Game at Plymouth best all round of season to date

Saturday, October 24

OPM 10

Crediton 53

WITHOUT doubt this was the best all-round performance by the First Fifteen this season. It was a day when almost everything just fell into place. The handling almost without exception was excellent and with so much possession, the odd loss in concentration could be forgiven.

The home side had the early pressure and with a strong wind behind them, kept us penned in for a few minutes and when we did manage to work the ball upfield, a soft penalty would see us back in our own '22'.

That only lasted until the 15th minute when we really took control of proceedings and never looked back.

The first try came from an excellent driving maul – thank goodness that law variation last year has been rescinded and once again it is illegal for the driving maul to be brought down. Lock Eddie Yeandle was on the end to get the final touch.

Fly-half Rob Milton landed an excellent conversion from wide out against the wind.

Four minutes later we set up a ruck 15 metres out and the ball came out to impressive centre Alex Goldman whose perfectly timed pass inside gave flanker Gav Best an opening to score at the posts, Milton landing the extras.

The hosts hit back and on 26 minutes were awarded a penalty and duly reduced the arrears. Their joy was short lived as within minutes Milton had a penalty chance, which fell just short but was knocked on by the home side.

The resulting five metre scrum saw No 8 Jay Harris grab the touch down as the home pack were driven over their line, Milton again turning it into a seven pointer.

As half-time approached, the feat was repeated but this time the front row nicked the OPM put in 10 metres out and once again the drive over the line gave Harris his second try.

A 26-3 interval lead meant the game was virtually over as a contest and five minutes into the second period, we turned over OPM possession in midfield and Goldman ran from half-way to score.

With the ball being kept in hand it was right wing Jordan Pring whose powerful running proved too much for the home defence and he too raced away for a try.

Pring was involved again when the referee allowed good advantage after a knock on and the winger gathered before setting centre Matt Walton off on a long run from half way to score at the posts, Milton con

As is nearly always the case, a team cannot dominate for the entire game and the opponents will inevitably have periods of pressure.

This was OPM's time and they were kept at bay by some uncompromising defence.

Ultimately, though, three successive penalties, the first for offside, the second for a high tackle and the third when someone came into the ruck from the side tested the referee's patience for too long and he awarded a penalty try.

That really was as good as it got and more flowing rugby saw Milton dive over out wide and the game was finished off with a novel set piece move, which worked with the precision of a Swiss clockmaker to give Pring his second try and the final score of the game.

A word, too, for the match official Paul Shewring, who played his part in an entertaining game. His use of the advantage law and communication skills with the players was excellent.

More refereeing of this nature would negate much of the frustration which creeps into games as players try to come to terms with some of the decision making.

'Quins

Sidmouth Seconds 8

Crediton Seconds 29

Much like the First Fifteen, the 'Quins dominated up front as they gained their second Merit Table win of the season.

The home front row had difficulty in dealing with the Crediton trio and ended up with all sorts of problems.

The match official even asked us to hold back in order to maintain some equilibrium in the scrums.

Tries came from skipper Kevin Ellis, flanker John Adams and fullback Bradley Baker, plus one from scrum-half Tom Ronchetti who added three conversions and a penalty.

Hornets

Sidmouth Thirds 5

Crediton Hornets 20

The Hornets kept their momentum with their fifth Merit Table victory in six games. A mixture of youth and experience has certainly gelled the side.

So many young players are gaining valuable experience alongside the likes of the Saunders brothers Steve and Simon, plus Mark Allder and of course the evergreen Peter May.

Tries came from lock forward Lee McKie, Steve Saunders, Allder and Scott Mills.

Colts

Crediton Colts 13

Sidmouth Colts 15

Having led 10-3 at one stage, the Colts will be disappointed to have conceded defeat to Sidmouth. The rather high penalty count against them proved costly.

Cince Vinhyu and Rob Leach scored the tries with Leigh Kinch landing a penalty.

Saturday, October 17

Liskeard 6

Crediton 18

This was certainly an important if not a free flowing victory. Not many sides will travel to Liskeard and come away with the points.

They were a tough nut to crack with a lumpy pack and one or two decent backs and a touchline to touchline slope with which they are familiar.

Having conceded five penalties in the opening six minutes or so it certainly looked as though this was not going to be our day.

The fifth one put the home side three  points to the good but within minutes, Matt Walton intercepted a pass and raced fully 60 metres to touch down under the posts, fly-half Rob Milton added the extras.

Liskeard then reduced the arrears with another penalty and Milton replied with two for us to give a half-time lead 13-6.

The second period was a fairly dour affair with both sides battling it out in the middle of the park.

However, with time running out, Milton sneaked in for a try for a deserved win.

'Quins

Crediton 'Quins 7

Paignton Seconds 13

The 'Quins almost snatched victory against a well drilled Paignton second string in the Devon One Merit Table fixture.

A try from centre Ross Gillon, his first for the Club, plus a Dan Howard conversion was all we had to show for a good performance.

Hornets

Wessex Seconds 14

Crediton Thirds 15

The Hornets gained a deserved win at Wessex when their main advantage had been taken away after the game went to non-contested scrums at Wessex request despite no apparent injury to any front row forward.

It was an impressive performance from the Hornets as the bulk of the Wessex side are University students. Tries came from John Adams, Andy Bluff and Blue Hatchipuka.

Forthcoming Fixtures

October 31: Plymstock v Crediton (C & D); Barnstaple Seconds v Crediton 'Quins (DMT); Crediton Hornets v Barnstaple Thirds (DMT); Barnstaple Colts v Crediton Colts (MT).

November 7: Crediton v Saltash (C & D); Cullompton Seconds v Crediton 'Quins (DMT); Crediton Hornets v Cullompton Thirds (DMT); Exeter Colts v Crediton Colts (MT).

PH

JOHN STAPLETON

The Club has lost another former player, committee man and friend with the passing of John Stapleton.

He was a battler all through his rugby career and this quality again showed through as he fought his illness over the past couple of years.

John began his association with Crediton Rugby Club as a player in 1966 at the age of 17 and made his debut for the First Fifteen in 1969.

He was a highly regarded centre renowned for his direct approach and his style of play made him a difficult player to play against.

From 1971-75 John was a First Fifteen regular before hanging up his boots in 1978.

During that time John played 295 games for the club, almost half of them in the first team and his 85 tries is an impressive record which earned him the nickname of "poacher"!

Of course John's association with the club did not end there as he combined playing with the role of joint Team Secretary with Paul Gush from 1969 to 1971.

In 1973 his business skills were put to good use at the club when John became treasurer, a post he held for 12 years. That was a period of great change in rugby in general and Crediton Rugby Club in particular.

It was a transition period where, like many clubs, it became necessary to operate more as a business than a social organisation.

We were indeed fortunate to have been blessed with John as one of the guiding lights that ensured the club had a sound financial footing and helping create the foundation on which the club exists today.

In addition, the club enjoyed its Centenary season during John's period as treasurer and he played no small part in ensuring the success of such a milestone season of the clubs history.

Inevitably, business pressures took over and although in 1985 John stood down as treasurer, he was still a regular supporter of the club and sponsored games on a regular basis.

John was, indeed, a character who always had the well-being of Crediton RFC in his thoughts and deeds.

He was highly respected by all his rugby colleagues and his distinctive laughter will be sorely missed.

He may be gone but I am sure he will never be forgotten at Crediton RFC and our condolences go to Lyn, Leonie and family in their sad loss.

PH

Crediton Youth Rugby

Under 10's

Crediton 5

Exeter Saracens 15

THE opening game of the Under 10's season saw a selection of new faces making their rugby debuts.

The sun shone on some cracking rugby with strong running and hard tackling by all those involved.

Despite the obvious cohesion of a well established (and big) Sarries team the Crediton players stuck to their task.

The first half saw Saracens cross the line on three occasions, but the second half saw dogged, hard mauling defence turn into attack with Danny Martin running in a try for Crediton.

Despite coming second, there were a number of learning points, which will help the team grow from strength to strength. Most important of all, everybody enjoyed themselves.

GT

Under 13's

Crediton 54

Tavistock 0

THE under 13's hosted Tavistock a fortnight after a resounding win on the opposition's ground in a Devon Cup Tie and once again came out on top.

This was the first time these players had played on the first team pitch and they made full use of the extra space this provided to run in eight unanswered tries for another convincing victory.

The Tavistock team played very well in the early stages, obviously aware of the threat of the Crediton backs, they held their own and were much equal to the home team.

On 11 minutes it was fly half Ollie Avery – Wright who broke the deadlock picking up the ball on the opposition 22-metre line and beating the home cover for the opening score. Will Goodman then added a further try, picking up from number eight at a five-metre scrum and going over.

The final score of the half was through wing Kieran Vinnicombe as he marked his debut with a fine run from the 22 metre line to go over under the posts and make the half time score 21-0.

With a good lead the Crediton team really opened up and the forwards and backs ran the ball at every opportunity in the second half.

After five minutes centre Harry Strong was on the end of a good back move for his first of the season and then after a quick tap penalty on the Crediton 22 metre line wing Jack Zilch got the ball in space on the halfway line and scored a fine try.

Ben Richards then scored his first try for the club followed by more fine running play and Ollie Down and Jack Zilch adding further tries to seal a fine win. Ollie Avery – Wright capped a fine game with seven out of eight conversions.

MG

Under 15's

Plymouth Argaum 7

Crediton 53

THIS match was scheduled for Tavistock but they were unable to raise a team for this game, possibly because of the start of half term?

Instead, Crediton travelled to Plymouth to take on a team whose abilities were unknown – this was the first time they had played them at any age group!

The game started fast and furious and almost immediately Crediton scored their first try through Zac Fox.

The visitors continued to dominate and after some skilful passing moves, Ed Marshall scored a converted try.

Crediton continued to play some nice open flowing rugby although at times they did coast a little and support on a number of occasions was missing.

However, they did score another two tries before half time – Mike Sanders scoring both of them. The score at half time was 0-24.

The second half continued with the visitor's domination and Crediton scored another five tries with two of these being converted.

At the home team's request the match was cut short by 10 minutes with Plymouth adding a consolation converted try just before the final whistle.

All in all a reasonably polished performance against a weak Plymouth team. There were two tries a piece for Zak Fox, Ben Cullen, Ed Marshall, Mike Sanders with one try for Dale Bastin. Luke Styles converted two of the tries with Doug John making the third.

Mike Sanders was voted Man of the Match for his great performance on the wing.

DD