Taunton 6 - OAs 37 (Match Report)

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A spirited Taunton side succumbed to a 6-37 defeat at the hands of well-organised promotion contenders Old Albanians at Hyde Park on Saturday.

There was a welcome return to Taunton colours for second row Marsh Cormack, having returned from Afghanistan on military duty, and captain Sean Fox on the bench following recovery from his shoulder injury.

The disciplined visitors enjoyed much of the possession and territory, forcing Taunton to defend valiantly for long periods, which to their credit, they did with gusto. OAs pressed repeatedly, only to be thwarted by a rebellious Taunton putting their bodies on the line and working tirelessly at the breakdown to win a number of turnovers, much to the delight of the home crowd. OAs also spoiled some promising periods through unforced handling errors, much to the relief of the home side, but a true testament to the defensive effort was the nil-nil score after twenty minutes.

In their efforts to shut down another promising OAs attack the Taunton forwards were penalised at the breakdown, gifting the first scoring chance of the afternoon. Full back Richard Gregg stepped up and slotted the kick to give his side a 0-3 lead after twenty-five minutes.

Five minutes later OAs threatened again, with the home side pressed into stoic defensive action once more. Just as before, the Taunton side put their bodies on the line with Jack Claydon and Alex Hemsley both prominent in halting the visitors progress. A penalty from a scrum gave Gregg another opportunity to add points and he made no mistake to double the visitors lead to 0-6 after twenty-nine minutes.

The first try of the afternoon came when overeager Taunton defence was caught out following a mis-timed blitz. OAs patience paid dividends when the ball was slipped wide to outstrip the advancing flank and cross the whitewash for the first time, with winger Jamie Spiers going over to score. Gregg added the extras to increase the lead to 0-13 after thirty-two minutes.

Another was added minutes later when the hard working defence once again creaked having done so well to contain their guests for the majority of the first half. The ball was neatly worked through the hands before centre Sam Collins cut a nice line and offered a strong fend to go over on the right. Gregg was unable to convert, with his landing leg slipping as he made contact with the ball, but his side had a 0-18 lead after thirty-seven minutes.

Having had very little in the way of possession there was limited attacking opportunities for Taunton. However, with the last play of the half they proved they could be a dangerous threat going forward with the ball in hand, and this time the visitors were forced to defend and concede a penalty in doing so. Tony Yapp stepped up to pull three points back, but the home side would trail 3-18 going in at half time.

The second half started as the first ended, with Taunton in the ascendancy. Having penetrated the OAs half they looked to set up the platform to score, but once again the visitors infringed at the breakdown. Yapp added another penalty to cut the deficit to 6-18 after forty-four minutes.

This was to be Taunton’s best period of the game, with scrum half Jack Conway at his belligerent best. The Army/Navy second row combination of Bates and Cormack was prominent and, along with the rest of the pack, worked hard all afternoon and started to get some forward momentum going. Dean Taylor-Menzies and Jon Gatford both tackled anything that moved and secured loose ball on the deck. Christian Gervais and Tom Popham were both strong in defence and made good ground with the ball in hand.

The home side were proving a challenge but the OAs defence were equal to the threat. The Taunton momentum was halted when OAs then secured their third try of the afternoon. Inside centre Christian Lombaard saw the defence split in front of him, and he made no mistake in exploiting the gap to go over untouched. Gregg added the simplest of conversions to give his side a 6-25 lead after sixty-eight minutes.

A bonus point score was added when the impressive former Pertemps Bees and Swedish international back row Andrew Daish crossed for OAs fourth try of the afternoon. Gregg added another two points to increase the lead to 6-32 after seventy minutes.

The final ten minutes was more of the same, with Taunton defending with everything they could muster to keep OAs from scoring. In a cruel twist, their attempts would prove futile as the visitors added a final score at the stroke of full time. This time Gregg was the scorer, adding a try to his twelve-point haul for the day. His conversion fell short with the last kick of the match, giving his side a 6-37 victory.

The score line was perhaps a little harsh given the performance, but OAs deserved the victory through their patient control of possession and territory for the majority of the match. Taunton fronted up in defence, and put in their most dominant display in the scrum, getting the better of their opposition and forcing turnovers in the set piece and breakdowns. It was a marked improvement against a side that are pushing Richmond for promotion. There are still things to work on but many positives to take into the rearranged fixture away to Southend next weekend.

The County Stores sponsored man of the match for Taunton was awarded to Jon Gatford.