The Colts won at N Walsham in the EC Cup 0-41. That’s it. That’s all I have.
Colts win 0-41 at North Walsham in EC Cup
Nigel Owens 50th Anniversary dinner success
Nigel Owens, MBE, Welsh international referee and world record holder for the most test matches refereed was guest speaker at Woodbridge Rugby Club’s 50th Anniversary Dinner on 29 Jan. Nigel regaled 160 diners with stories from his many 6 Nations and World Cup experiences in a talk that gave an insight into his early progress towards a life behind the whistle as well as being hilariously entertaining.
This year Woodbridge Rugby Club is celebrating 50 years of providing community rugby and three of the players in its first ever match against Woodbridge School staff in 1969 were present. Honorary Life President Mike Lubbock, who founded the Club was joined by Timmy Johnson and Edward Fletcher who scored the Club’s first try in that match. Many former players were present from the 50 years alongside current Woodbridge Warriors 1XV players and coaching staff, past and present Woodbridge Amazons ladies rugby players, youth coaches and parents as well as volunteers.
Rob Simpson, current Chairman commented “there is so much to celebrate this year from the continuity of having so many veteran players still associated to the Club through the strong numbers of men, women, boy and girl players we currently have to recent expansions into wheelchair rugby and of our pitches, the Clubhouse and changing facilities. Having Nigel Owens – a living legend to all of us here – come and kick off celebrations for our half century year was a fitting start and unanimously popular. He’s known for his occasional dry humour on the pitch and he didn’t disappoint!”
Woodbridge Rugby Club will continue to celebrate its half century year with a summer ball and other entertainments planned.
Crusaders 31 v Warriors 13 26/1/19
Crusaders leap-frogged Woodbridge and advanced to eighth position in the Eastern Counties League with a strong performance at home. Despite playing with 14 players for a quarter of the match and too many penalties Crus dominated the scrum and used possession to better effect than Woodbridge. Veteran No 8 Pete Blinkhorn scored Crusaders’ first try followed quickly by another from a spritely Jamie Dack at scrum half. The Warriors Angus Clogg, standing in at fly half for an injured JP Hart, kept them in the match with two penalties but before the break Cru’s prop Lewis Smith got another forward’s try.
The second half saw prop Henry Joy over in 5 minutes for the bonus point before a period of improved performance from Woodbridge, defending hard and threatening through No8 Aldis Salavejs and his pack. It was insufficient to prevent another forward, replacement prop Henry Mower scoring though and it was left to centre Tom Stokes to finish the match with a consolation Woodbridge try.
Chelmsford Bluebirds 3 v Woodbridge Amazons 19
Match Report by Ian Girling
Chelmsford Bluebirds 3 v Woodbridge Amazons 19
Sun 13 January 2019
The Amazons travelled to another Essex side on Sunday as Chelmsford hosted the Suffolk side on a cold and windy afternoon. Playing up the slope and into a stiff breeze the visitors knew they were in for a long afternoon as Chelmsford applied early pressure.
An offside penalty gave the hosts a scoring opportunity, which fly half Karly Harrington kicked successfully.
Woodbridge began to play, but it was clear Chelmsford had worked on their defensive patterns. The Amazons have learned to be patient this season though, and continued to attack from different angles. Forwards bashed the ball up, the backs ran wide, and gradually, gains were made.
Chelmsford on the other hand, employed a singular approach and repeatedly drove into the heart of Woodbridge’s stout defence. It wasn’t pretty, or particularly effective, but the referee ensured everyone had a regular breather by blowing his whistle loudly, and very often.
All the play, despite the wind, was in the hosts half and Woodbridge came closest to breaking the scrappy stalemate when flyhalf Claire Brickley dummied her centres and popped the ball wide to winger Christina Murgatroyd. She crossed the whitewash but was held up and the ball was knocked on from the resultant scrum.
Just the one penalty separated the two sides at the break then, but with the wind and slope advantage and a more adventurous approach to the game clearly evident, it was Woodbridge that turned around as favourites.
Sure enough, an early score saw the lead change hands when prop Toni Bell burst forward, ably supported by Brickley, who sidestepped the last defender to touch down from 10 metres out. Murgatroyd converted for a 3-7 scoreline.
More Amazons pressure and centre Beth Clapson gained good yards before releasing winger Kylie Smith. The try looked on as Smith, a product of the Woodbridge Valkyries youth side, sprinted down the sideline. A cracking tackle from fullback Emily Akon prevented the try however, and Alex Saunders was the second person to cross the line but was held up, no try.
The referee lost all control at the breakdown but a steal by the Amazons resulted in Brickleys second try when quick hands resulted in the captain touching down in the corner.
There was time for one more score and it was fitting that it went the way of Bell, her short burst epitomising the hard work done by the pack all day. Murgatoyd converted to end the scoring at 3-19, a scoreline that rather flattered the hosts after a second half in which the Amazons had dominated possession.
A scrappy affair, not helped by a lacklustre officiating performance, but a real team effort by this improving Woodbridge side, who moved above Southwold into fourth place in the league.
Woodbridge Warriors 9 v W Norfolk 36
At half-time Woodbridge must have been pretty satisfied. W Norfolk, ahead of them in the league, had snaffled only one score when fly-half Samuel Moses intercepted a Warrior attack to sprint 80 metres after only five minutes. Since then they had defended well and exploited repeated Norfolk penalties which allowed centre Angus Clogg to kick nine points with the wind and break 9-7 ahead.
The second period however was markedly different. W Norfolk came out fighting, their noisy play-makers directed a concerted effort and within five minutes Moses was over the line again. As Woodbridge discipline became frayed Norfolk’s No8 Jamie Williamson had some great runs and Hayden Revell kicked a penalty. Busy prop Luke Covell then scored from a determined Connor Clarke drive. The Warriors had opportunities but didn’t look the confident unit that W Norfolk did. Matt Addison scored next for the bonus point and it was Hayden Revell that scored the fifth for Norfolk on the whistle.
Woodbridge Amazons 27 v Stanford Le Hope Sirens 24
Report by Ian Girling, Pictures by Woody rainywoodphotography.com
On the 11th of November last year, the Amazons travelled south to Essex side Stanford Le Hope where Cristina Murgatroyds last gasp try tied the match at 22 apiece, before she converted her own score for the narrowest of winning margins.
Needless to say, the reverse rubber at Hatchley Barn on Sunday promised another mouthwatering encounter, and the large crowd witnessed exactly that! A ding dong battle between two very evenly matched outfits resulted in another close fought victory for Woodbridge, this one ending 27-24.
Right from the opening kick-off the scoring resembled a basketball game as try was matched with try, neither side leading by more than a single score at any point. Sophie Davis burst through a gap in the Amazons defence to open the scoring, but that sparked the hosts into life. A strong run from Anna Dewberry set up Captain Claire Brickley for her first of the afternoon and a 5-5 scoreline.
The Suffolk versus Essex battle was pretty fierce, and Google Granger was the first to be nursed off. As the clash continued, the visitors scrum half Kat Richardson was the next to exit, as both sides reshuffled accordingly. Strong play as ever from Carmel Roisin led to a scrum on halfway, and a flowing move resulted in Brickleys second try, which Murgatroyd converted, 12-5.
Stanford hit back when number eight Lily Stribbling barged her way over from close range, then the visitors got their noses in front for the first time when hooker Nicola Meechan capitalised on a penalty for a high tackle. She converted her own try, and the half ended with the Essex side 12-17 in front.
The second half began well for the hosts as they turned around with the ascendancy. Roisin scored after another of her trademark bursts, levelling the scores once more, before an arcing run from Julie Tyler led to a poachers try from the effervescent scrum half Morven McAlpine, and another Amazons lead.
Stanford hit back again, and deservedly regained the lead when Richardson summed up the energy to re-enter the fray, and touch down in the corner. That tied the game at 22 apiece, before Meechan converted – amazingly as regular kicker Laura Smith had left the game injured earlier!
As time ran out, things began to look bleak for the hosts as infringements went the way of the leaders. Defending as though their lives depended on it, wave after wave of attacks were repelled by the Amazons, and when the ball was worked clear, it was Roisin that burst upfield again. Hauled down inside the Stanford 22, quick ball was worked out wide where Brickley sewed things up with her hat trick score – and the sweetest of victories, 27-24.
This game really could have gone either way, and the difference was aided by the performance of several new Amazon players, particularly by Ava Prentice and Ellie Norman, both showing huge improvement since signing on.
Next week the ladies travel to Chelmsford for another cross border scrap, if it’s half as entertaining as this match it’ll be well worth the effort to go and support them!
Woodbridge Colts 39 v Southwold Colts 5
Southwold RFC Colts arrived several players short to play Woodbridge Colts but eventually 15 faced 15 for an exciting match that didn’t reflect the scoreline. Woodbridge Colts’ Marcus McMyn scored four trys joined by James Owens, Reef Edwards and Charlie Mayhew who got one a piece. Rene Ball scored early in the second half for Southwold. Some first class performances on both sides kept Colts Rugby the fast-paced spectacle it is – as exhausting to watch as it must be to play!
Woodbridge Warriors 18 v Ipswich YM 10
Gusty wind played a large part in this chilly local derby with Ipswich YM, causing kicks to go out on the full, lineouts to be lost and conversion attempts to stall in the air. Woodbridge started with the wind behind them and fly-half JP Hart and scrum half Angus Clogg used their boots to pressurise full back Barny Horsfield. This gave them a penalty for Clogg to take three points and then, after more penalties in YM’s 22, a forwards charge was fed wide and determined Tom Stokes shrugged off several tackles to score.
YM forwards successfully exploited a couple of Warrior penalties to maul and No 8 Kaselle Lee drove over to score. Five minutes later and the Warriors forwards charged from repeated YM infringements and it was flying wing Reece Monk who slammed down a diving try to get them into half time 15-5 ahead.
Woodbridge pressed hard but solid YM defence and wind-assisted kicks downfield kept them at bay, Clogg having to settle for another three points. YM weren’t done and it was the forwards again that countered strongly, Lee having a powerful carry which flanker Elliot Chilvers finished emphatically. Woodbridge continued to have the balance of play but Ipswich contained them with a durable and intelligent defence.
Saxons 15 v Stowmarket IIs 46
Saxons 15 v Stowmarket IIs 46
Woodbridge Warriors 17 v Fakenham RFC 27
Woodbridge Warriors 17 v Fakenham RFC 27
Entertaining and frustrating in equal measure, both sides had moments of domination but squandered them with penalties, great defence or poor handling. Fakenham took an early lead with a penalty from Lloyd Marshall and then a try from Ashley Stewart after a Joseph Bane-Young charge which demonstrated why they beat Holt last week. Woodbridge fought back through flanker Aldis Salavejs back from injury and another from Ed Banthorp who stormed over like a battering ram. Just before the break boisterous flanker, Lyam Thorpe put Fakenham back ahead 10-15.
With the tension building and Woodbridge looking promising for an equaliser their defence became stretched and two runaway tries from wingers Tom Bane-Young and then Tom Howick got the bonus point and widened the odds against a Warriors comeback. Warrior centre Tom Stokes battled over and gave home supporters something to shout about but with insufficient time to challenge Fakenham’s hard-fought win.
