CREDITON RFC 3RD XV 36-22 SOUTH MOLTON 2ND XV

THE Devon RFU Merit Table is a place for true grassroots rugby and for the 3rd XV it is a chance to play for players who can't commit to training and a place where we can introduce some of the lads fresh out of Colts to senior rugby.

It's also somewhere the less experienced players get to join in, however there are rules to abide to in this league to keep things fair so everyone can enjoy the sport we love.

With the South Molton 1st XV game being called off, they decided to bend the rules slightly and add a strong presence to their team, however the 3rds’ coaching staff are not the type of people to turn lads away that want to play rugby so we allowed them to carry on with their strong team - challenge accepted!

Playing up the slope we came out strong and the physicality of the game was apparent in the first five minutes with Harry Hustwayte going off the pitch after a mighty collision.

After some great defence, we gained possession and the forward pack set up a maul on the hosts’ 10-metre line and drove it all the way to the try line for Joe Crocker to claim the five points.

Next was a very dominant scrum driving Molton back and Captain Ben Rodd picked up from the back and barged through the defence from the ‘22 to score under the posts, Owen Cooper slotting the conversion.

The strong Molton attack couldn't get through the middle of us and we forced them out wide where they managed to sneak through to score on the wing. It was Molton who scored next with the same winger going over in the corner.

Molton were defending hard and keeping us in our own half but Josh Noon managed to break away, offloading in the tackle to Ashley Bradnock who in turn offloaded to the evergreen Wayne Reed who sprinted in from the ‘22 and ran in under the posts to score.

However, there was a casualty in the form of Reed’s hamstring, which caused him to leave the field. He did so on a high though having scored four tries in four games! Cooper converted.

More pressure and several pick-and-goes from the forwards tested the South Molton defence which stayed strong until Lewis Cook who drove himself over the line to score.

The home side retaliated with a strong attack and managed to find a couple of tired defenders to slip through the middle to score and make it 15-24 at half time.

It was our turn with the slope but just after the break some talented fresh legs from Molton showed us how 1st XV players make a difference and their winger broke three tackles to sprint in for a try.

With tempers rising in camp, Barny Butterfield took umbrage to some foul play towards his son Elliot and handbags were thrown, resulting in a yellow card for Barny and an opportunity to rest his legs for 10 minutes.

Play went back and forth for a while with no sign of either teams letting things slip and us holding a narrow two-point lead.

Ben Rodd, Callum Anthony and Matt Moyes led the charge sucking in a few defenders and the backs had clean ball allowing Ryan Styles to go over for five points in the corner, shortly followed by Styles again creating a solo try for himself straight through three defenders to score under the posts for Cooper to convert.

The final whistle blew and we were victorious, the score 22-36.

South Molton were clearly disappointed but the boys could not hide their joy at beating a strong 2nd/1st XV and the cheers and celebration could be heard all the way back at Blagdon!

Next weekend’s fixtures – 1st XV vs Wellington (away), 2nd XV vs Honiton (home).

We are putting on a game on Boxing Day – 11am kick-off! If you fancy a game, please just turn up and we’ll sort teams out on the day. The bar will be open from 11am but we will be shutting up shop by 5pm at the latest.