Match report - 28th Oct 2017

Picture - Sutton try scorers; left Jack Wells (19) try 1 and right Zac Tyler (21) try 2.

David Daniels
SCRFC 1st XV Team Manager

Once again Sutton's growing list of injuries, which has grown week by week after recent games, dictated selection for this weekends key league fixture against visitors Stoke on Trent and although Sutton train as a squad and are familiar with the match plays, each new line-up has to settle in as a team on match day...and that is not an easy task at this level of rugby when in the pack you have to introduce two new props along with changes in the second row and back row respectively, together with changes in the backs, including a new centre pairing and a change at fullback following the injuries sustained in the game the previous week.

Unfortunately for the new look Sutton side the strong Stoke outfit did not let Sutton settle as the visitors rattled up three tries in the first 9 minutes to lead 19-0, which grew to 31-0 including a penalty try after 30 minutes before young Sutton found their feet and countered with two well deserved converted tries either side of halftime but that was as good as it got for battling Sutton as the visitors ran in four more tries in a difficult second half for the home side but to their credit the lads in green showed true grit and played with plenty of spirit and heart through to the very end of a fiercely fought contest, never dropping their heads in a 53-14 defeat.

The game started in good conditions with Stoke receiving the kick off but although Sutton chased the kick into the visitors half Stoke worked the ball clear and fed winger Josh Partridge who found a gap on the right wing and raced 40 metres to score to the right of the posts, just stretching over the line to defy a last ditch tackle by the chasing Sutton defender. Fly half Andy Marsh landed the conversion to take Stoke into a 7-0 lead after just 2 minutes of play. The lead was extended to 12-0 after 7 minutes of play when Stoke won a scrum in midfield and fed the ball left into space for fullback Charlie Maskrey to race in over 22 metres to score an unconverted try. Immediately following the restart Sutton lost possession in midfield presenting turnover ball to the rampant Stoke side, who drove forward and then swung the ball left, again finding space for flanker Callum Robb to race over the try line to the left of the posts and Andy Marsh adjusted his radar to land the conversion to give Stoke a 19-0 lead with only 9 minutes of the game played.

Under constant pressure Sutton tried to regroup and they did start to gain a foothold in the game but unfortunately midway through the first half a lineout on the Sutton 10 line went astray and the ball was taken on by the Stoke pack, who advanced with a driving maul before 2nd row Laurence Rawlins saw a gap and raced through the middle of the maul from 40 metres out to set up a try for scrumhalf Chris Rawlins, who scored to the left of the posts, extending the lead to 24-0, with 20 minutes to play to the break.

Around this time the Sutton injury curse struck again and prop Scott Toy had to leave the field with an ankle injury but the game continued with the nominated front row replacement taking his place for the remaining 60 minutes of the game.

Unfortunately Sutton's fortunes did not improve as the Stoke pack set up a maul following an attacking lineout 5 metres from the Sutton try line. Although Sutton defended the drive bravely in the eyes of the referee they were judged to have collapsed the maul, conceding a penalty try and an automatic 7 points extending the deficit to 31 points, 10 minutes before the break.

It was at this point that Sutton turned on their attacking skills and in open play in the Stoke half flanker Jacob Jones made a telling break starting on the right wing then weaving his way in field and into the Stoke 22, where the flanker linked with 2nd row Harry Moxon, who made ground before slipping the ball to Jack Wells, on as a replacement flanker and the super sub twisted his way over the try line to score to the right of the posts. Fly half and captain for the day Ben Morgan kicked the conversion to bring the score line to 7-31 with just 1 minute to play to the break.

Encouraged by the score Sutton started the second half well and 10 minutes in their positive play was rewarded when an attack down the Sutton left faltered on the Stoke 22 but the ball was quickly worked to the right wing and winger Zac Tyler raced in to take the ball over the try line for Suttons second try of the day. Again Ben Morgan added the conversion points and the score moved to 14-31 with 10 minutes of the second half played.

At this point with Sutton revitalised a shock comeback looked to be on the cards ...but it was not to be, as just 2 minutes after the Sutton score Stoke set up an attack on their left wing. The attack was halted by the Sutton defence on their 22 but Stoke retained possession and their fly half Andy Marsh launched a perfectly judged cross field kick for winger Josh Partridge to gather in space and score in the right corner. The conversion hit the right upright but the score moved onto 36-14 with 12 minutes of the second half played.

Again Sutton responded positively to the further deficit but in spite of a spirited and brave performance by the Sutton side their opponents were flying high and full of running as they ran in three more tries in what remained of the second half. The first of the final trio of tries came with 15 minutes of the game remaining, when Stoke won turnover ball on the halfway line and advanced into the Sutton 22 from where Stoke drove for the try line and prop Carl Williams scrambled over for an unconverted try. 5 minutes later Sutton's misfortunes were highlighted again as Sutton were just beaten to a clearance kick outside their 22 with the ball falling to Stoke, who quickly moved the ball across the Sutton 22 from right to left and left wing Will Sant received the ball at pace on the Sutton 22, he then chipped ahead and gathered the ball to stretch over the try line for a well taken try, after a perfect bounce - 'lucky chap'.

Then the final score came with 5 minutes to play when Stoke broke down their left wing and prop Carl Williams defined his front row mobility as he raced into the left hand corner to break the 50 point barrier with Stoke's 9th try on a harrowing day for Sutton. Andy Marsh landed a perfect touchline conversion from the left wing to complete the score line of 14-53.

After a daunting experience for Sutton, on the positive side were excellent debut performances by 19 year old prop Jonah Falconer, and 23 year old centre Chris Henley respectively, which bodes well for the future when Sutton are able to field an injury free settled side on consecutive weekends but on the down side Sutton had welcomed centre Jack Duthie back after injury forced the valued player off in his debut game on 9th Sept 2017. However, in this game he suffered damage to his ribs on his return and we wait news on the x-ray to establish the extent of the damage and to access his availability for future games. Also injured on Saturday was prop Scott Toy and all anxiously await the prognosis on his ankle injury and availability with so many props unavailable.

The average age of the inexperienced team who competed on Saturday was 24 years with 11 of the 18 players 23 years old or younger including two 18 year olds and two 19 year olds and considering that they had never played a competitive match together measure for measure, against an experienced and proven opposition Sutton did well and they showed their true potential with the two tries they scored and the way they battled through to the end but when the injuries abate and the team selection has a settled status the results will come. Anything is possible as the impressive win over Rugby Lions in the Warwickshire Cup semi-final showed just 3 weeks ago.

Unfortunately at present Sutton still remain bottom of the league table and with the teams around them either drawing of winning last week the gap to survival has widened with 5 points needed to clear the relegation zone if nothing else changes but with only 8 out of 26 games played there is still plenty of chances for Sutton to save themselves this season and then move forward next season having benefited from a more experienced and established team set-up.

This weekend Sutton travel to Stourbridge Lions, who sit 10th in the league, with Sutton looking to kick start their season.

Note: Kick-off time for all winter timetable games is now, 2.15 pm.