Match report - 11th March 2017

The pictures show try scorer Tom McNamee (left) whose knee injury forced him to leave the field towards the end of the 1st half and 18 year old Laurie Harries, who came on to replace him very effectively at full back.

As the patchy but pulsating and keenly fought contest drew to a close, with 2 minutes left to play Sutton held a 16-10 lead and appeared to have done enough to secure a hard fought and on the balance of play, a deserved victory.

However, fate had a different end in mind and a lost ball by Sutton on the halfway line was run back at pace by the Wolverhampton backs, breaking through in mid field and drifting right before passing to their right wing on the Sutton 22. Gareth Jones received the ball out wide before cutting in field and racing cross-field to score a dramatic try under the posts to bring Wolverhampton to within 1 point of Sutton at 15-16, with the conversion to come after 13 minutes of added injury time.

It fell to Wolves centre Ben Barnes to add the match winning conversion with the last kick of the game to secure a much needed win for the home side, who had lost their last 5 games and slipped to 10th in the league, 2 places above the relegation zone. The win lifts Wolverhampton to 9th in the league one place below Sutton, who have slipped from 7th to 8th in the league after the disappointing loss, with 4 games to play to the end of the season.

Sutton kicked off in dry and reasonably firm conditions with an air temperature of 15oC, ideally suited to playing and watching a game of rugby at a ground Sutton probably last played at some 10 years ago and it was a pleasure to return to the Castlecroft ground after a long absence but unfortunately there was little pleasure for the Sutton players and supporters on the journey home as Sutton had to settle for a losing bonus point as they succumbed to the winning score in the last minute, knowing they should have secured the win with the pressure and possession they enjoyed, midway through the second half.

Sutton followed up the kick off strongly and applied all the early pressure pinning Wolves back in their own 22 during the opening exchanges leading to a penalty against Wolverhampton, when the home side were caught off side in their 22 and Sutton's centre Alex White kicked the points to give Sutton a 3-0 lead after 6 minutes of play. Following the restart Sutton continued to apply sustained pressure in the Wolves 22 forcing successive lineouts. Sutton's lineout play worked well but they were unable to breakdown the defence of the West Midlands side and unfortunately 15 minutes into the game Sutton lost a front row player to the sin bin for 10 minutes, when the referee judged the normally competitive but gentlemanly player to have swung an arm in contact.

14 man Sutton lifted their game and created a try for fullback Tom McNamee, when a chip ahead from their 22 by Wolverhampton was expertly gathered in by Sutton fly half Ben Morgan covering on the Sutton left wing. The fly half quickly set up a counterattack taking play back into the Wolves 22 before passing in field to second row Ben Bottomley, who kept the move alive and quick hands transferred the ball to the right before reaching full back Tom McNamee, who took the ball on the burst and crashed through the defenders for an excellent score to the right of the posts. Alex White added the conversion to extend the Sutton lead to 10-0 after 20 minutes of play.

To their credit the newly promoted home side, playing for their survival in this league responded quickly to the 10 point deficit and within 2 minutes of the restart they constructed a well worked try for left wing Adam Ellis, who scored in the corner to bring the scoreline back to 5-10, with the conversion drifting wide.

With 18 minutes to go to the break, play resumed with the Sutton restart and the visitors again dominated play in the Wolves half leading to a second successful penalty for Alex White, when the home side were penalised for not releasing after the tackle 35 metres out in midfield. The penalty brought the score to 13-5 with 7 minutes to play to the interval but again Wolves responded quickly to score a second try when fullback Alex Bird crossed in the right corner after the Wolverhampton backs moved the ball quickly from left to right across the Sutton 22 and beat the Sutton defenders into the corner to bring the score to 13-10 at the break.

With the close scoreline and a win crucial to the well being of both clubs at this late stage in a season of mixed fortunes, Sutton stepped up their game at the start of the second half and for twenty minutes they again applied sustained pressure in the Wolverhampton half but try as they may Sutton were unable to make the breakthrough and with both sides making basic errors in their handling and conceding penalties the play was very scrappy and frustratingly Sutton were unable to claim the score they required to make the game safe.

Midway through the second half the pressure was reversed and it was Wolverhampton's turn to apply pressure in the Sutton half but Sutton held firm and kept Wolves out. Then 12 minutes before the scheduled end of the game Sutton ventured into the Wolves half again and won a penalty when the home side were caught off side in their 22 and Alex White extended the Sutton lead to 16-10 but 2 minutes later Sutton suffered another yellow card for killing the ball 25 metres out.

Wolverhampton attempted the resulting penalty but Sutton breathed a collective sigh of relief as the ball went high above the right hand post and was judged to have missed drifting to the right keeping the Sutton lead at 16-10 with supposedly 10 minutes to play.

However, with Wolverhampton desperate for the win and cheered on by their vocal home supporters, who had enjoyed their traditional old players lunch before kick off, 14 man Sutton valiantly defended their line to what should have been the end of the game but the final whistle never came and Sutton were restored to their full compliment with the game dragging on for a further 13 minutes of injury time.

To be fair to both sides, Sutton could just as easily used the extra time to claim a score to make the game safe but in the end it was the home side who used the time allowed to best effect as they took advantage of loose play by Sutton in midfield on the halfway line to set off on a final attack down the right wing before cutting in field to score the dramatic match winning try and conversion to cause great joy in the Wolverhampton ranks, with only disappointment and frustration for the Sutton visitors.

In a difficult game Sutton played well but they failed to finish the opposition off when they had the chance during the third quarter of the match but perhaps it comes down to experience and composure within the team and the team is learning all the time... in spite of some difficult matches to come in the final 4 games, 3 against higher placed opposition, Sutton are still in a strong position to finish the season in a respectable league position and then drive onwards and upwards next season.

Sutton have a break from league rugby this weekend but they return to action on Friday 24th March with an evening fixture against 2nd placed Bournville on the new floodlit International pitch at the Roger Smoldon Memorial Ground, Walmley Road. All supporters and spectators will receive a warm welcome on the touchline and in the bar afterwards for what should prove to be a great evening of rugby followed by the traditional warmth and hospitality of a rugby club bar. KO 7.30 pm.

Sutton other team results:

Once again it was the Sutton second string who kept the Sutton flag flying high with a worthy 38-5 victory over the Wolverhampton 2nd XV at the RSG, Sutton ground last Saturday.