Match report - 6th Dec 2014

Last weekend Sutton 1st XV travelled to top of the table South Leicester and although the visitors measured up well against a side who have only lost one game all season, Sutton's finishing let them down in the early stages, allowing the buoyant home side to take full advantage, showing the confidence and finishing their high flying status generates. After a promising start once again Sutton failed to take their chances and their mistakes were punished with three first half converted tries conceded following Sutton errors in the South Leicester half, leaving the visitors with another mountain to climb and the home side extended a 24-3 halftime lead to win 31-8 after a disrupted second half.

After surviving a long range penalty attempt immediately following the kick off, Sutton charged into the South Leicester half and applied sustained pressure, which nearly resulted in a scrambled try but the ball was knocked on over the line and possession was lost. South Leicester cleared their lines and then a penalty against Sutton in mid field allowed the home side to kick into corner for an attacking lineout, which they won and drove towards the Sutton try line but when strong Sutton defence stopped the drive the ball was transferred quickly across the back line putting left wing Lee Robinson clear to score on the overlap. Fly half Ricky Aley kicked a perfect left footed conversion from the left touchline to give the home side a 7-0 lead 10 minutes into the game and against the general run of play.

Again Sutton came back strongly to attack the South Leicester line but a handling error in front of the posts with what should have been a scoring pass handed possession to South Leicester who lost no time in returning play back to the Sutton 22 and then in the follow up play they created another overlap on the left wing for right wing Blane Howe to score in the left corner and with Aley adding another inch perfect touchline conversion Sutton trailed 14-0 after 20 minutes of play.

Sutton again tried to impose themselves with positive play but a dropped ball on the halfway line during a Sutton attack on their left wing was hacked on into the Sutton 22 by South's flanker Michael Maltman, who under pressure hacked on again and won the race to ground the ball to the right of the posts for a simple conversion by Aley, leaving Sutton trailing 21-0 with 10 minutes to go to the break.

To their credit Sutton responded well and won a penalty, which was ably converted by fly half Alex White, so Sutton had something to show for their efforts after 35 minutes but unfortunately this was cancelled out on the stroke of halftime when Sutton were penalised in midfield and Ricky Aley kicked the penalty for a 24-3 halftime lead.

The game marked a welcome return for prop Harry Pendleton, who has returned to Sutton after a spell at Broadstreet to add depth to Sutton's front row options. With Harry taking the front row loose head slot Sutton's Mr Reliable, Sean Harrison was able to move into the second row alongside Max Heppner to provide a real powerhouse at the centre of the Sutton scrum but unfortunately Sean was unable to compete the game, which was stopped for 30 minutes while the gentle giant was treated for a neck injury in the middle of the pitch. Under close supervision Sean was carried to the shelter of the clubhouse on a rigid board, whilst waiting for the air ambulance, which carried him off to Coventry hospital. The early news from the hospital suggested he had suffered three broken bones in his neck but thankfully there did not appear to be any damage to the spine or spinal cord, so hopefully Sean should make a full recovery with no lasting damage following the unfortunate incident.

All at Sutton wish Sean well for a speedy and full recovery and pass on our thoughts and best wishes to his wife, who was at the game and family.

Sean's injury came 10 minutes into the second half and with the game held up for 30 minutes, play restarted under flood lights with 30 minutes left to play in the gathering darkness, following on with the 24-3 score line.

During the final period of play Sutton continued to contest the scrums and lineouts successfully but throughout the game they lacked their normal fluency in the open play behind the scrum and close to the try line. However there were two particular bright spots of outstanding back play, first an exhilarating run by centre Jonny Raistrick through the heart of the South defence into the opposition 22 raised the Sutton supporters and although it did not bring a try it raised the team spirit and then mid-way through the half, fellow centre Tom McNamee raised the spirits still further with an outstanding 30 metre run to the line in which he beat 3 defenders on a weaving run, before rounding the fullback for a great solo effort. But such is Sutton's luck at this present time that the well struck conversion hit the upright and rebounded back into play for a score line of 24-8 and 20 minutes to play.

As spirited Sutton tried to salvage something from the game and pressed hard to close the gap, the ball still would not run for them and it was the home side who had the last word when flanker Michael Maltman broke through the middle of a ruck just outside the Sutton 22 and raced for the line before passing to flanker Will Ward who scored under the posts for Aley to add the simple conversion for the final score line of 31-8.

However, Sutton can reflect on the fact that whilst they lost the first 30 minutes of the game 21-0 they only lost the remaining 50 minutes 10-8 against the league leaders, who are full of confidence and riding high at the moment - there is hope for the future starting this weekend with the visit of Longton RFC to the RSG, Walmley Road to mark the mid point of the season. KO 2.15

With Sutton in 10th spot and Longton in 11th, one place above the relegation zone this could be a key match for both sides but it is also worth noting that approaching the mid point of the season Sutton have so far faced the top 4 teams away from home and in the second half of the season they have the return fixtures to look forward to see if they can even things up on their home ground.

Other team results:

The Sutton Development side led by coach Joe Gavin, gave the Sutton club something to celebrate with an outstanding 30-25 victory over Nuneaton 2nd XV to move into the semi-final of the Warwickshire 2nd Team Trophy in which they are the defending champions and the Sutton Vets, captained by John Baker and including many notable first team players from the successful sides of the past decade, continued the celebrations with an excellent win over Yardley and District RFC.