Doncaster Rugby Club

EDF Junior Vase – Round 3

Doncaster Phoenix 30 Medicals 10

Doncaster Phoenix entertained Medicals, current table toppers in Phoenix’s equivalent league in Durham and Northumberland.

Changes were a plenty with Germain and Burton on holidays, Oliver and Jazz out through injury and a couple of other unavailability’s and strategic resting i.e. Roger Morris one game in three is about the right pace. It meant a start for Fielding with Mick Roodt going into the back row accompanied by Farley for his first start of the season. In the backs Tom Elliot came on to the wing with Stewart and Tyrer on the bench.

With a quiet start and playing into the conditions the game was evenly contested in the first ten minutes with no score or penalties conceded. The first points of the day came courtesy of the Millar boot with a penalty twenty out to the left.

Phoenix then thought they went over for the first score with the ball being spun right to Tom Elliot who pounced over in the corner only to be adjudged with his foot in touch by honest Chris Conway.

After that with the conditions in their favour it was Medicals who applied the pressure gaining superiority in the tight they camped in Phoenix territory and were duly rewarded with a try from their centre from a line out combined with a mis-tackle to score under the posts. They further consolidated their position on the whistle with a drop goal from the fly half for a 10-3 score line.

With the advantage of a strong wind Phoenix turned round and although still struggling in the tight gained the upper hand in the loose and achieved territorial advantage for the majority of the half.

The first score belonged to man of the match Taylor after picking up from a ruck two yards out and scoring his first touch since he was ten years old. The other scores in this half were in a similar vein and the most unlikely of scorers: Longworth doubled his tally for the season support close range and arm aloft, Guns came in on another close range to score and Mike Liddle also put his name on the score sheet again a close range forward effort.

The only backs try came courtesy of Millar and to the tally of five tries he could only add one conversion.

On the day this on paper looked an easy win but the visitors were tenacious and took some grinding down and caused Phoenix some concern in the scrum with two being taken against the head – another 30 scrums for Coach Farley one thinks!