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Boston Rugby Club
Reports round-up
SEASON
2006-2007
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September 2006 match action details
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September 30 round-up East Leake 1st XV 8, Boston 1st XV 30 What a difference
a week makes. Boston recorded their first league win away at East Leake, with
a much-improved performance. The coaching staff, however, were realistic in
their assessment — noting key areas for continued betterment. Especially in
terms of the team’s discipline in the loose, where they are still giving away
too many penalties, and in the line out, where they are not always securing
quality possession. This aside, it was encouraging to see Boston record three
second half tries to nil with good use of the ball through the backs and by playing
the expansive game they are capable of. Boston made a
number of changes to the previous week’s team. In the forwards they welcomed
the return of Ben Hauserman at number eight plus Lee Van Haren in the back
row. In the backs, Norman Patterson came in on the wing and Paul Jarvis moved
to the centre. The first half proved
a scrappy affair with neither side able to dominate proceedings. Boston
showed glimpses of the expansive running play they favour under Rhys Gosling’s
captaincy. However, poor handling and good defensive tackling prevented any
scores. Boston’s reward was two penalties via the boot of Rhys Gosling to
take the side into a slender 6-3 lead at half -time. Within minutes of
the restart, second row Ste Loveley was forced to withdraw due to a shoulder
injury. Kenny Doig replaced him. Boston were slowly beginning to exert
sustained pressure on the home side’s defence. And after five minutes this brought
its reward with another penalty to extend their lead to a more comfortable 9-3. The match was effectively won
for Boston in a purple five-minute phase via two tries from centre Jarvis.
The first came from quick thinking in the loose from Kenny Doig. Seizing on
loose ball, he quickly moved down the backs to allow space and time for Jarvis
to demonstrate his speed to run in from the half way line. The conversion by Gosling
moved Boston into a 16-3 advantage. Minutes later, winger Adrian Hart created
the second. A crunching
tackle on his opposite number enabled Boston to quickly re-cycle the ball and
with quick handling in the backs allow centre Jarvis to run in the try from
outside the East Leake 22m line to increase the lead to 23-3 with the
conversion. At this stage of
the match Mark Buchanan replaced Adrian Hart — who picked up an injury in a
tackle — and Craig Dowse came on for back row Mark Miles. Skipper Gosling ensured
victory for the side when he started the move for the side’s third and final
try. On the half-way line he shaped up for an attempted drop kick, to then
dummy his opposite number and accelerate through the covering East Leake
defence, carving a hole, to set up a flowing move. The ball was transferred
through several Boston players hands to then allow the supporting back row Van
Haren to score in the corner. The added conversion by Gosling sealed victory
for the blue and whites and also saw a personal 100 percent kicking record for
the captain. This Saturday (October
7) Boston have a bye in their first cup competition and will use the free
weekend to have an extra training session in advance of their next league
game which will be at home against Nottinghamshire side Long Eaton, kick-off
3.00pm on October 14. Boston 1st XV: I Sampson, R Collins, N Lane, F Cannon, M Miles, S Loveley, B Hauserman, T Kemp, A Hart, R Gosling (capt), S Cook, N Patterson, P Jarvis, S Bourne. Replacements: C Dowse, K Doig, M Buchanan. Boston u16s 5, Barnsley u16s 5
On Sunday Boston faced a well-drilled
Barnsley team. Immediately after kick-off the crowd knew the game would be
close with both sides coming close to scoring in the opening few minutes. The
Boston forwards started well and quickly their play brought the team near to
the Barnsley line. A penalty was given and Boston’s back line, showed good
interplay, which ended with Sam Deptford going over the line near the
corner. Unfortunately Alfie Miles was badly injured during the play
before the score forcing Boston down to 14 men. With no substitutes, Boston
were at a disadvantage. Barnsley fought back and just before half-time scored
a try bringing the scores level at 5-5. Early in the second half, Boston’s
injury woes deepened, when Matt Sharman went down with a nasty bang to the
head after brave defending. Boston were now down to 13 men. Barnsley threw
everything they had at Boston but the defence held strong even with a two man
numerical disadvantage. This quickly turned to a mini-disaster when Boston’s
replacement centre was injured and was temporarily taken off. Down to just 12 men, Boston looked
like they were going to concede a few times but great team spirit held them
together to hold on. The support from the sidelines by the Boston mini-section
also gave the team a boost and they were finally boosted back up to 15 men
with a few late arrivals joining the team. This was a brilliant performance by the Boston u16
team. No individual could be picked out. It was a true team performance, with
everyone playing for each other. The side was well led by captain Billy
Wilson and thanks were extended to the visitors for a great morning’s
entertainment. |
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September 23 round-up Bakewell 1st XV 32, Boston 1st XV 6 Poor tackling at crucial
stages of the match, allied to indiscipline in the loose led to Boston
tasting defeat in their opening league match of the new season away to
Bakewell. It all ended as a match the squad will quickly want to forget as
their overall level of performance was disappointing. There can be no
complaints that Bakewell on the day were the better team. The home side
showed more attacking flair and their pacy back division was always a handful
throughout the afternoon. Going into the game, the omens for Boston were not
good. Several first team players were unavailable and minutes before the
kick-off the side’s preparations were thrown into disarray when second row
Dave Scott aggravated a calf muscle strain and was forced to withdraw. The
pack had to be reshuffled. Kenny Doig moved from No 8 to prop, Ste Loveley
came off the bench to slot in at No 8 and Nigel Lane went into the second
row. Despite this,
Boston made a promising start. Controlled tight driving play in the forwards
quickly brought its rewards with captain Rhys Gosling converting two
penalties to deservedly move the team into a 6-0 lead. With neither side
dominating proceedings at this stage, the match was a scrappy affair.
Bakewell, however, began to show glimpses of the threats their backs were to
go on and create and only a last ditch tackle by full-back Paul Jarvis
prevented the home winger from scoring in the corner after 15 minutes. As the first half
drew towards a close, Boston — while not completely comfortable — held a 6-3
lead and considered it a job well done.
However, a lapse in concentration in the backs allowed the Bakewell
centre to run through to score under the posts and the home side ended the
half on a high with a 10-6 lead. Bakewell started
the second half in the ascendancy and after 55 minutes they moved further
ahead when their winger outpaced the blues’ defence to score. A killer blow
occurred within minutes of the restart when the Bakewell centre created a
fine solo try via a kick-and-chase over the defence to effectively seal
victory for the home side. A try conceded in
the last minute only served to rub salt into Boston’s wounds as they
contemplated the long journey back home. This week the coaching
team will have plenty to consider and will want to correct a number of areas
of Boston’s game, before they travel to play East Leake on Saturday
(September 30) in their second league encounter. Kick-off is 3pm. All support
is welcome. Boston 1st XV: I Sampson, C
Dowse, K Doig, N Lane, F Cannon, M Miles, S Loveley, O Webster, R Gosling
(capt), S Cook, S Bourne, P Stubley, M Slater, P Jarvis. Replacement: R
Collins. Boston 2nd
XV 13, Market Deeping 2nd XV 15 Boston seconds
went down in a close game 15-13 to Market Deeping seconds to end a
disappointing weekend for the Boston club. On Saturday (September 30) they
travel to play Spalding seconds. |
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September 16 round-up Boston Rugby Club’s first XV squad undertook a full training
session in advance of their new league campaign. They had been scheduled to
play in the first round of the RFU Junior Vase. But the award of a bye left
the side — now under the supervision of new club coach and director of rugby,
Ray Hayward from New Zealand — with a blank date. But preparations still went
ahead in readiness for the Saturday September 23 trip to Bakewell when, under
the captaincy of Rhys Gosling, they will strive to pocket maximum points to
get their league term off to a solid start. Stamford 2nd XV 24, Boston 2nd XV
48 Skipper Craig Dowse led Boston 2nd XV to a
fine away day victory at Stamford. Right from the outset, Boston held the
upper hand and sought to run the ball as often as possible. Back division
players Wayne Barnett and Paul Jarvis in particular made repeated forays into
the home defensive area. And there was a good display by the forwards who,
despite facing a heavier and more experienced pack, showed good quickness of
thought in the loose. Boston — who pleasingly included some players from their
colts ranks — outscored their hosts by a tries margin of six to two in the
second half, having opened their account with two tries in the first period.
Scorers were: Paul Jarvis (3), Simon Cook, Tim Carr, Adrian Hart and Mat
Batico. On Saturday September 23, Boston seconds play host to Market Deeping
(kick-off 3pm). |
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September 9 round-up Boston 1st XV 17, Newark 2nd XV 10 As the quality of the opposition increases, week-by-week,
Boston’s performance levels are impressively rising to the new challenges.
Travelling away to Newark, with a changed squad, due to injuries and
unavailability, the players who joined the team, especially from the seconds
definitely “stood up to the mark” and slotted in well to the side, to record
a well-earned victory against Newark seconds. The back division in particular took on a new
look and was re-shaped. Winger Paul Jarvis made his debut at scrum half,
Brendan Rooney and Wayne Barnett formed a new centre partnership and Adam
Wilkinson came in on the wing. On a glorious exceptionally warm September
afternoon, few of the Newark supporters would have expected the outcome of
the match, especially as Newark raced into the lead after five minutes, when
their strong running centre evaded a number of tackles to score and place
Newark deservedly into a 7-0 lead. Encouragingly for the away supporters, this early
setback, only seemed to galvanise the Boston side who began to work their way
back into the match, through their strong scrummaging and effective line out
play. Boston’s confidence visibly grew and they soon began to take the game
to Newark, especially through their expansive back play. Centre Wayne Barnett
created a strong break through the Newark defence in their 22m line and
off-loaded to the supporting Darryn Barratt to register Boston’s first try of
the game. With the pendulum now moving in Boston’s favour,
a quickly taken tap penalty by Ben Hauserman, after 25 minutes, saw the ball
quickly moved down the backs to see winger Peter Stubley score in the corner
and move the visitors into a 10-7 lead. Boston, though, conceded a penalty
just before half-time and the sides entered the break at 10 points apiece. In the second period Boston continued their
impressive domination of the Newark scrum and their driving forward play
constantly placed the Newark forwards on the back foot. With neither side
quite able to break free, the game was evenly balanced after 25 minutes.
Scrum half Paul Jarvis, however, would stamp his mark on the match with a
sensational 60m burst from within the Boston half. From a quickly taken tap penalty Jarvis left the
Newark defence in tatters to score under the posts and with the conversion by
Darryn Barratt, take Boston into a winning lead. Despite a late surge from
the home side, Boston hung on to record an impressive, moral boosting
victory. This Saturday Boston were originally scheduled to play in the first
round of the RFU Junior Vase. However, they have received a bye and will now
train instead before their first league game away against Bakewell. Boston
seconds travel away to play Stamford seconds, kick off 3pm. Boston 1st XV: I Sampson, C Dowse, A Buckberry, N
Lane, F Cannon, M Gill, B Hauserman, S Cooke, P Jarvis, D Barratt, B Rooney,
W Barnett, P Stubley, A Hart. Replacements: R Collins, A Gill. Boston seconds’ scheduled match against Skegness last Saturday was
called off and no alternative opponents could be found. |
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September 2 round-up Following on from the previous week’s trials format, Boston Rugby
Club's first team continued their preparations by adopting a similar
approach - this time facing Southwell. With both sides keen to give their
first and second team squads a good workout, it would prove beneficial to
both teams. For Boston it enabled players to gain much needed match fitness
and also to try individuals in different positions, against opposition who
operate in a higher league than Boston. With constant changes in personnel, play as a
consequence often became disjointed. While losing “the match,”21-22 in the
dying moments of the last quarter, the coaching staff can gain heart in the
positive displays shown by a number of This week (Saturday September 9) Boston travel to play Newark seconds, while the second go to Skegness, both kick offs are at 3pm. All support is welcome. |
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