Reeds Sink Game Reigatians
OLD REIGATIANS 10 REEDS WEYBRIDGE 27
For many seasons Reigatians have been one of Reeds most demanding fixtures, however, last Saturday, Reigatians were missing several players in key positions in a somewhat subdued performance by their standards that allowed Reeds to dominate both territory and possession which gave them three tries and a series of penalties. Reeds really should have collected more points, but some bone crunching tackles from the Reigatian defence and perhaps some over complication in the attacks stopped Reeds grabbing that vital try bonus point. Jesse Lipetz from the London Society was in charge of affairs and his splendid control of all aspects of play, contributed to an enjoyable afternoon for players and the huge crowd.
It was Reeds who soon set up camp in Reigatian territory and that gave young Jack Jesty the No 10, three points from a long-range penalty. Reigatians were under the cosh from the Reeds midfield combination of Billy Maddock and Kitan Ojo, it was Ojo who was awarded the Man of the Match, he is aggressively quick, and combines remarkable pace with devastating carries in the midfield that consistently punched big holes in the Reigatian defence and took him over the line for the first try of the day, Reeds ten points in front in the first twenty minutes. That was followed up by a moment of brilliance from back row forward Joe Wastie, a chip ahead from No 10 Jesty, landed just in front of the Reigatian try line, the young defending Reigation winger saw that the Reeds cover was stretched and he set off to run the length of the field, step forward Joe Wastie who showed remarkable pace and tackling ability to bring the attacker down, it was a try saving moment. Reeds were on the march taking control of both the line out and scrum where Reigatian woes were compounded by the loss of their starting prop Toby Collister. Solid possession from skipper Herbie Finn and Cameron Goodwin in the lineout, in the loose, the fierce running of the two Day brothers, Rhys and Lennan, together with hooker George Corner and replacement Chuggs Wallis, had Reigatians in all sorts of trouble. Reeds were in full flow putting together a series of penetrating moves, combining forwards and backs, attacking from all parts of the pitch. Reigatians were forced into defensive mode and dug deep. Inevitably they conceded offside penalties and Jesty banged over another siege gun shot from way out, and just before the break a series of raids on the Reigatian line sucked in the defence and that gave metres of space for Lewis Jones, the back row forward playing as a winger, the space to run in unopposed out wide, for a seven pointer and a twenty-point lead.
Although Reigatians were under pressure in all departments they played admirably and managed to shut down most of Reeds attacks until the start of the third quarter. Try number three came from a Reeds chip ahead that was gathered by a Reigatian defender but who’s clearing kick was partially charged down only to fortuitously drop into the arms of the ubiquitous Joe Wastie who from 5 metres out touched down under the sticks. 27- 0 Reeds.
Reeds went hunting for that fourth bonus point try, perhaps they over complicated matters, squandering possession through a series of errors and in particular ill-judged attempts to offload rather than just go through their processes and re-cycle the ball. That lost possession allowed Reigatians to collect their first try of the day when they drove play up-field, hard running centre Gareth Stephens found some space and touched down for a five pointer out wide that was not converted. Late on with the last play of the game Reeds had a goal line drop out and, in an attempt, to secure the ball dropped out a short distance but lost the ball to Reilly Franklin-Talbot, the powerful long serving Reigatian skipper, who broke away to score from 15 metres out for an unconverted try. A somewhat disappointing end to a second half which had promised much for Reeds but which nonetheless saw them take the win to regain momentum going into the break.
Man of the Match Kitan Ojo with debutant Dom Wood
Team: Lennan Day / George Corner / Rhys Day / Cameron Goodwin / Herbie Finn (Capt) / Michael Wasko / Joe Wastie / Alex Corner (Vice Capt / Chuggs Wallis / Dom Wood / Ollie Palmer / Jack Jesty / Will Relfe / Kitan Ojo / Billy Maddock / Lewis Jones / Jack Grady / Brad Robbins
Four wins out of five keeps Reeds Weybridge in touch with the early leaders having played 3 of the top 4 sides in the league and the hope is that in our next batch of games we may be able to draw upon a greater number of missing players. Their next league game is at home on October 14th against Battersea Ironsides.
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