Beverley Start The New Year In Fine Style

Maybe not quite the performance of the season but not far off it. To come away from Rossendale with a bonus point victory is no mean feat and Beverley did it in some style. It was a belter of a game with both sides making light of the heavy conditions and playing some thrilling rugby. In the end Beverley won because they were the better organised side and because they simply never allowed Rossendale to get into the match.

The Rossendale pitch has a distinct slope which you need to make the most of while you have it. Beverley kicked off downhill in the first half and within a quarter of an hour had gone 10-0 up. James Holland taking an inside pass burst through from 25 metres to touch down for the opening try. Phil Duboulay kicked the conversion and shortly afterwards added a penalty. Several errors then proved costly and Rossendale got back into it with three penalties from their fly half James Bramhall reducing Beverley’s lead to one point at 10-9.

After repeated warnings to both captains for persistent offending the referee eventually lost patience and Aaron Carroll, who was the unlucky next offender, was yellow carded. Despite continued pressure Rossendale failed to capitalise on the extra man and ten minutes from the interval Beverley stretched further ahead with the try of the day. Holland fielding a long Rossendale kick deep in the Beverley 22 made ground down the left before play was switched infield where Lee Birch swept through the middle to send Tomasi Tanumi in for a second converted try.

17-9 looked a slightly more comfortable lead to take into the second half but on the stroke of the interval disaster struck as Rossendale broke through following a scrum on the 22 and wing Kane Bevan went over for a try which centre Tom Albinson converted. At 17-16 an interval lead of only one point was a different proposition altogether.

Given the significant slope, the heavy conditions, and the pace at which the first half had been played, you might have expected the second half to be a rearguard action for Beverley. But Beverley were having none of it. They immediately took the game to Rossendale and throughout the whole of the second period the home side found it hard to get out of their own half let alone get a sniff of the Beverley line.

A well judged long raking kick by Duboulay into the home corner led to an attack down the opposite touchline and Tanumi somehow kept his feet to race into the corner for a third try which Duboulay converted from wide out. A lovely solo try by Rob Smith breaking clear from a scrum thirty metres out then took Beverley three scores clear. Rossendale threw everything into attack but their pack could make little headway against a determined Beverley eight and wing Anthony Bingham, Rossendale’s potential match-winner, could hardly get a look-in.

With ten minutes remaining Beverley made a mess of fielding a Rossendale re-start and prop Leyton Taylor touched down as the home pack drove over in the corner. It was as far as Rossendale could get. In the end Beverley were good value for their win, indeed with a bit more luck they might easily have scored several more tries during the second half.

Perhaps the most satisfying aspect of the afternoon for Beverley was their excellent all round team play. There was not a weak link anywhere. The line-outs, so often a problem, went like clockwork today, even after the unlucky Kris Renwick limped off injured. Holland in the loose was practically unstoppable. Smith had a splendid game at scrum half handling well and throwing out hard direct passes. Birch playing his first game since his injury always posed a problem; Duboulay, Tanumi, and Junior Tupai made a classy midfield, and Robbie Davidson was sound at full back. But ultimately it was undoubtedly the excellent pack that was the key to Beverley’s triumph.

Final Score: Rossendale 21 Beverley RUFC 31 | Reported by John Nursey