hand with his head, only the fact that the brave visitor had clenched his fist saved him from a nasty break. The dazed Pharaoh had 10 minutes to get himself sorted, and allowed Saunders to come on as a temporary replacement.
This slight reshuffle gave Loughborough the chance to strike back, and from a good scrum, they fed the ball out wide, and the number 13 was able to sneak in at the corner. The fly half was unable to add the conversion, but this score was to be the start of a concerted fight back from the visitors.
Grimsby also made another substitution, with Kempthorne coming off to be replaced by Martin. The old warhorse had done his share, but the hot weather was taking it's toll.
Loughborough continued to press, but good work, notably by Davies, Lowery in the loose, and Robson in the tight kept them at bay. Pharaoh was able to rejoin the fray, and Saunders returned to the bench momentarily, before replacing Daly at full back.
With the game drawing to a close, the final score had to come from the home side, and as a strong maul approached the Loughborough line, it could have been taken by a myriad of players, although it was to be Marc Burke broke clear to score a nice try on his 1 st team debut. The conversion was missed, but the game was over and Grimsby had started their league campaign with a bang!!!
West Bridgeford 7 Grimsby 41
The 2 nd league fixture of the season saw Grimsby travel to West Bridgeford , it was with some trepidation that the Blues made the journey, as Bridgeford have a reputation of being almost unbeatable in their home ground stronghold. Upon arrival it soon became obvious that this was no longer true, as the ground was more akin to a building site than a rugby pitch, necessitating a switch to a local park, with Grimsby almost expecting to be playing with jumpers for goalposts!!
With the return of several more established players, and also the league debut of Kevin Dufton, Grimsby were keen to start strongly and set their mark on the game. This was to be exactly what was to happen. A nicely executed rehearsed move saw Thomas streak through the defensive line to score under the posts, without a hand being laid upon him. Daly converted the easy kick.
As Bridgeford kicked off, the visiting forwards can only describe as dillied and dallied, allowing Bridgeford to reclaim the ball, and set up a series of tight drives, attempting to break through the Blue wall of shirts. Grimsby 's defence held firm, and forcing an error, a scrum was awarded to the visitors. A nice scrum saw Bradley given the ball with plenty of time to spare, and a lovely kick saw Bridgeford sent packing to the other end of the pitch. A well contested lineout saw Bridgeford take possession and start to spin the ball out amongst their back line. Unfortunately the ball got to the number 13 at the same time as his opposite number, and a massive hit from Dufton saw the ball spilled and turned over. Quickly moving the ball well, the Grimsby backs forced deep into the Bridgeford 22, before a neat inside pass from Bradley allowed Slosmanis to charge through the remaining players to score under the posts. Bradley converted, 14-0 in just 10 minutes.
The home side were obviously shocked to be down so quickly, but didn't seem capable of striking back themselves. Grimsby continued to pressurise and gradually worked their way back into the Bridgeford 22. A strong run from Thomas saw the veteran centre carry at least 4 players over the line with him, to score a nice piece of individual skill from such an elderly member of the squad. The conversion was missed.
Grimsby appeared to go off the boil, as initial reservations as to the ability of the opposition were laid to rest, and a piece of sloppy play allowed the Bridgeford centre to intercept a poor pass and race away to score under the posts. The conversion was successful, and Grimsby had received a well warranted boot up the backside!
The next score was a combination of good individual skill, luck and good support play. Pharaoh was able to take possession inside his own half, and proceeded to speed away from any covering defence, with just the full back to beat and options either side, the feisty half back decided to go alone, and when the fullback managed to stop him, only the rapid assistance from his support allowed the ball to be spread wide, where Bradley gladly touched down for the points. Again showing the fruits of a summers hard training the nifty number 10 managed to add the extra points.
The first half drew to a close and Grimsby took the opportunity to swap a few players about, with both Newman and Cairns coming on to play their first competitive games of the season.
The 2 nd half started with Grimsby again doing all the playing, but for some reason play kept breaking down with forwards passes and knock-ons occurring with far too great a frequency. Bridgeford tried to rally, but strong defensive efforts from Martin, Pharaoh and Dufton soon put paid to that notion. The first score of the half was to come from the fleet feet of Stringer, playing his last game for the club before leaving the club to undertake a degree in Alcohol Studies at university. Nice hands from Bradley and Cairns saw Stringer put into space, and after rounding his opposite number, the full back had no chance as Stringer dived in at the corner. The tricky conversion was missed.
Bridgeford again attempted to drag themselves back into the game, at one point actually getting into the Grimsby 22. Unfortunately, the visiting pack were in no mood to allow this impudence to go unpunished. Each time Bridgeford tried to break through, excellent cover defence held them at bay, and any scrums awarded to the home side were soon turned over as the superior technique of the Blues forced them backwards at a rate of knots.
After Bridgeford had had their turn, and come away without success, it was to be Grimsbys turn. Good pressure allowed Grimsby to be award a series of scrums close to the Bridgeford line. Unfortunately, poor control at the back of the scrum prevented a simple push over try. Despite this, the backs managed to put together a fluid movement, allowing Bradley to dance his way through to score his 2 nd of the match. The conversion was missed.
With the game now coming to a close, it was to be the forwards who ended the game with the final score. A series of drives saw both Slosmanis and Barker come close, before a quick pass saw Edwards charge on 5 metres out. Unable to break through the last line, Grimsbys Captain Inspiration popped up a lovely pass for Barker to take on and sprint the last metre to the line before flallompfing over the line. As the conversion attempt drifted wide, the match official blew for full time.
This was an off-key performance from Grimsby , who didn't pay with the fluency and continuity that has come to be expected. However, 2 wins from 2 is a more than satisfying result so far.
This week the team travels to Wolverhampton for the 1 st round of the Powergen Intermediate Cup, as after last years great cup run, Grimsby have been promoted into the next tier of the Powergen competitions.
Wolverhampton 0 Grimsby 38
Grimsby got their Powergen Cup campaign off to a successful start with the defeat of the confident and cosmopolitan Wolverhampton .Grimsby made the long trip down to the west midlands to play the fixture at Castlecroft, the home of England youth rugby and where the full national side train.
The blues started at a flying pace with the slight breeze at their backs and the sun in their favour. Within moments Grimsby had put pressure on the home team and they infringed resulting in two penalties converted by Daly. Wolverhampton then came back at the blues but it was obvious that they were not used to Grimsby 's style of hard nosed defence.
A scrum deep inside the home half saw a well worked move down the blindside from Barker and Pharaoh that resulted in a well finished try for Lowery. Daly pushed the conversion wide.
Half time came with the visitors 11-0 up and the game still there for the tacking for both sides.
Grimsby started the second half the same way as the first and within thirty seconds a rangey pass from Bradley found Kempthorne who drew his man and passed to winger Daly. The nippy winger then sidestepped the home defence to clinically finish a well worked move. Daly converted his own try.
The next try was a fabulous solo effort from scrum half Pharaoh. The ball was stolen in the midfield by Barker and Cairns . From the ruck Pharaoh dummied and went. He raced away the 60 yards, beat the fullback and scored under the posts. Bradley converted.
The final score came from a wonderful all round team effort. Several phases of play saw the ball end up with Bradley who neatly chipped to the corner for winger Martin to gather and crash through the home defence whose heads had now dropped. Saunders failed to convert but soon added a penalty just before the final whistle
Grimsby 38 Coalville 3
Grimsby continued their 100% record to the start of the new season by recording a well deserved victory against a good Coalville side at Springfield Road .
From the kick-off it was obvious that Coalville were no mugs and certainly knew how to play the game. Opening exchanges from both sides tested each others defence and was the visitors who were the first to infringe. From the lineout, quick ball was won in midfield and this allowed Bradley time and space to slot a drop goal. This kick-started the visitors into action and some solid defence from the Grimsby pack kept them at bay. Finally the blues backs were caught offside in front of the posts and the Coalville fly-half converted the penalty.
It was from that moment on that the Grimsby forwards began to assert themselves on the opposition both in the tight and around the field. Barracking runs from Burke and skipper Edwards constantly made inroads into the visiting defence. While solid scrimmaging put the Coalville team under pressure all game. An injury enforced a change and Martin moved from the wing into prop. From a lineout deep in the Coalville half, Grimsby drove the ball on and the ball ended up with Martin who crashed over the line dragging hordes of defenders with him. Saunders neatly added the conversion.
Coalville constantly tried to get their game going but at every attack they met ferocious defence from every man in a blue shirt. Newman constantly stole the ball, with stalwarts Barker and Kempthorne along with scrum-half Pharaoh were a constant thorn in the visitors side. Bradley also kept the visiting side pinned in their own half with booming kicks all game.
The next score came from a scrum won against the head, with the visiting defence in disarray, Pharaoh fed Bradley, who in turn fed Kevin and he finished in the corner. Saunders missed the conversion. Half time came and the visiting side knew that they were in for an uphill struggle in the second half.
Right from the restart Grimsby forwards again disrupted constantly and a wonderful solo run from Burke saw him bag the first of his brace. Saunders, getting closer all the time, narrowly missed the conversion.
Again with the Blue pack putting constant pressure on the opposition it forced them into errors. Skipper Edwards was rampant along with work-horse Norman . The next try came from a slice of luck. A kick from Bradley was charged down by a Coalville player but ended up in the arms of Pharaoh who raced away the 40 yards to out-strip the covering defence and score in the corner. Saunders' radar was finally plugged in and he added the conversion.
Saunders then added a further penalty and then Bradley added his second drop-goal of the afternoon after a scrum was again won against the head by the Grimsby pack and he coolly added the extra points.
The final try came from Burke. Again the tireless Blues players won a lineout smashed the ball into midfield and then quick recycling allowed Grimsby to make their territory count. From a driving maul Burke broke of the side and crashed through the defence knocking would be tacklers asunder and crossed the line for his second.
Fierce defence along with tireless effort and quality rugby saw Grimsby run out comfortable winners in this encounter. This week they make the long trip to Matlock looking to continue their successful new season in a new league.
Matlock 8 Grimsby 18
Grimsby 's unbeaten start to the season continued with an extremely rare away win at Matlock. The Derbyshire side fancied themselves to win the league this year, but a stuttering performance by Grimsby soon put paid to that notion.
It was the home side which started the stronger, with forwards and backs linking very well to spin the ball from one side of the pitch to the other. Grimsby's defence was being stretched to breaking point, and just as it seemed that Matlock had broken through to score, a last ditch tackle caused the Matlock winger to knock the ball on. This allowed Grimsby to relieve the pressure momentarily. Matlock were soon pounding away at the Grimsby line again, until another big hit caused the ball to be turned over, allowing Pharaoh the easy task of jogging the ball back over the line 80 metres away. The conversion was missed, and Grimsby couldn't believe their luck to score against the run of play in such a way.
Matlock were doing well to manage the referee, and spoiled the vast majority of Grimsby ball at the ruck by reaching in or driving in at the side. The Matlock backline was also either the quickest bunch ever seen in a non international match, or more likely, yards offside at every opportunity. Fly half Bradley noted their sudden rushes, and used a little chip over to slow them down on several occasions.
This helped Grimsby to settle and they started to try and put phases of possession together, A series of good rucks saw Bradley kick across the pitch for the gazelle like Martin to rise up and take, before crashing down to earth over the line for a nicely worked try. Saunders converted the tricky kick successfully.
Grimsby still weren't able to fully impose their game plan on the opposition, with many mistakes made and an alarming number of knock ons. As the frustration levels grew, Grimsby appeared to lose their discipline and concentration leading to a penalty for Matlock which their kicker duly slotted.
Grimsby started to take the ball on more and more, with the forwards starting to dominate their opposite numbers. Unfortunately they had left it too late this half, and the whistle went for half time and a stern talking to from Captain Edwards.
As the 2 nd half commenced, it became obvious that Grimsby had started to pull themselves together. The forwards were driving with purpose, and the backs handling was looking crisper. A nice move on the Grimsby 22 started a situation however, that was to end in disaster. A lovely inside pass from Bradley saw Slosmanis able to steam away into space, and after a staggering 40 metre run, a neat pop up pass to Pharaoh should have seen the diminutive chap easily score. Unfortunately this was not to be the case, as the scrum half was about to catch the ball, an accidental contact with the referee caused Pharaoh to lose his footing and drop the ball. Rather than stopping the game and awarding a scrum to Grimsby as his action had caused the offence, the match official waved for advantage to Matlock be played, and the home side duly hoofed the ball deep into the Grimsby 22. With several Matlock players converging, fullback Saunders went for the clearance kick. It wasn't to be best ever, in fact, many would claim it was the worst ever seen rolling about 10 metres along the ground. The Matlock winger picked it up and after drawing the last defender, passed out wide to his support to flop over the line. As the Matlock player dropped towards the ground, Bradley attempted to dislodge the ball from his grasp with his boot from underneath, but was unsuccessful and in fact resulted in him breaking his left leg. The game had to be stopped to await medical treatment, as the player couldn't be removed from the pitch. With the ambulance having to be summoned from Chesterfield , the delay stretched to 1 hour before the game could restart. The conversion was missed, but the home team were only 4 points behind, and Grimsby had to radically restructure their squad to cover for the injured Bradley.
This enforced change meant a slight change in tactics, and the Grimsby started to play the game tighter. This lead to several quick phases, with wave after wave of Blue forwards charging at the Matlock defence. This eventually led to Grimsby forcing a penalty deep in the Matlock half, which Saunders subsequently kicked.
Matlock responded extremely well to this, and worked deep into the Grimsby 22, before setting up a very effective driving maul over the line. Unfortunately for them, the referee was unable to see the ball, and instead of a try awarded them a scrum quite a harsh decision as the ball had obviously been grounded! Grimsby held the scrum well, and as the Matlock backs attempted to run in a score, several big tackles saw the ball turned over and pressure cleared.
The home sides' heads had started to drop, and a series of niggly moments eventually led to Barker being awarded a yellow card and 10 minutes rest, apparently for showing good rucking technique!!
Grimsby continued to press, and a blatant offside in front of the posts allowed Saunders to kick for the extra 3 points. No further scores were coming, and Grimsby had won away from home despite a rather lacklustre performance.
However Matlock is a very difficult place to come and claim a victory, especially with the game being distracted with the injury to Bradley.
This week sees Grimsby playing Notts Moderns at Springfield Road , which promises to be an exciting game. Kick Off is 3pm and the bar is open from 2pm for interested parties. The team would like to see a good home crowd cheer them on!
Grimsby 17 Notts Moderns 18
This was the first league meeting between the two sides for 8 years, and high flying Grimsby unfortunately were brought down to earth with a bump by a well drilled Moderns team.
Grimsby were the first to score, after some strong drives saw Pharaoh break left, feed Cairns who broke his mans tackle and drew the last man before passing on to Martin for the stocky winger to power over the line. Daly was able to convert for the bonus points.
Grimsby started to find their rythm, with many attacks just being held out by stout defence from Moderns. The visitors also showed that they had ability, with a strong driving maul, and a very powerful scrum, which caused the Grimsby pack problems all day. A number of darting runs, good pop passes and nice supporting play saw Moderns work their way into the Grimsby half, before a infringement by a Blue player saw a kickable opportunity handed to the Moderns fly half, who dutifully kicked the points on offer.
Moderns then went through a period of dominance. Although the Grimsby backline had their measure in most encounters, the Moderns backs were able to enjoy the lions share of possession as their pack controlled the breakdown. The pressure eventually paid off, after the fly half ran in the ball from a scrum, and was able to score under the posts. This shocked Grimsby into a more passionate state of mind, and indeed little Ben Pharaoh was able to charge the conversion down to prevent the extra 2 points being added to the Moderns tally.
This act of defiance spurred the pack on to greater endeavours. A series of penetrating runs lead to the team working their way into Moderns territory, before a nice cross field kick saw Martin take the ball on. A quick pop up saw the back row able to support before Newman was finally able to cross the line. The conversion attempt was missed.
Grimsby again continued to press, but were spilling the ball on far too many occasions, not a good idea with a scrum under such pressure! Despite this, the home side were again able to penetrate, before a Moderns infringement gave an opportunity for Daly to kick to stretch the lead. Unfortunately the attempt drifted wide, and the first half was over!
During the break, Grimsby took the chance to bring on some fresh legs, with stalwart Kempthorne being replaced by the somewhat younger limbs of Burke.
Grimsby's gameplan was to then increase the tempo of the match, to harry the opposition and take advantage of their errors. This was shown straight from the restart, when the catcher was put under severe pressure, causing him to lose possession. The ball was quickly snaffled back, and quick ball saw Dufton break through to cross the line for a great start to the half. The conversion was missed.but Grimsby were infront 17-8.
Moderns were soon to strike back though, another infringement in the Grimsby half led to yet another kickable penalty, which their fly half gratefully claimed. The Moderns 10 was to be a thorn in Grimsby's side, as once more he was able to score after a nice move saw the Grimsby defence stretched, giving him the space to touch down. The conversion just drifted in for the extra points.
Grimsby made another change, with Robson coimg off for the returning John Pomfret, recently back from a jaunt to the himalyas and being mistaken for a shaven yeti! The home side started to throw everything they could at Moderns, spending 20 minutes camped on the opposition line, but were unable to break through. Poor discipline at the maul saw players peeling off to knock on over the line, when a bit of patience would have seen the points secured. Everytime Moderns cleared their line, Grimsby were immediately back on the offensive, with 2 further penalty attempts being awarded, but both drifting wide. Saunders also joined the game at fullback for Darren Daly.
Despite the pressure Moderns were able to clear their lines, and indeed launched a counter attack which saw their winger heading for the line, before a high tackle stopped him in his tracks, but led to the perpetrator being given a yellow card, and a 10 minute rest. Things looked ominous for Grimsby, but the next ruck led to a Moderns player being awarded a yellow card also for a technical foul.
The last 10 minutes ticked by, but still Grimsby were unable to record anymore points, and Grimsby's unbeaten record this season was smashed. In fact the last time Grimsby had lost at home was in the 2nd half of the 2002-03 season.
Grimsby didn't play as well as the high standards they now set themselves, but the opposition were a well drilled outfit, who had been relegated from Midlands 2 last year, and are definately no mugs team!
This week the 1st XV have no fixture, as the scheduled 2nd Round Powergen tie against Coalville, was played earlier in the season as a double header in the league encounter.
Grimsby 1 st XV made the trip to Ilkeston for the first time in the Midlands 3 East North league tie to take on what transpired to be a very well drilled and determined side in very poor weather conditions. The home side opted to play downhill and with the wind for the first half and with some key players missing Grimsby got off to a poor start giving away a penalty in the first two minutes. This was duly kicked giving the home side a 3-0 lead. It soon became evident that the weather conditions would play more of a part in the outcome of the game than had previously been thought as scrum after scrum took place for poor handling errors. This for the most part was where Grimsby came unstuck on the day, as the Ilkeston pack applied plenty of pressure to the visiting front row time after time. It was from one of these scrums that the Ilkeston backs picked up on some spilt ball to spin it wide and put one of their two Three Counties wingers in for the first of their four tries. The conversion was successful giving a 10-0 lead and this is how it stayed until half time. Despite some intermittent periods of dominance and time in the home side's half Grimsby never really looked like scoring. Half time saw the substitution of Lowery for Spall making his return to the first team as fullback and some stern words from Captain Edwards. Grimsby kicked off hoping the slope and the wind would favour them, but unfortunately a long kick off and some poor defending saw the home side quickly work their way back up the pitch to score a well worked try in the corner. This was not the start that Grimsby needed 15-0 after only three minutes of the second half gone. As the conversion was missed it was evident that a few heads had started to drop. Grimsby , almost alien to such a losing margin then struggled to make any significant impact on the buoyant home side. The visiting side made another change to avert the pressure in the front row with Pomfret coming on for Robson. It wasn't so much that Grimsby did not get any ball, but more when they did it was at the scrum. Much of the ball being spilt at the back of the scrum or turned over as the pressure from the Ilkeston back line on the Grimsby halfbacks really told. The home side's backs moved the ball well and combined with their big men running off the fly half breaking the gain line regularly. Daly did well in his first game with the 10' shirt and the combination of Thomas and Cairns in the centre pairing defended well but on the day Grimsby were no match for the Ilkeston side. A third substitution saw Burke on for Martin and as the last few minutes wound down Ilkeston ran in two more tries to extend the lead beyond reach. A slight glimmer of hope to get on the scoreboard came with the award of a penalty in front of the posts and the decision was taken to kick the 3 points. It probably could have been predicted given the run of the game, but Saunders missed the kick much to the amusement of the vast home crowd. The referee blew for full time and Grimsby came away well and truly beaten 27-0. This was the biggest margin of defeat that the Grimsby side has seen in over two years and should serve as sufficient incentive to prove their metal and bouncebackability. Next week sees the league continue with a home game against Mellish. Grimsby will need to dig deep to turn their fortunes around.
Grimsby 18 Leamington 13
It was with some trepidation that Grimsby faced Midlands 2 outfit Leamington in the 3 rd round of the Powergen Intermediate Cup, with an untested front row, and due to a last minute no show a hastily installed fly half, but with every member digging deep a memorable victory was recorded with Grimsby moving into the 4 th round for the first time in the competition. As Leamington wear a blue strip, Grimsby took the opportunity to unveil their new black change strip, kindly provided by kit sponsors Five Star Fish and Wincanton.
Leamington initially appeared to be the better drilled side, with an impressive warm up routine consisting of plenty of synchronised shouts amusing the home side. One real threat was their fly half, who was seen practising his goal kicking and slotting them from everywhere. However, it was to be the presence of Zak Bradley on the sideline which would eventually sway the game for the home side, with the injured fly half giving his team mates important advice which made all the difference. Shouts such as run faster or the tactically astute tackle helped Grimsby during times of indecision.
From the start of the game, Grimsby came the better in all physical encounters, however a few silly mistakes ensured that the one thing they didn't want to do give penalties in their own half, happened. Twice in quick succession the Leamington 10 kicked the ball through the uprights to take a 6 point lead. Despite being disheartened, Grimsby upped their game, and started to dominate, particularly in the scrum where the front row of Martin, Edwards and making his debut Price-Saleh were running amok amongst their opponents. Unfortunately, as a Leamington player kicked to clear, the match official adjudicated that Price-Saleh had attempted to trip him, and despite no contact being made, the Welshman was given a red and dismissed. This was disaster for Grimsby , only 20 minutes into the game, losing 6-0 and down to 14 men! In the past such a set of circumstances would have seen the home side fold, but not nowadays. Captain Edwards astutely rearranged his team, moving Norman into the front row, and the team dug in.
Every time Leamington attacked through their forwards, the back row slammed the door shut on them, and with the rest of the pack driving through every ruck and maul, the ball was turned over on many an occasion. The backs were also having the best of it, fly half Kempthorne Jnr was able to slice through his man in attack and cut him in half in defence. This enthusiasm was contagious and led to all the back line defending like demons. The pressure eventually told, with Leamington being forced into conceding a penalty in their 22. Fullback Saunders was able to slot the points.
The first try scored was to be from Grimsby , after good hands moved the ball wide, a nice kick from Thomas saw the Leamington gather the ball on his 5 metre line just as the combined might of Pharaoh, Stringer and Thomas arrived to drive him back over the try line, rob the ball and touch down for the try. Several pairs of hands claimed the score, but the touchdown was eventually awarded to Stringer, making a guest appearance for the day. Saunders was unable to convert.
This obviously rattled Leamington , and as Grimsby pressed again deep into their 22, the Leamington 8 deliberately killed the ball just as it looked like Grimsby would score again. The ref reached into his pocket and pulled out not a plumb, but a yellow card, so the teams were back on even numbers. Despite this Grimsby were unable to press their advantage and score another try, even though Burke clearly touched down, but the ensuing pile-on meant the ref was unable to give it!
Leamington were able to clear their lines, and after a couple of long kicks, a hack through and a blatant knock on, they were able to touch down in the corner to record a try. The difficult conversion was successful by their impressive kicker, and as the ref blew for half time, the visitors were leading 8-13.
The 2 nd half started much as the first had finished, with Grimsby in command, but Leamington sporadically venturing into Grimsby territory. From one such foray, and just as Leamington had regained full strength, a mighty clearance kick from the shy and retiring Pharaoh resulted in an extremely late tackle on the plucky fellow. The referee showed good consistency, whipping out his red one to once again reduce Leamington to 14. This was an added bonus as the guilty player was the Leamington prop, meaning both front rows were ramshackle affairs.
Grimsby now started to play their best rugby of the game, with the forwards playing especially well. Quickly recycled ball was taken on at pace, with Martin and Burke not always running straight but always making ground. The scrum became a place on pain for Leamington, who were relentlessly driven back, putting their teeny-weeny scrum half under no end of pressure, with Slosmanis and Davis both taking a great deal of enjoyment from scragging him time and time again.
The next score came from powerful running from the forwards, quick distribution from Pharaoh and good positional play from the referee! Martin was able to take the ball on, charge at the defenders and reach through and dot the ball down on the line just! On the line is over the line in rugby, and the referee was fortunately in a good position to see the grounding and award the try. Saunders proved he had forgotten his kicking boots by missing the kick.
As the hard working Grimsby side started to tire, new, younger legs were needed so a tactical substitution of Holt and Kempthorne Snr were introduced for the geriatric pairing of Burke and Davis. Fortunately this had no effect on the game, with both players fitting in seamlessly and Grimsby continued to dominate. Leamington were starting to panic, having come to Springfield Rd expecting only to have to turn up to thump the more junior side, they had met a mighty resistance, and were now clinging on for cup survival. Grimsby still had work to do, as in a cup fixture a draw is a win for the visiting side.
Knowing this Grimsby dug even deeper, and their tackling intensity increased even more. A dangerous looking attack in the Grimsby 22 was snuffed out by a double tackle from Thomas and a member of the back row, before the ball was whisked away and Leamington once again found themselves trapped in their 22. The final nail in Leamington 's coffin came from a Leamington scrum 5 metres out. The Grimsby front 5 gave a mighty drive, and forced Leamington back over their line and turned the ball over. Slosmanis stealthily crept from flanker to his customary 8 position and controlled the ball before dotting it down for the points. Saunders once again missed the kick.
As the game moved into the last minutes, Grimsby took a stranglehold on the game, and retained possession. From a scrum, and realising the referees time piece was sounding for the final play of the match, Pharaoh kicked into touch and Grimsby had won!!
The large crowd went wild as the Grimsby players celebrated an epic win. This was a superb result, especially after 2 losses and a last minute cancellation. Grimsby showed good bouncebackability, something important as they move onto Belgrave away this weekend in the League
The 4 th round sees all the remaining Midlands and North teams amalgamating, with Grimsby being the lowest placed team in terms of League level.
Grimsby have been drawn to face Market Bosworth at Springfield Rd on November 27th . Bosworth are currently 3 rd in Midlands 2 so it will be a big challenge.
Belgrave were an unknown quantity, as Grimsby had never played them before. After the previous weeks performance Grimsby were keen to get stuck in and stop a recent league run of defeats.
The game started well for the visitors, as an overthrown Belgrave lineout fell to the hands of Knight, quickly spinning it to Cairns running strongly at a good angle. The canny Scot split through the defence, and was able to charge away to score in the corner. Saunders narrowly missed the conversion. This was a good start but the large Belgrave pack soon started to kick into action. For some reason the normally reliable Grimsby lineout wasn't operating as usual, with Belgrave managing to get up and steal a large amount of Blue ball. Deprived of quality possession Grimsby started to struggle and were unable to bring their talented backs into the game. Belgrave started to press more and more, showing off a very impressive rolling maul that Grimsby just didn't have an answer to. It was from this maul that Belgrave were to score their first 2 tries. Gaining good possession in the Grimsby 22, they simply controlled their drive to score to the left of the posts in both cases. Both conversion attempts were missed.
As the game progressed the Belgrave pack continued to dominate, and the power of their front row started to tell. Grimsby were now struggling to compete at both lineout and scrum, and if you can't win clean first phase ball then you can't win at all!!
As the game moved into the 2 nd half, some of the Grimsby players started to lose their discipline- frustrated at the lack of ball they were getting, and also by several interesting interpretations by the match official, who was superbly marshalled by the home captain. Everytime Grimsby did manage to get close to the Belgrave line, the ball would be killed and any momentum lost. The game was also becoming more and more fractious, with lots of off the ball action going on. The match official eventually called both captains together and instructed them to calm their teams down. Belgrave continued to have the upper hand, and their next score came from a push-over try. Again, the conversion was missed. Grimsby refused to give up, and a series of moves form the backs saw several close attempts, but unfortunately the home side were able to snuff them out just in time. Skipper Edwards was doing his best. Leading from the front and charging at the opposition trying to spark some success. Grimsby attempted to sort out the problems in the pack, and brought on Kempthorne to replace Robson at tight head. Unfortunately this didn't have much effect on the scrum, and Belgrave continued to dominate. A further change saw Lee Burke come on the wing to replace Daly.
Belgrave had the upper hand, and scored another try from a 5 metre scrum. Despite the fact the Grimsby player had passed the ball to be cleared, the ref decided it had been touched in goal, so awarded the scrum to Belgrave. Their Number 8 picked up at the base and fed his support, who cruised over untouched, possibly with the aid of some subtle blocking by one of the flankers. The conversion was missed. This spell of injustice seemed to galvanise the Grimsby players. From the restart the ball was fly hacked back onto the Grimsby line, Saunders was there to gather, and started a move which saw almost all the team get involved. The backs took it on, then after Cairns had made a good run up the wing, he fed inside to Newman. As he was brought down just as the line beckoned, the ball was popped up to the ever present Whittard Norman, for the score. Saunders converted and the game was over, the home side winning 20-12.
It would be true to say that the better side won on the day. The superior Belgrave pack kept a stranglehold on the match, ensuring that Grimsby had no clean ball to work with. Grimsby now need to rearrange themselves and take stock. This league is a much more competitive one than Grimsby had to deal with last year. With a series of tough encounters in the coming weeks- league leaders Paviors, Midlands 2 Market Bosworth and then the long trip to Glossop- all formidable opponents, Grimsby have their work cut out. However, the team has ability, and once the pack win ball for the backs normal service will be resumed!!
Grimsby 14 Paviors 12
After a recent run of 3 straight defeats in the league, Grimsby faced the daunting task of trying to stop runaway league leaders Paviors, unbeaten in their previous 8 matches. A combination of a strong squad, perfect weather conditions and a lively crowd on the sideline helped the home side record an important victory.
Grimsby started well, and seemed to have the edge in the forwards, with the back row doing a lot of hard work early on. Paviors retained ball well but failed to produce any special threat or penetration. A pleasant surprise was Grimsby 's edge in the scrum, with the addition of Vincent Thornton making a huge impact on the set piece. This was Thornton 's first senior game this season, but after such a strong performance the tight head prop is bound to make more appearances.
Despite Grimsby having the upper hand up front, Paviors still prevented any great headway being made into their own territory, with the vast majority of the game being played in the area around half way. Neither side was able to penetrate, but gradually the Grimsby pack managed to work their way in deep. A series of quick rucks saw Newman take the ball with 10 metres to go, surrounded by the opposition, the wiry wing forward dummied, made space for himself and drove forwards. With a few other Grimsby players giving him a push up the backside, Newman was able to reach the line and touchdown for the opening score. Saunders made light work of the conversion and easily added the extra 2 points.
Grimsby now started to press more and more, putting Paviors under no end of pressure. The visitors tried everything they could to stop quick Grimsby possession, until the referee finally tired of the repeated infringements, and sent the Paviors openside to the sin bin. Unfortunately Grimsby were unable to take advantage of their numerical superiority, and Paviors managed to hold their line intact. The home side continued to press though, and a promising looking move was unlucky not to come off, but a delayed pass saw the ball go to deck before a Paviors boot managed to hack it down the pitch. With all the Grimsby backline up in attack there was nobody back to gather and it turned into a foot race for the touchdown. Unfortunately the Paviors winger was able to get there first and scored the try, which was subsequently converted by their fly half to put the sides back on level terms. The match official blew for half time, with both sides level pegging.
Grimsby used the break to bring on Marc Burke for Nigel Kempthorne in the 2 nd row. From the start of the half, Grimsby were keen to get stuck in and try to regain the lead. However, Paviors were now starting to play some good rugby, stringing together several phases of play to work deep into the Grimsby half. Good defence, especially from Gavin Kempthorne and Andy Thomas in the centres ensured the Blues line remained unbreached. With neither side able to fully impose themselves on the game, it was left to the Grimsby backs to try and penetrate. Outside centre Kempthorne did well, breaking the gainline on several occasions but unfortunately the team couldn't finish off any moves.
However, this stalemate was not to last. A long Paviors kick saw the ball gathered by Stuart Saunders on the try line, who fed onto Brendan Cairns . The canny jock took the ball in, committed his man and fed a neat pass out to the loitering Crispin Pharaoh. The dinky fly half ran up the wing, faked a kick and ran around the nearest tackler to steam away and head for the line. Ignoring his support, the diminutive Pharaoh outpaced the covering Paviors defence and managed to touch down under the posts for the try. Talk about turning defence into attack a full 100 metre counter. Saunders effortlessly bisected the uprights for the extras. Grimsby were stunned, they were playing good open rugby yet with no sign of talisman and local idol Bradley on the side! The only cripple to be seen was James Martin , on crutches since an accident in training. Possibly the home side had mistaken Martin for Bradley due to the similar silhouette, but none the less the team was playing rugby!
As the game progressed it became more and more fraught, with several incidents and skirmishes occurring. Paviors were becoming increasingly desperate for the ball, and an off the ball altercation led to the Paviors prop being banished from the pitch the last thing the visitors wanted due to the pressure the front row of Wilkinson, Edwards and Thornton were subjecting them to. As the game moved into the dying moments, a Paviors move saw the ball shipped along their back line and eventually their fly half was able to touch down in the left hand corner. Not a popular score as many spectators felt that a forward pass had been seen. However, the score stood and Paviors needed to convert the try to stay in the match. The conversion was missed, but due to poor discipline and gobbing off to the ref, Paviors were awarded a penalty from the restart. Opting to run it, the Nottingham side were simply blasted apart as the Grimsby pack drove in like bulldozers. The ball was kicked into touch and Grimsby had won a memorable victory.
The sideline had been bolstered by match sponsers Jewsons, who had helped create a great atmosphere on the side. Jewsons were also able to award a Man Of The Match to Gavin Kempthorne, who had had a big game in both defence and attack. Special mention must also be given to Vincent Thornton, who scrimmaged well, and caused problems in the loose.
This week sees the arrival of Market Bosworth in the 4 th round of the Powergen Intermediate Cup. Grimsby have reached the last 32 nationally, a great achievement especially as they are one of the lowest ranked sides in the tournament. The home draw will help the Blues try and thwart the threat of Midlands 2 side Bosworth, who are having a great season and are presently placed 3 rd in their league. This week the KO is 2.15 and Grimsby would like a packed sideline to help cheer the lads on.
Grimsby 0 Market Bosworth 27
Grimsbys Powergen Intermediate Cup run was stopped dead in it's tracks by Midlands 2 East side Market Bosworth. Despite fielding a strong squad, the power of the Leicestershire sides back line proved to be too much for the home team.
Grimsby recieved the ball from the kick off and a good clearance kick from Pharaoh saw the ball sail way down the pitch and into touch for a nice safe line out - supposedly. However, a nice move by Bosworth saw the ball quickly spun out wide, and the powerful centre broke through the covering defence. Just as Saunders tackled the man in front of him, a well timed pass saw the ball shipped to the winger, who screamed away and scored under the posts. The conversion was easily added. Things looked bleak for Grimsby, 1 minute into the game and already 7 points down. From the restart Grimsby managed to put Bosworth under some pressure, and eventually forced a scrum. Following on in a similar vein to last weeks scrummaging, the front five of Wilkinson, Edwards, Thornton, Barker and Kempthorne were able to drive their opposite numbers back, leaving good steady ball for the backs to use. As Grimsby spun it wide, Thomas took it on strongly but was stopped in his tracks by a good defensive effort by his opposite man. This was to be a re-occuring theme, with the Grimsby backs unable to break through the line of defence, something not normally seen this season but a fine testament to the speed and skill of the Bosworth three quarters. Up front the encounters were fierce, with no quarter neither asked nor given. Ruck after ruck left bodies in their trails, with Bosworth coming of the worst in many cases. Unfortunately they were able to carry on with the game, and as the match wore on their back row was becoming more and more effective in slowing the ball down and preventing Grimsby from setting a solid platform to launch an attack from. Bosworth were also starting to exert more and more pressure on Grimsby, using a solid maul to good effect, before passing the ball out wide to their dangerous backs. It was from one such encounter that the inside centre again was able to crash through and score. The conversion attempt was unsuccessful. Grimsby were still not disheartened, and continued to try and press but everytime they ventured into the Bosworth 22 a member of the opposition would either prevent the ball being released or handle in the ruck, resulting in a penalty to the home side, but never from a really kickable position. The visitors knew how to defend, and it wasn't long before they had cleared the ball down the pitch, and after several good phases of play the winger was able to score in the left hand corner. The conversion attempt drifted wide. This kick marked the end of the first half and Grimsby were already 17 points down despite having played well.
The 2nd half started much as the first, with the Bosworth centre pairing working well together to bamboozle the Grimsby defence, before scything through to score under the posts early on in the half. The conversion was added and things were looking ominous for Grimsby. It was at this point that the Grimsby forwards began to take charge of the game, dominating in the scrum, winning good ball in the lineout and generally playing hard physical rugby. This added pressure saw Grimsby claim the majority of possession, but the Bosworth defence was still very strong and the homeside failed to cross the line. During the half, Grimsby made a number of changes, with Pomfret coming on for Thornton, Burke for Kempthorne and finally Daly for Saunders. The game carried on in a similar vein, however the Grimsby line was now holding strong, and the gritty attitude and physical presence of the Grimsby pack was starting to have an effect. Bosworth continued to press, and after being awarded a penalty in the Grimsby 22, opted to kick at goal rather than run into the massed throng looking for the tackle. The kick was successful, but Grimsby felt a slight moral victory. For the remainder of the half neither side was able to breach the others defence, and the ref blew for final time with Bosworth the worthy winners.
It would be fair to say the better team won on the day, with Bosworth showing Grimsby the big step up to Midlands 2. It would also be fair to say that Grimsby won the forward battle but the very impressive powerful Bosworth backs made a significant difference on the day.
This week Grimsby host the not unsubstantial challenge of Glossop. Kick Off is 2.15 and all are welcome
Grimsby 18 Glossop 7
Grimsby put the previous week's cup disappointment behind them with a tidy win against old adversaries Glossop to leapfrog the Derbyshire side and move up to 4 th position. Both teams are noted for their forwards, but it was to be the home side that made the difference, especially in the set piece. Grimsby were once again outfitted in their Black strip as Glossop also play in royal blue.
Straight from the start Grimsby were keen to make inroads into the Glossop, however, as Grimsby powered forward, the first few phases of play were notable for the amount of penalties given for Glossop killing the ball. This allowed the mighty boot of Pharaoh to kick down the field for easy yardage. From the ensuing lineout a series of rucks saw Grimsby move ever closer to the line, and eventually the mighty figure of Edwards could be seen peeling away from the back to belly barge his way over for the score. Saunders lined up the conversion with his usual aplomb, and the bonus points went begging.
This seemed to inspire Glossop, who came right back at Grimsby , quickly working their way deep into the home-sides 22. The strong defensive midfield line of Thomas and Cairns held out, and as the rest of the team came smashing into the mauls, the ball was held and a scrum awarded to Grimsby . Following on to the last few matches, the front row combination of Wilkinson, Edwards and Thornton calmly took off from where they had left last week, and proceeded to drive the Glossop pack back at a nice steady controlled rate. This gave scrum half Knight all the time he needed to line up his pass, and another Pharaoh clearance kick was soon taking place.
Grimsby continued to press, with the forwards pushing hard, and the back row getting wide to support the back line. Progress was again being made up the pitch. Before yet another Glossop infringement at a ruck led to another penalty being awarded, this allowed Pharaoh to kick to touch just outside the visitor's 22 yard line. A neat planned move saw the ball won by Newman and a sneaky pass saw Slosmanis gather the ball in space. With nobody in front of him, the cheeky youngster had to swerve out of his way to find contact with a covering winger, before touching down for the try. Saunders struggled to recreate his previous attempt, and the ball sailed tidily between the uprights.
From this point on, the match official appeared to be doing his best to level the 2 sides, with the game being increasingly spoilt by the incessant drone of his whistle, neither side were able to make a great deal of headway, and frustration levels were starting to rise. Cheap shots were being thrown more and more, with both sides as guilty as the other. This seemed to rattle the ref more than anybody else, and he pulled the 2 skippers aside for a brisk talk on discipline. As the half drew to a close, 2 players were awarded yellow cards, Slosmanis of Grimsby for foul play, and a member of the Glossop pack for repeated infringement at the ruck. This failed to slow the Grimsby forwards down, with the team easily pushing as hard with just 7 as before. A nice move from the backs saw an incisive break before the last man was drawn and the ball fed towards Lowery for an easy run in, unfortunately the antipodean failed to hold on to the pass, and the air was turned a nice shade of blue with some fruity terms telling of his disappointment. As the half drew to a close, Grimsby were in front but needed more points to be certain.
The 2 nd half started much as the first, with Grimsby 's dominance in the forwards once more coming to the fore. Another series of good drives saw Pharaoh able to guide a nice drop goal through the posts. It was at this point where Grimsby had to make a change to the front row, with Thornton having to leave the pitch with a rib injury after yet another impressive performance. This allowed Price-Salleh to make an appearance, after his suspension earned against Leamington had elapsed. This disruption made no impact on the efficiency of the Grimsby scrum, with Glossop being driven back all the more. The Grimsby backline was also trying to impose itself on the game, but the normal fluency appeared to be missing, with wrong options taken and way too much ball spilt. Grimsby were still the more assertive side, but the Glossop defence was becoming better organised, and the referee was using his whistle more and more, often for what appeared to be extremely harsh calls. During the half Grimsby made 2 further changes, with Davis coming on for Slosmanis, and Daly on for Draper. Grimsby again worked into the Glossop half, and another infringement in the ruck gave Saunders to opportunity to kick for goal. A well taken shot easily added the 3 points and Grimsby were now cruising to victory. It may be that the home side mentally went down a few gears, but Glossop went on to finish the game on the ascendancy. A dog leg in the Grimsby defence allowed the Glossop fly half Horbachowski to sprint through the hole and then outpace the covering defenders to touch down in the right hand corner. An impressive conversion added the extras, and Glossop had gotten onto the score sheet.
This was to be the end of the game, and Grimsby were now back in the top 4, with a game in hand to push for top 3.
Grimsby 1st XV travelled to the idyllic Sherwood Forest Paviors location
with their tails up for this away fixture with the league leaders. Having
been the only side to beat Paviors this season and on the back of the
convincing win at Lincoln last week, Grimsby were expecting another good
performance. Work commitments and Christmas arrangements had hampered the
selection process with four key pack players unavailable. The game
started well for Grimsby with some good phases of dogged 10 man rugby.
Paviors persistently infringed at the ruck and were rewarded with a 10
minute spell in the bin for one of their backs following a yellow card. A
series of driving mauls, good line-out work and pressure on the home
side's back line saw the first twenty minutes very much with Grimsby in
control. This passage of play culminated in a well worked try from a
driving maul with captain Edwards touching down for the score. The home
side support was somewhat lost for words to see such control from the
visitors. The conversion attempt by West was unsuccessful. The game soon
settled into what was for the most part the pattern for the afternoon.
With wet conditions spoiling just about everything past the 10, Grimsby's
efforts to play a wide expansive game seemed fruitless. An infringement
in the Grimsby 22 allowed Paviors the chance to get on the board, 5-3 to
Grimsby as half time approached. The second half seemed an altogether
different half with a much more determined home side effort. Grimsby
spent much of the half defending in their 22 with some strong scrummaging
and tight driving work by the home side forwards. Grimsby stood strong in
defence and tackled well keeping the home side at bay until a well worked
overlap saw their first try scored just wide of the posts. The conversion
was successful making it 8-8. The score seemed to refocus Paviors who
soon worked their way back into the Grimsby half and were soon awarded a
penalty following some indiscipline at the base of the ruck. This was
duly taken giving the home side the lead for the first time. With only 10
minutes to go this score was very much the turning point in the game.
Grimsby's discipline took a turn for the worse as the frustration of the
situation set in. Paviors pressure on the Grimsby line continued with
vengeance and it wasn't long before the next try came. 18-8 and the game
was slipping away fast. The final nail in the coffin came in the last
minute when another well worked overlap allowed the Paviors winger to
score in the corner. The kick was unsuccessful giving Paviors a 23-8 win
as the final whistle blew. Grimsby were beaten by the better side on the
day, however, the first 70 minutes showed the true grit and determination
that has become so synonymous with the style that Grimsby are playing at
the moment.
The first league match of 2005 saw Grimsby gain revenge over Belgrave with a 40-26 victory, although the score tended to flatter the home side as the Leicester club competed well all game.
In the previous meeting the Belgrave forwards had completely ruled the roost, so the Grimsby selection policy was to try and minimise that threat, especially in the front row, so the specialist frame of Thornton mad a welcome return after injury. This was to be an important feature, as Belgrave lost their advantage, and the superior Grimsby backs were given space to run free.
The first try was a beauty, with a strong scrum allowing plenty of time for Knight to get the ball out. It was passed down the line until Cairns came roaring in on a nice angle to burst through the defence and touch down under the sticks. Saunders added the extras.
Belgrave played themselves back into the game with a series of strong mauls, another of their effective weapons, but they seemed to be lacking the penetration of the previous game. The ball was turned over and Davis kicked to clear or so he thought! The ball fell into the hands of the Belgrave winger who ran back at pace, although tackled, he made the ball available for the Belgrave 10 to chip ahead, with the result of the Belgrave centre, Lavin, wining the chase to touch down. The conversion attempt was missed.
This rattled Grimsby slightly, and a number of poor decisions and bad options were taken, allowing Belgrave to settle into a pattern. However, a lineout 35 metres from the line saw Newman take a nice ball, and an almost identical move from earlier saw Cairns howl through the defensive line once more to record a carbon copy of his first try. Saunders once more successfully converted.
Belgrave tried to strike back, but started to throw the ball out too freely, and from one such pass West was able to sneak in and intercept. The nippy winger was eventually brought down, but from the ensuing ruck Edwards started to head for the posts and only a despairing tap tackle saw him prevented for scoring. A quick pop up saw Newman take the ball on and score in the corner. Saunders missed the difficult kick.
This seemed to relax Grimsby , and Belgrave put a number of good charges together. This, alongside Grimsby giving away numerous penalties, allowed the visitors to work their way into the Grimsby 22, and after a quick tap penalty was taken, the Belgrave 10 was able to score under the posts. He also converted his own try.
Grimsby refused to allow Belgrave the final say of the half, and after Lightning Stuart Saunders spotted a telegraphed move deep in his own half, the human dynamo sprinted 20 metres to intercept the ball and set off for the line. With only the full back to beat, Saunders unselfishly drew the man and then fed the supporting West who scored under the posts. Saunders added the extra 2 points and the half was over.
The second half saw a slight reshuffle as the doddering legs of Kempthorne were replaced with the sprightly gait of Burke. Unfortunately Burkes sprightly gait saw him yellow carded just 3 minutes into the half for a technical offence, and the young lock was sent to the sin bin for a 10 minute reflection upon his actions. As Grimsby hastily tried to rearrange their side, the Belgrave number 8 Garner took a quick tap and scored under the posts. Bowen added the conversion.
Grimsby were in disarray, and as Belgrave drove deep into their 22, Norman was also awarded a yellow for preventing a quick penalty being taken. This put the home side down to 13 men, and Belgrave could sniff the direction of the game turning. The remaining Grimsby players realised that they had to massively increase their work rate, and the next 10 minutes were a revelation to behold as tackle after tackle were made. Slowly, the visitors were forced back, with good runs from Knight, Newman and Barker pinning them back, until a nice dummy and step from Pharaoh saw the Grimsby fly half break away to score under the posts. Saunders converted and Burke was then able to rejoin the fray.
Belgrave still refused to give up, and their forwards continued to make good inroads, popping the ball to each other and generally showing good ball retention skills. A series of strong rucks and mauls saw them awarded a scrum 5 metres from the Grimsby line. The home side held out against a strong drive, but the Belgrave 9, Kyle, picked up from the base and was able to score. Bowen once more added the extra points.
Norman also rejoined the game, and with the Blues back to a full contingent the Belgrave supply of ball petered out. Grimsby started to put phases together, and a quick ball out wide saw draper take it on, break 2 tackles and them outpace the covering defence for a nice try under the posts. Saunders converted.
Lowery joined the game shortly after this, with Cairns having to leave the pitch with an ankle injury. The change failed to disrupt the Grimsby defence, although Belgrave were able to add to their tally when Kyle scored his second after several phases of quick recycling of the ball. As the conversion was taken, the match official blew for full time.
This was a hard fought encounter, between 2 teams both determined to establish their dominance. This season has seen the first 2 encounters with Belgrave, and seen the honours shared 1-1. With both sides guaranteed to be in the same league next season, it is a fitting result, and both sides will look forward to locking horns in the future.
In the away leg of this fixture Grimsby were comprehensively beaten by a well drilled Ilkeston side, and after a reshuffled side some trepidation was felt before the return match. However Grimsby more than contributed to an enthralling encounter, and managed to pip the visitors at the last for the league points.
Ilkeston started the better of the 2 sides, although Grimsby had the first opportunity to record points when a penalty was awarded for an Ilkeston infringement in their 22. Unfortunately the kick went wide and Ilkeston showed their dangerous backs off, when after a quick pass form the back of a scrum the ball was passed to right winger, and league top scorer Draper. The pacy chap then flew up the wing, leaving all in his wake and touched down for the easy conversion attempt under the posts, which Kendal duly slotted.
Grimsby started to put Ilkeston under pressure, especially in the loose, and the game gradually moved into the visitor's territory. Good work in the lineout by both Barker and Newman ensured Grimsby retained their own ball, as well as made life difficult for the Ilkeston jumpers. Ilkeston resorted to nefarious means on a few occasions, but with both Grimsby 's iron discipline and an eagle eyed ref the visitors found themselves penalised on more than one occasion. Lowery was nearly able to break the line, but a last ditch tackle stopped him from skipping through. However, as the Ilkeston forwards illegally slowed the ball down, a penalty was awarded which Pharaoh took quickly. Backing himself, the sneaky little 9 crept around the disorientated defence to score under the sticks. West added the extras and both sides were level pegging.
Shortly after this, Ilkeston were reduced to 14 men for a while, as their fly half was given a yellow for a despicable and cowardly knee drop on a Grimsby player after the whistle had blown. Grimsby used their numerical advantage to work their way upfield, still recycling well, until quick ball saw West receive the ball just yards out. Newman did an excellent impersonation of a shield to allow the youngster to blast through and touch down under the posts and then to convert his own try.
Ilkeston soon struck back after a long ball forced Grimsby to kick to touch, and after a nice take in the middle of the line, a tidy rolling maul was started. Grimsby were unable to stop it, and as the mass of bodies collapsed over the line, tight head Charlton was awarded the touchdown, despite the protestations of the home players who felt it had been held up. The try stood, but the conversion flew wide. Grimsby went into half time 14-12 up, and knowing that the game was winnable realised they had to up their game.
Ilkeston soon regained the lead, as 5 minutes into the 2 nd half, a missed tackle allowed the Ilkeston centre broke through, drew the covering defence and fed Draper. With time and space in his favour, he sped away to score under the posts. Kendal added the bonus points and Grimsby now had to really increase their workrate.
The game was very evenly match as a contest, with both sides neither giving or asking for quarter. Clash after clash occurred, with the referee having to speak to both captains to try and get their charges to calm down not bloody likely!!!!
This hard rate of attrition led to several changes being made, with Slosmanis and Thornton being replaced by Montague and Holt in the forwards and old stager Clayton coming on to replace Kempthorne Jnr in the backs. A slight reshuffle saw Daly move to 10, an enforced move which saw the entire aspect of the game change. Grimsby started to move the ball better and faster and suddenly Ilkeston were seriously on the back foot. As Grimsby forced them back deeper and deeper in their half, Ilkeston resorted to the dirty tricks campaign to try and rattle Grimsby . At a lineout Barker was taken out in mid air, a very dangerous act which went unpunished by the referee- but not by Kempthorne Snr. A cracking punch, which Lennox Lewis would have been proud of soon sorted out the Ilkeston player, but Kempthorne was shown a yellow card, for as deserved as it was, it wasn't very clandestine!
This respite allowed Ilkeston to clear their lines for a short spell, but good work most notably by Pharaoh, Newman and West ensured they stayed pinned back in their own territory. It was from a heroic tackle that Pharaoh suffered a nasty blow to the head. Despite the application of some ice from the freezer, it soon became raised and swollen. Fortunately to the relief of all, he soon became playable once more.
The game now moved into injury time, and Ilkeston tried everything to kill the ball and end the contest. However, the match official kept spotting infringements by the visiting side and penalty after penalty was quickly tapped and taken as the Blues sought out the Ilkeston line. After about 4 minutes of intense pressure and 7 penalties, just as the crowd were screaming for a penalty try, the ball span wide to West, who dived through the despairing tacklers to touch down for the points and level the match. Unfortunately West was injured in the tackle and Grimsby had lost their kicker for the conversion! Up stepped the massive figure of Daly, and after a seconds introspection, the ball went sailing through the air to cleanly bisect the uprights. Grimsby had won, and as the ref blew for fulltime the players and large crowd alike went mad. Unfortunately West had taken a bang to the noggin, and after having scored the match securing try was left with no memory of the occasion due to concussion.
This week Grimsby travel to Notts Moderns, the only league side to defeat the Blues on home soil in 2 seasons.
Grimsby 0 Matlock 30
Grimsby had been unable to fulfil the cup fixture with Mansfield the previous week citing a crippling injury list. This week the Blues managed to put a side together, but by the end of the afternoon were in an even worse situation.
The visitors arrived early and were obviously keen to avenge the defeat Grimsby had recorded over them on their own ground.
Straight from the start it seemed that Matlock had the edge, with their back row scavenging well all over the pitch. Grimsby seemed unable to string more than a few phases of play together, and had to rely on kicking the ball upfield to clear their lines.
Matlock gradually worked into the Grimsby half, and from well moved ball from a scrum, a gap appeared in the Grimsby midfield. This allowed the Matlock outside centre to draw his man and feed the left winger with acres of space to play in. The outside duly accepted and sprinted over the line to record the first score. Even worse for Grimsby was the fact that Saunders had dislocated his shoulder in an attempted tackle, and with his season over had to leave the pitch. The conversion was successful.
Grimsby had no backs replacement on the bench, so a quick reshuffle saw Newman move to scrum half from the back row, and Montague join the pack.
Matlock continued to apply pressure, and a number of quickly recycled ball saw them again create space for the winger to zoom away. Veteran full back Clayton made the tackle on the line, but the Matlock winger was able to reach over to score. The conversion was a success.
Unfortunately, in the process of trying to stop the Matlock speedster, Clayton suffered a nasty gash over his eye, and as he left the pitch for running repairs Burke joined the fray as blood replacement.
This again necessitated a move around, with Norman being banished to the wing.
Grimsby started to compete more at the breakdown, but often fell foul of the referee's interpretations of the law. These infringements allowed Matlock to move downfield with easy ground made.
After the application of what appeared to be several miles of bandage, Clayton was able to rejoin the game, but resembled Pudsey Bear with one eye virtually covered.
Matlock now showed a merciless approach by sending numerous high balls out to the blinkered full back, who was struggling to judge his distances to his normal exacting standards.
The next score came from a set move, again with the winger being the recipient of ball in space. Quick ball allowed him to streak away to score his 3 rd try of the afternoon. The conversion was also good, and once more Grimsby had an injury to contend with. This time Lowery had a nasty slice to his ear and had to leave the pitch for a quick patch up.
Grimsby started the 2 nd half much stronger, with better ball retention and clearing out in the ruck being the norm. Matlock soon realised this, and were content with slowing down the home side's ball at every opportunity. It was from one such incident that a Grimsby player became infuriated and gave the Matlock 8 a jolly good punch- right in front of the ref! The subsequent penalty was kicked and Grimsby were even further behind.
Matlock seemed to have eased off a bit too, with Grimsby able to string several phases together, with Newman and Pharaoh especially coming to the fore. Unfortunately it wasn't to be enough, and Grimsby were unable to convert possession into points. Matlock were awarded another penalty for an infringement in the ruck, just inside the Grimsby half and opted to kick for goal. The kick was good and Matlock now had an unassailable lead, especially with Grimsby never really looking like scoring.
Matlock now upped the pace, with some good interpassing between forwards and backs carving the Grimsby defence to pieces. On such move reached right into the Grimsby 22, until a heroic tackle by Clayton caused a turnover and allowed the ball to be cleared. Unfortunately Clayton also injured his shoulder in the tackle and his game was over.
The final try of the match came from the Matlock prop, who burst into the line form 10 metres out at a good angle top power over the line despite the close attentions of Thomas hanging from him. The conversion was good.
The match was then over and Matlock had gained their revenge with a very solid performance. Grimsby now have to regroup and try to formulate a squad with an injury list now reaching epidemic proportions. These now include broken leg, torn ligaments, torn hamstrings, dislocated shoulders, knee injuries, back injuries and assorted cuts, gashes and grazes
The team is now seriously considering an approach to St Johns Ambulance Service to be match sponsors!!!
Grimsby 70 West Bridgeford 10
A host of stars past were present to witness Grimsby put Midlands 3 East (North) whipping boys Bridgeford to the sword. The massive score could have and should been even bigger but for individuals going for glory rather than playing Captain Edwards game plan.
Grimsby started extremely strongly, with several players back available after injury, immediately forcing the visitors deep into their 22. A hasty clearance kick led to a Grimsby lineout 5 metres from the line, and a preset move should have seen Slosmanis score in the corner but poor ball retention instead led to a Bridgeford scrum. Grimsby drove well and won the ball against the head, but again poor hands by Slosmanis saw a knock on at the base and another scrum to Bridgeford. This too was also won against the head, and with the Blue pack surging forward Pharaoh was able to reach in and dot the ball down for the try. The tricky conversion was well kicked by West.
From the restart Bridgeford were able to exert some pressure, and after a Grimsby infringement in a ruck a penalty was awarded and subsequently kicked to put the score at 7-3.
This spurred Grimsby back to further endeavours, with a sweeping attack leading up to a series of good rucks, quickly moved ball and dangerous position only for Bridgeford to illegally kill the ball. The ensuing penalty led to a lineout and another pre arranged move which led to Slosmanis receiving the ball and sprinting through to touch down as the defence parted like the Red Sea . The conversion drifted wide.
The next score came from full back West, a nice ruck saw the ball spun wide and then kicked on for the chase. Winger Dufton, back after recuperating from a car accident, was unable to take the final bounce, but as the ball glanced off his knee and over the line West was on hand to flop over for the score. Daly converted from the left hand corner.
Grimsby were now on a roll, and with the forwards taking the ball on time after time before unleashing the backs, it was only a question of where rather than when the team was going to score next. Desperate Bridgeford defence managed to hold out several attempts, but as the ball was spun wide, Daly was able to outpace the defence and score to the right of the posts. The young fly half was also able to convert his own try.
Bridgefords spirit was being sapped, and one could sense the dejection in their game. From each kick off their chase was poor, giving Grimsby time to set up further attacks. The next try was another good team effort, with the forwards crashing through the first few phases, before the back line was able to show their stuff. Good hands quickly shipped the ball out to Evans, who flew forward and scored in the corner. The conversion was unsuccessful.
As the half drew to a close, Grimsby added another 3 points via the boot of Daly as a result of yet another West Bridgeford transgression.
The 2 nd half saw a change as Burke came on for the tied old legs of the doddering Kempthorne, who had had a fine game but was now feeling the weight of his four score years.
The first 20 minutes of the 2 nd half was an entirely different matter. Grimsby were being penalised continually for stupid mistakes, allowing Bridgeford to keep their lines clear. In fact it was to be the visiting side that were first to record a score. Grimsby had conceded a penalty in their own 22, and as Bridgeford took a quick tap and go, the home defence was caught sleeping as the large hooker charged through to score under the posts. The conversion was added.
This was the kick up the backside the home side needed and soon it was back to business as before. The easiest way to avoid any penalties was to keep the ball moving- so that's what they did. Some excellent handling saw even Martin pass, with Slosmanis taking the ball up the wing, before drawing the winger and popping up to Barker who was hot on his heels in support. Nobody was going to stop the gangly lock and he strolled over to touch down in the corner. The conversion was missed, but Grimsby were back functioning properly.
Another change saw Kempthorne Jnr join the fray as Dufton went off for a well deserved rest.
The next score came from Pharaoh, as the self effacing scrum half took the ball on and managed to score an easy try in the corner after everybody else had done the hard work for him. West added the conversion.
With a large vocal crowd of Mexican villagers on the sideline cheering the home side on, it was obvious more scores were to be forthcoming.
The next try was a peach, a deep kick was fielded by the Bridgeford full back who did really well to run the ball up field, breaking several tackles en route. With just the tiny frame of Cairns to beat, he chipped the ball ahead, straight into the canny Scots hands. Realising that he has an unobstructed run in, a wide grin appeared on his face as the trotted upfield to score in the corner. A nice score after a long layoff with an ankle injury. The conversion failed.
Bridgeford were now definitely just going through the paces, and the ball seemed to always be appearing in a Grimsby player's hands. The next try was to be Pharaohs hat trick, after using the forwards to get him into the danger zone an admittedly not too shabby side step allowed him to walk over the line untouched and score under the posts for West to convert. A final change to the sides allowed Pomfret come on in place of Martin in the front row.
With time running out, it was to be Grimsby Skipper Edwards, who had a massive game who was next to score. A ruck wide out on the right, saw the ball spun wide and fall into the hands of Slosmanis. With just one player to beat, nobody expected the pass, but as the final man committed himself and little pop to Edwards saw a clear run to the line.
The final try of the game was also a good piece of determination from Daly. Having tried the same move unsuccessfully on several occasions the plucky 10 called it yet again, and this time executed it perfectly to slice through the defence and touch down under the posts. West converted.
This was a tidy performance against an admittedly weak opposition, but when Grimsby stuck to the game plan, it was a pleasure to watch.
This week sees the rescheduled game against Coalville away. This promises to be a tricky fixture with the result having a large bearing in the league standings at the end of the season.
Coalville 1st XV 34 - 13Grimsby 1st XV
Grimsby travelled for this rearranged Midlands Division 3 East (North) fixture to Coalville in Leicestershire following two previous failed attempts to play the match due to snow and waterlogging on all six of their pitches!!! With five changes to the side following last week's victory, Grimsby fell into the same trap that they have fallen into on so many occasions - they travelled in a mood that was overconfident and they lost. One day they will realise that teams within this league are only in this league because they are good and worthy of the position and that the game will need to won by hard work and determination and training. No team will just give up a home fixture win. Grimsby were fortunate from the start with an immediate infringement by the home side from which Daly kicked a penalty. This was about all that Grimsby could say was good about the first 30 minutes. Coalville were definitely the stronger side with plenty of running and support rugby. Their backline seriously outclassing the Grimsby backs. The first home side try came from well worked play from the backs leading to an simple overlap and out to the winger to score under the posts. The try was converted. The second try should never have happened but sort of summed up the day for Grimsby. A high ball from the home side fly half sent the ball deep into the Grimsby 22 and then some indecision from the youthful Davies, allowed the ball to bounce, straight into the hands of the home side's winger to score under the posts. This again was converted successfully. The third try was another text book overlap coming from well worked backs hands to score again behind the Grimsby posts. Again the kick was successful. Grimsby were struggling at 21-3 down with only 25 minutes played. The only area of any significant dominance for Grimsby was the scrummage where the sheer weight advantage pushed the Coalville pack back on numerous occasions but this did not seem to gain them much territory as the forwards were too slow to the breakdown. Perhaps one of only a few highlights during the afternoon came shortly before half time when a pick up from Barker at the base of the scrum was fed out wide to Lowery at scrum half and then on to Cairns who chipped the ball through for Daly to ground the ball for a try. The conversion was missed and half time was a welcome relief to the travelling side 21-8 down. Captain Edwards was seething at the lack of effort from most but the Grimsby team seemed in a different league on the day. Kempthorne came on for Montague and Dymond came on for the injured Slosmanis. The second half started a little better for Grimsby, having realised that if they were going to do anything that afternoon worth writing about they would have to keep the ball tight and away from the Coalville backs. An infringement in one of these tight periods of play allowed Coalville back on the scoreboard with a penalty kick. The next try came from another incident that yet again summed up the afternoon for Grimsby. A well rehearsed lineout move from Barker went horribly wrong and the ball was allowed to bounce into the hands of the Coalville hooker who galloped away to score in the corner. The kick was unsuccessful and Grimsby were 29-8 down. Kempthorne, Edwards and Wilkinson showed their experience with a series of gfood carries and strong driving mauls to take the ball deep into the Coalville 22 where upon Martin forced his way over the line to score Grimsby's second try of the afternoon. The kick was unsuccessful. The final score of the game came following a slightly late tackle by the Scottish representative, Cairns, who was awarded for his troubles with a yellow 'rest' card that effectively finished his game off. The resulting tap penalty was taken by the very aware Coalville wing forward who scooted across the line as the final whistle blew. The kick was unsuccessful. Grimsby were well and truly beaten by a team that wanted to win more than they did. Simple errors and a lack of heart and passion by the majority of the team lost them the game. Next week a club team is touring the North East on an Easter Tour with the next league game away at Loughborough on 2nd April.
For the first time since 1993 a senior Grimsby squad went on the tradional rugby tour at Easter. With two fixtures to play, against Percy Park on Good Friday and Scarborough on Saturday, the squad knew that judicious drinking, a high dietry awareness and plenty of rest would secure comfortable victories in both games.
A tight knit squad of 20 set off from Springfield Road, dressed in the days theme of "Tennis Couture", and with dogged determination managed to dispense of 6 crates before arrival in North Shields. Percy Park is a very impressive location, with great facilities and a good bunch of players who joined in the spirit of the weekend well. The game was played in a mostly friendly manner, with the home side boasting some skillfull players, especially the ex-England U19's fly half. Percy Park managed to score more points than the Grimsby tourists, but a moral victory was assured as Scott "Stephi Gash" Barker scored under the posts. The final score was somewhere in the region of 38-7, not a bad showing in all consideration.
As the group checked into the hotel for the nights entertainment in Whitley Bay, one could sense a cracking weekend was unfurling. The night passed without any unseemly antics, but with all the party having a right good knees up in the Hairy Lemon.
Saturday started well, with a tasty breakfast, but soon went downhill! Our hosts for the day, Scarborough, currently languishing in the depths of Yorkshire 2 and looking almost certain to be Yorkshire 3 next year, were putting their 1st XV out, and touting the game as a full fixture against a Midlands 3 side.
As any sensible rugby players knows,
a) touring parties are never a1st XV fixture
b) 2nd day on tour is the start of the end!!
Unfortunately the home side had decided that they needed a morale boost, at any cost.
With the tourists suffering from a combination of injuries, alcohol poisoning and general intoxication, it was no surprise when the team was steamrollered 73-0 . The only shock was that they couldn't manage to score over 100!
The night passed amiably with the many watering holes of Scabborough being visited and sampled, until Zebedee said "Time for Bed". Unfortunately this meant the end of the tours association with the Scarborough president, who worked in a food processing industry, and seemed keen to gather recruits for fudge packing!
Sunday saw a gradual return to home base, and a date with the Hanging Judge himself, Justice John Pickles. Many suitable punishments were handed out and then the tour was concluded.
A great weekend, with the full group contributing to some memorable events. Special thanks must be given to both "Party Boy" Bristow and "Trampoline" Saunders for being the exceptional tourists!
Grimsby 1 st XV 13-19 Lincoln 1 st XV
Grimsby welcomed their nearest rivals in the Midlands 3 East (North) league to Springfield Road for a Jewson sponsored match and an expectant crowd. The Grimsby team, having shown their fallibility of recent weeks with a series of defeats was keen to get back to winning ways and Lincoln travelled with the sole intent of turning around their Grimsby defeat from earlier in the season. The afternoon had all the hallmarks of a good match. The first few minutes were hotly contested with Grimsby having the upper hand with a series of driving mauls and open play that took their pack deep into the visitors 22. Unfortunately they were unable to capitalise as firstly Edwards as adjudged to have had the ball knocked out of his hands as he went to ground the ball and then a second attempt by the pack was held up. The changes in the back line from last week, especially with Spall at scrum half and Pharoah back from holiday at fly half added an element of attack that has been lacking. The first honours after about 30 minutes came from another series of tight mauls and forwards running as Martin was allowed to slip through the defence to ground the ball and get Grimsby off to a good start. Daly missed the conversion. Half time came and Grimsby regrouped fairly confident with proceedings. This was to become the turning point of the game as a revitalised Lincoln came back with vengeance. Firstly some strong running by the visitor back row allowed territory to be gained to the 22 before the ball went wide and Montgomery scored much to the relief of the travelling support. Hamilton converted gaining the lead 5-7. The second score of the half came from a penalty awarded to Grimsby just inside the Lincoln half. Spall stepped up brimming with confidence and slotted it to regain the lead 8-7 much to the surprise of most watching given the strong wind conditions. Lincoln's second try came from a spell of very good running rugby with both forwards and backs combining well to create a text book overlap and allowing the seasoned veteran Clarke to touch down just wide of the posts. The conversion was missed. Grimsby's determination to get back ahead was matched only by the defence of Lincoln. With Barker, Newman and Edwards dominating periods of forward play and the home side winning their lineout and scrums one would have thought that they should have had the edge. Grimsby however were starting to come unstuck in open play as the number of turnover balls increased reflecting the number of tired legs. It was from one of these that the Lincoln centre Reed robbed the ball, as Grimsby took it too far without support. He galloped his way untouched to score under the posts much to the disappointment of the home side. Hamilton converted taking the lead to 8-19. The last five minutes took on a different look for the home side as the realisation that defeat was evident kicked in. The kicking of Pharoah took the forwards deep into Lincoln's 22 and from this a set of driving rucks allowed Martin to dive over just wide of the posts to take the final score to 13-19. Grimsby lost this game themselves with poor ball retention by the forwards and some tactical naivety and vision in the back line. This Saturday sees Sleaford visit Springfield Road in the quarterfinals of the County cup. Another sponsored game should see a healthy partisan crowd gathered. Kick off 3pm.
A SEASON that seemed a roaring success has tailed off into a whimper for Grimsby RUFC. In their last home game, a Lincolnshire Cup quarter-final against Sleaford , they collapsed into a shadow of the team that beat high-flyers Ilkeston and Paviors at Springfield Road. At 15-3 up after half-an-hour it looked like the Blues had turned the corner after a string of limp performances. But they squandered the lead, squandered their last chance of silverware, and rolled over 24-15. Grimsby's first real attack ended up in a try - as was expected against the NLD/ N Leicestershire league's second-best side. Left-winger Henry Draper cut in on the crash ball and bulldozed his way through a Sleaford prop. He off-loaded from the tackle to fly-half Gavin Kempthorne and outside-centre Shane Lowery scored via the hands of captain Daz Edwards. With the direct approach causing the visitors problems it was second-row Tom Montague who punished Sleaford for the second time, diving over from five metres after a pass from prop James Martin. A penalty from Lee Spall made the score 15-3 and Grimsby were looking good. But a lost scrum against the head on the home 22 set up a Red and Black attack. The ball was shifted to the right wing where a maul rolled towards the Grimsby line. Martin appeared with the ball, but the referee signalled he had joined from the side and sparked jeers from the touch-line with a penalty try. The successful kick brought Sleaford within five points going into the break. With the game poised, the ball was clipped off a Sleaford line-out and out to the fly-half. The visitors play-maker showed pace and power to cut through weak Grimsby tackling and score under the posts. The referee - returning to Springfield Road after being in charge last week - could be excused for losing count of the infringements from the home side. Penalty after penalty turned attack into defence for the Blues and allowed Sleaford to kick their way into threatening territory. The Grimsby pack put the visitors under plenty of pressure in the scrum but poor line-outs meant good positions were squandered and the backs were starved for long periods. When they did get their hands on the ball it was rarely used beyond a few phases as the Blues struggled to keep it alive. With 10 minutes to go, a spark of genius was needed from the home side to avoid embarrassment. But still they were bereft of the passion and inspiration that has beaten better teams this year. Midfield inter-play between flanker Edwards and stocky centre Tony Bristow went awry and the Sleaford number 10 reacted quickest. He showed the football skills that had been good all afternoon to kick, chase and outpace the Grimsby backs and inflict the killer blow. Another good conversion put the visitors 24-15 up - out of sight and on course for the upset of the competition. Frustrations boiled over with five minutes to go when Grimsby number eight Scott Barker and the Sleaford open-side came to blows. Both had been sin-binned earlier so the referee had no choice but to show them the darkest shade of card. With morale in free-fall with every defeat, Grimsby desperately need an end-of-season victory away to Glossop on Saturday .
Grimsby 3 Glossop 24
May be the cards were on the table when it came to this last away fixture for Grimsby 1 st xv. With over twelve players unable to travel Grimsby found them selves travelling with 16 players. Much credit needs to be given to Gavin Kempthorne who changed his plans and joined Grimsby for the match via Leeds . The match began with Grimsby driving hard into the Glossop half, but it was not long before the first of many mister meaner happened, the slightly inflated no 3 of Glossop seemed to loose his footing and stand on the Grimsby fly half with the ball only a mere forty yards away. Grimsby drove hard into the Glossop half with Dymond and Montague both carrying the ball well. From the next ruck a Glossop player chose to lay on the ball resulting in a tap dance lesson and a penalty awarded to Grimsby , wich West calmly converted. Then just as Grimsby were starting to function and assert some pressure, the Glossop centre saw a half gap a duly slipped through for there first try. Glossop in turn scored a further two trys in the first half.
In the second half Grimsby chose to run the ball every opportunity available this tactic nearly paid of but it seems lady luck stayed home in Grimsby along with all the other players. Glossop scored the final try of the match with a well-worked line out and drive resulting in a try in the right hand corner. Grimsby will learn from a game like this and endeavor not to allow it to happen again.
May I take this opportunity to thank all players involved with the 1 st xv for there efforts during the season. I would also like to thank every one who has traveled to support the 1stxv, and for those who have not better luck next year!!