Comeback just fails

Published on 14th February 2008 in Sport

Goole 1st XV 19

Old Brodleians 29

Goole showed resilience aplenty to turn in a fine second-half performance and run the unbeaten league leaders, Old Brodleians, reasonably close at Westfield Banks on Saturday.

It was an ideal day to play rugby - blue skies and a slight breeze. Old Brods were on top early after a weak chase from the home side resulted in quick ball.

They put pressure on Goole's lineout without Dave Walton in the team, and debutant Richard Piercy was given a tough baptism.

It was from a lineout on 10 minutes, where the ball was adjudged to be not thrown straight, that the referee awarded Brods a free kick. The scrambling defence failed to stop the visitors scoring to the right of the post, and was converted.

Olly White and the visiting prop were both shown a yellow card after a melee on 20 minutes, but it was the visitors who continued to have the upper hand with a further score following a penalty and a catch and drive to the line from the captain.

At 14-0, things got worse for the home side as five minutes of incessant pressure told before the break, with the scrum half making a blind-side break at a scrum and sending the winger over.

The conversion was missed this time, but it needed a half-time rethink from the hosts, and the response was superb.

From several phases of play after Steve Morris' initial catch at kick off, a drilled kick to the corner by Mike Stokes set up the home side and eventually Ollie White went over after good work by Neil Cawood and Alan Neal.

Neal narrowly missed the conversion, but the visitors knew that they were now in a game, as for a quarter of an hour they withstood the barrage, Dave Woodhall coming to form again with some strong carrying.

The gap was reduced further when a constant barrage of forward drawing in the Brods defence paid dividends with an overlap created for Chris Neal to touch down near the left corner. Alan Neal kicked the conversion from the touch line superbly.

With 20 minutes to go, Goole could feel a momentum shift, but this was cruelly stopped by the kick off allowed to find touch and as five penalties were conceded in succession, Brods hit back with an unconverted try.

Goole regrouped once more and James Dougherty sidestepped his way though the defence to score in the same corner. Alan Neal again stepped up and bent the ball through the posts, and with five minutes to go, 19-24, the comeback of the season was on.

However, Brods were given some dubious penalty decisions - around ten in total - one of which resulted in ten minutes on the sidelines for Craig Bone and, down to 14 men once more, a controversial try clinched the match for the leaders.