Tarleton RUFC 7pts v Littleborough RUFC 15pts SAT /20 / 02 /10
In dreadfull weather conditions whilst warming up, which surprisingly quickly changed to blue skies and sunshine on kick off, Boro as a team were not anywhere near their best but fortunately as individuals they each gave 110% graft and deserved this hard won battle.When you remember earlier in the season at home they were comfortable winners by nearly 50pts difference but today they took the field with six changes to the side that played at home.
First to go on the attack Boro , with the sun behind them,came down into the Hosts half and fullback Park ran the ball to make a great break through the opposition backs eventually passing to winger Kearns who looked to have a clear run in but the Referee adjudged that it was a forward pass.Outhalf A.Bairstow began to control the game ,making darting breaks or kicking out of hand for territory gain,Captain for the day on the field ,Forden and Prop,M.Murgatroyd,started to get up a head of steam and used their power to make meaningfull runs down the middle.Though it was not all Boro as their Host also were making good ground and Klieve,Reader and Fino had to be on hand with strong defence.Once again Park joined the Boro back line and took on the opponents winger before passing again on to his own winger, Kearns who looked to have another clear run but once again the Referee gave a penalty for a forward pass ! One of Boro,s changes,P.Jones at Prop Forward was really giving his all and stormed out of a maul holding the ball and made a great determined run through the opposition and maintained this form all of the match.Towards the end of the first quarter the Host made their first visit into Boro,s half up to the 22metres but nothing came of it and Boro took over again with G.Shepherd on strong attacking run,M.Murgatroyd with quick chase and strong tackle then Host were given offside and Park resumed normal kicking duties with a penalty conversion to open the scoring,which with all their possesion and territory Boro should have had several points on the board long ago.Now Irvine starting to emulate last weeks performance and picking up at back of scrum causing opposition all sorts of trouble and when opponents backs did get a look in S.Shepherd brought off fantastic crunching tackles.Against run of play Boro starting to lose their shape and started to give penalties away,probably through frustration and with only 9minutes left in this half their host made a rare visit to Boro,s half and their forwards this time were more determined and were successfull with a push over try which was converted and they took the lead almost on half time.On kick off Kearns,always seeking to be on the attack,made an exciting run down his wing then passed on to Irving who unfortunately lost his footing when looked like he was through.
Start of second half Host made strong run up left side and Boro were lucky to escape and it signalled the reverse of first half,now Boro being contained in their own half and seeing less of the ball and even gave away a penalty for offside which Host missed converting.Coming back,Kearns again along with Reader and Irvine each showing determined attacking play and from a lineout,which had not been too effective,Boro forwards made yardage with a good drive followed by Irvine taking ball on. Again S.Shepherd in great defensive mood when dropping on loose ball risking injury from flying kick and copybook passing in reverse when that man Kearns made great run up left wing and with just the fullback to beat he chose to off load the ball to the supporting Park to score and Referee again gave forward pass!! Better play now by Boro coming more into the match,Galvin showing his pace in the backs then A.Bairstow made a brilliant dummy pass from 20metres out and glided through the opponents backs to touch down a magnificent try by the posts for Park to add further points.Sadly from high to low and start of last quarter Boro lost Irvine,now in form,with damaged shoulder to make way for Doherty to come on and Fino taking on No8 spot. High kick into opponents 22metres by Park and quickly followed up to tackle opposition catcher,North at scrum half having steady game as usual,Forden leading from the front,G.Shepherd making two great tackles,one after each other,then good call for" Mark" by Bairstow when under severe pressure all contributed to keeping Boro,s nose in front. Then with 10mins to go the old sage I.Murgatroyd replaced G.Shepherd and Walton took over on the wing from Dearden,Klieve excelling in loose play and Kearns following up own high long kick into opponents 22metres,keeping play in Hosts half,Boro forwards again taking command and making terrific drive towards opponents try line where winger Kearns alive, to the situation,ran in at the rear to add further push then came away with ball in hand to fly over the line near the corner to round off his probably best performance of the season,no conversion.
As earlier mentioned,ragged team play but terrific individual play by all the Boro squad ,hard fought,hard won with Forden showing good leadership,Jones and Bairstow contributing massive influence on the game and standing out as " Man of the Match "was D.Kearns,congratulations to all.
Littleborough RUFC 1st XV 12pts v Hutton 1st XV 5pts SAT 13/02/10
Boro put on a great display ,in spite of the Referee,to not only win this League Match but also to progress into the next round of the Cup as this result also affected a long awaited Match cancelled several times due to the past adverse weather conditions.
Early pressure by Boro in visitors 22metres,excellent measured kick to touch by Andy Bairstow.After 10mins penalty to Visitors in Boro,s 22metres for offside,fortunately missed converting.Then great kick across the pitch by Bairstow which after one bounce was well collected by Kearns who ran the ball down his left wing then passed inside on to Reader who then found Faulkner to touch down under the posts for a glorious try,Park adding the two points.At the end of the first quarter it looked like Captain Elvidge was suffering from a knee injury but after treatment he elected to continue and along with his backrow partner,Reader,put in some superb tackles.Back in opponents 22metres Boro gained a penalty for offside ,unfortunately missed by Park,most unusual.Again strong defence by Boro was in evidence when Bairstow abrubtley brought down visitors Centre Threequarter and moments later made a try saving tackle on opponents right winger.Further defensive work came from Kearns ,after Boro had cleared their lines with a huge high distance kick ,when he was up quick to tackle the ball catcher. Winning ball, Galvin made strong attacking run before passing on to winger Kearns who crossed the line but Referee adjudged it was a forward pass,which some what irritated the home supporters who already were not too happy with "the Man in the Middle "
The second half started like the first with Boro camped in visitors 22metres and there was some brilliant ball handling skills from their Forwards,eventually winning another penalty for opponents holding on but inexplicably missed again by Park.Then Boro,s number eight ,Irvine,who was having a great game in set scrums,lineouts and loose play,suddenly went on a terrific individual run,taking on the opponents and nearly made the line.At this point Reader was sin-binned for a deliberate knock on and Boro went down to 14 players but they still continued to keep on the offensive with Irvine again taking on the opposition and Bairstow making excellent communications to his team mates from his position at outhalf.Then after some sustained pressure the ball was was well handled through several hands from left side to right side of the pitch finally reaching Murgatroyd who ran it in before letting go a fine long pass to winger Dearden to cross the line for a super try for Boro,again no conversion,this time by Bairstow.Now the subs were used,on came Jones and Fino to bring fresh legs and fitness,unbelievably an attempted drop goal under the visitors posts hit an opponent and was picked up passed on to their right winger who went the whole length of the pitch to score a try but they failed also with the conversion.Now near the end of the game,Faulkner was accused of a high dangerous tackle and he too went to the sin-bin,again Boro down to 14players but held on to clinch the match.Outstanding performances by several Boro players,particularly Bairstow but the Man of the Match went to Ben Irvine for what must be his best performance yet.
Garstang RUFC 9pts v Littleborough RUFC 12pts Sat 6/2/10
Finally got a game played although playing surface was very rough grass and heavy under foot. Several regular 1st XV players unavailable and once again Mark Forden took over the Captaincy and was a huge influence in the game,playing a real Captains role and climaxed his performance by scoring the final try to give Boro the win they deserved.
Promoted up were Ben Park,Steve Shepherd and Paul Fino and all of them gave great support to the team who first set the pace of the match with spirited dashes into host half but so did their opposition forwards who were quick on to loose balls and full of running but Boro,s defence was solid. Early moment in first half , Boro on attack,Referee ,David Hurst got in the way of a flayling elbow,which brought a lecture to the opponents from him, a smile to the faces of the spectators and finally a penalty to Boro ,which Chris Park just missed with the conversion.Now the game started to settle down,still some back and forward kicking,then rare forage by host into Boro half and Boro penalised for holding on to the ball and went three points behind to a penalty. Hitting back Boro found touch from a freekick but couldn,t collect from the lineout ,though Ben Irving was in good form,as were his fellow forwards Klieve,Murgatroyd ,Graham Shepherd and Dickinson.Close to half time, Ball out to Boro,s backs were Bairstow made a great break into host 15metres but just couldn,t finish off. Then followed a terrific Boro forwards scrum pushing opposition well back, ball out through several pairs of hands till reached Graham Shepherd who sold a magnificent dummy and flew over for a brilliant try,converted by Chris Park,putting Boro ahead at crucial half time.Start of second half brought injured winger Nathan King off to be replaced by Ross Dearden who was to join in some good back play by Galvin,Steve Shepherd and David Kearns with strong run down his wing after Chris Park had linked up from fullback.Unfortunately shortly after Boro were again penalised,this time for not rolling away after the tackle and opposition converted their second penalty,now only one point difference.Again Boro showing great resiliance in their defensive game non more than Captain Forden leading from the front,then after his tireless effort, Graham Shepherd came off to be replaced by Collins. Pressure now telling on host fifteen and they were caught going over the ball but as in first half Chris Park just couln,t make his penalty count.Now with only ten minutes to go Boro were once again putting up the barracades in their own half and suddenly the opposition outhalf let go a drop goal to take the lead,9points to 7,unbelievable.Boro now brought on Jones for Dickinson,and rallied the team for one more final big effort,Collins tried with a strong run up the left flank,then Kearns started a memorable move up his right wing,tackled,into a ruck,play brought to a halt by referee,scrum formed,ball out by Boro to Bairstow who again made brilliant short burst through opponents line to within 10metres,then passed a low ball on to Forden,took it well and dashed over to finish off a fantastic short passage of quality rugby,a pity no conversion.A real end to end gripping match and for Boro no one deserved more the Man of the Match award than Mark Forden!!
Saturday 17th October 2009
Littleborough 1st RUFC 49 v Windamere 1st RUFC 7
Played in lovely weather on a well tended pitch, nothing in it for first 10mins both teams kicking for territory and finding their feet. Then after 15mins Boro awarded a penalty which Chris Park duly converted to score 3pts, the start of his afternoon tally of 14pts! On kick off good catch by Mark Murgatroyd who took on the opposition shortly followed by Mark Forden who did the same, then the visitors earned a penalty but couldn't capitalise. It was Boro who first got their threequarters on the attack, David Kearns and Tom Galvin good centre pairing, even on defence Kearns was back to field kick into Boro's 22metre. Then the first try excellent break by Andy Bairstow with good attacking run, small kick over defenders, ball re won, long pass out to Nathan King on wing to go over, Park adding the conversion. Another break by Bairstow, tackled after parting with ball gave Boro more points courtesy of Park. Boro backs now enjoying themselves as another attack was formed by Park, King and Kearns whose kick ahead was a scrambled affair allowing him to later re gather the ball and cross the line, Park on hand again.
So into second half with visitors more on attack, surprisingly "up the small slope" but excellent tackle by Ed Klieve and powerfull push over ball on visitors in ruck by Vice Captain Mark Forden. Then a problem in the lineout on Boro's 10metre,l ineouts having been not a patch on last week by Boro, ball tapped back and visitors first in to score, converted. Injury to Forden, needing treatment gave a slight respite and Boro re grouped, after which Forden put in a strong run, out to Steve North,Bairstow off load to Kearns for another striking run to dive over line for his second try, again Park adding.Soon to be seen again Park joined back line and simply carved his way through the defence to put in an astute kick to touch in visitors 22metre, where opposition relied on referee awarding them freekicks to clear their lines. Scintalating rugby was now being performed by Boro backs, who have never had so much ball, Park high kick forward, Galvin sprinting after it nearly beating visitors to the ball, Boro forwards taking control,good work by Sam Dickinson ball back to Park, Bairstow then Kearns again to rampage through for 3rd try "and Jug" Great for Boro supporters on this special day, watching Murgatroyd on hard run ,on to Kearns then to his winger Adam Wayne who was caught short of the line. Good Boro ball won on right flank and copy book back play running and passing finishing with brilliant individual try by Galvin,well deserved. Changes brought Paul Jones on, Chris Collins sufferd elbow injury and went off, Murgatroyd again in fine form taking on opponents passing long to Wayne who only just failed to hold but quickly after Murgatroyd himself went over for a try, richly deserved.Boro not finished yet,just like last weeks late try, again ball sent through the backs hands, Kearns attacking his centre and winger, drew them both, then passed on to Wayne to eventually get his try. Once more a triumph for team work and ability to bring in different players to maintain the team shape, Man of the Match,selected by David H Geldard MBE, was Mark Forden for his personal game and his leadership of the team. Well done.
Saturday 10th October 2009
Hawcoat P10 v Littleborough 1st 24
What a build up, to start with the squad were without several regular players. What was to be an early start to Barrow was thwarted by the Coach transport suffering a mechanical problem on arrival at the Club and a replacement Coach had to be called for, therefore the delay meant that communication with Hawcoat Park advising of the circumstances kick off would be much later. The squad got changed on the Coach approaching Barrow,team talk was given and surprisingly having had a short warm up the match started only 10mins behind schedule, not anywhere near the best situation to challenge the farthest away opposition !
Miracles do happen,after a storming start by Boro forwards, Chris Park slotted over a penalty after only 2mins! to take the lead that they all put their bodies on the line determined not to give it away. Kick off collected by Mark Murgatroyd good charge stand off Andy Bairstow excellent line kick upfield followed by strong tackle by Adam Wayne on the Hawcoat fullback taking game into host 22 metre area, where Boro forwards gained the upper hand to deliver plenty of ball for their backs, Chris Park from fullback joining the line jinked his way through the opposition, scrum half Steve North again setting the pace with sniping runs with Chris Kolbuck doing excellent work in the rucks. In complete command at this point with Andy Bairstow putting in measured kicks out wide for his two wingers Wayne and Nathan King and when the Host team did mount their first attack Stephen Shepherd was on hand to snuff it out. After 15mins a Hawcoat player was sin binned for deliberate tripping, then Boro backs showed their worth with excellent rugby skills by David Kearns, Stephen Shepherd, Chris park in line again Nathan King only just failing to collect the ball to finish good move. In lineout Robert Chadwick was in great form catching opposition throw in's and Captain Mark Elvidge creating havoc at the back of line with his darting forays, then winger Wayne on tremendous attacking run but injury to Stephen Shepherd brought a lull in the game and he had to be taken to Hospital with damaged ribs.
On commencement Chris Collins showed why he had been called up to the squad with a tremendous charge forward supported by Elvidge. Opening up a good run by Park, King and Wayne followed by penalty to Boro, unfortunately not capitalised by Park. Then on 35mins Brook Reader did well to collect kick from Hawcoat and ran the ball at the opposition only to be hard tackled and taken off the field shortly followed by home spectator taking him to Hospital for check up. Very nearly at the end of first half at last Boro were able to show results for their fantastic dominance of the half when who else but the Captain Mark Elvidge was on hand at a ruck near the post to fly in for first try of the game Park adding further points, but finally more drama right on half time another penalty to Boro Park just missing with conversion.
Start of second half,Boro using up all their travelling players Ross Dearden and Paul Jones now on the field to support their team mates in what was to become a totally different half. Offensive now switched to Hawcoat team. Good high kick well taken by Chadwick with Park clearing to touch but Hawcoat back on the attack up to Boro's 10metre, strong defending by Boro at a tap penalty but eventually couln't stop Hawcoat winger scoring their first try after a good backs move not converted. Very tough physical match and once again another yellow card to opposition but once again unfortunately Park unable to add points but North on hand to take Boro into the 10metre area. A lineout then ruck and Collins going over the line for a brilliant try Bairstow converting would you believe it. Collins then blotted his copy book when he was sin binned after a tremendous personal game. Now Boro were called on to show their character and that they did never has any team worked so hard as a team to keep out the opposition but they showed great determination and guts. Just like last week Wayne good cover tackling helped by Park with Bairstow constantly kicking their opponents back in their own half, then on 40th minute good outplay by Hawcoat finished with their left wing scoring in the corner no conversion. All over ? not a bit strong running by Kearns taken on by Murgatroyd into Hawcoat's 22metres handed ball on to winger Ross Dearden who simply flashed by everyone to score the final try Bairstow adding 2pts. Absolutely brilliant. This was one incredable day from start to finish for Boro and the whole Club should salute this mighty effort given by their players who travelled and did their team themselves and the Club proud.
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