Match report - Sunday 8th October - Warwickshire Cup semi final

Picture - Miles Gregory pressing hard.

Dave Daniels is taking a holiday at the moment so this report was passed onto me from Jim Haywood and Gerry Shanahan .

Last weekend proved to be an excellent weekend for Sutton Rugby Club and just the tonic they needed, for after slipping to the bottom of the M1W league table the previous weekend with their fourth consecutive defeat, the spirited Sutton side picked themselves up and produced an outstanding team performance overturning all expectations to sweep into the final of the 2017/18 Warwickshire Cup with a well deserved and convincing 45-24 victory over fellow M1W side Rugby Lions at the impressive Broadstreet Ground, Coventry on Sunday 8th Oct.

The game was played in a double headed semi-final event at the Broadstreet Ground, with Nuneaton demolishing Newbold 71-0 in the other semi final.

Sutton will now meet Nuneaton in the Final at the Coventry RFC ground on Sunday 19th Nov 2017.

Also celebrated last Sunday was the continuing success of the Sutton Women's Team under the leadership of Charlie Byrne and Sammi Allwood and coached by the Sutton legend; Nathan Burchell.

1st XV Match Report

In a performance worthy of the occasion the young Sutton side, against all the odds, stormed into the Warwickshire Cup final at Broadstreet RFC on Sunday afternoon with an emphatic 45-24 victory against a Rugby Lions side that have made a storming start to their league season on the back of their promotion last term. We now go on to meet National 3 League side Nuneaton in the final after The Nuns trounced Newbold 71-0 in the other early kick off semi-final.

True to his word, head coach Joe Gavin took the opportunity to blood a number of youngsters and 2nd XV players and it was one such debutant, 21-year-old Will Crawley, who will his first touch of the ball forced his way over the line to set the boys in green on their way with an early try which captain for the day Ben Morgan converted to give us a 7-0 lead. Unfortunately, the lead was short lived as Rugby Lions got into their stride and three quick tries saw them lead 17-7 with half time approaching. However, a spell of relentless pressure just before the break ended with replacement Dan Banko stretching out a long arm to touch down over the whitewash and with Morgan converting the half time deficit was only 14-17 with the Sutton players full of belief that a shock was on.

Unfortunately, the 2nd half started disastrously as we failed to deal with the restart and Rugby Lions were in under the posts extending their lead to 24-14. It was backs to the wall time but the introduction at half time of a certain young Colt Jacob Jones proved to be the catalyst for one of the great Sutton comebacks in recent times. From defending a scrum on the Sutton line the young debutant picked the ball up and ran the length of the field, and although held up on this occasion, Jacob wasn’t to be denied and moments later scored a memorable individual try to set us the men in green their way. Three further quick-fire tries were to follow scored by Tom Foulsham and two from the irrepressible Luke Stewart; all of Sutton Coldfield’s six tries were converted by Captain Morgan whose personal tally for the afternoon was 15 points having earlier kicked a penalty goal. The final winning score of 45-24 will surprise many but Joe Gavin was vindicated in his selection with several boys stepping up today. Special mention to debutants Will Crawley, Eddie Gale, Jacob Jones and Frost; and a huge impact from the bench by Scott Toy, Dan Banko, Thomas Allwood and Jack Wells.

The positive result gives a real boost to Sutton who are currently propping up the table in Midlands 1 West. Joe Gavin said, “This sort of fight and performance, against a side who are performing well in our league puts other teams on notice. It’s taken a while for us to start to fire but it’s even more impressive on this occasion as we’ve deployed players from across the club who have not always played together. Debutants and old heads all played their part and the training together ethos really paid dividends today, help hugely by the players positive mindset”.

This week Sutton Coldfield return to league duties with a home game against Moseley Oak at the Roger Smoldon Ground. Kick off 3pm.

Sutton Coldfield Women v Aston Old Edwardians Women
Sunday 8th Oct
Midlands Women’s League
Result 33-0 win for Sutton Coldfield

Sutton Coldfield’s Women’s team took on local rivals Aston Old Edwardians on Sunday in a tasty game which saw old rivalries reignited and a tantalising game unfold.

From the start the tempo of the game was fats and at time furious with some hefty tackles made on no quarter given by either sets of ladies.

The game ebbed and flowed until Sutton Coldfield found their rhythm and set about the Aston team, playing some great rugby and showing them to be a class above them on the day.

Aston for their part never gave up and kept the game alive, but their lack of numbers and experience showed and Sutton came out worthy winners.

The final score of 33-0 didn’t reflect the effort put in by Aston but did show the strength in the Sutton side in their first season in the leagues.

On Sunday Sutton travel to Castlecroft to take on Wolverhampton Ladies, 2pm kick off. Training nights are Monday and Wednesday at the club ground, 160m Walmley Road. Anyone wishing to come and try it out is advised to turn up from 7pm and see how much enjoyment there is in the game.

Additional Story

In a rare fixture alignment both the women and men’s 1st XV played on the same day and for some of the players it was a real double delight. Dean Ginn and Jessica Nally plus Tom Foulsham and his better half Vicky Sullivan all took part in wins on the same day, providing the club with a first Green Sweep of the season (this is where every playing team wins).