[acknowledgements to Sheffield’s photographer Colin Fisher (above) and headline writer Sean Townsend)
Sheffield 5 v Fylde 24: report by Simon Taylor
Fylde made it 10 wins from 11 starts when they travelled to the excellent facilities at Abbeydale Park to resume their rivalry with Sheffield for the first time since 1996. In a fierce contest, they had to show their mettle and were made to work overtime to subdue and grind down the determined and resolute Steelmen, who put in a defensive shift to be proud of. A solitary Fylde penalty was the only score in the first half, the second half saw Fylde outscore Sheffield by 3 tries to 1 as Fylde patiently probed and prodded, finally finding some hairline fractures in the home sides double-plated armoury. Whilst Sheffield may not have taken any league points from the game, they became only the second team this season to deny Fylde a full 5 points, a deserved reward for their effort and application.
Despite injuries and unavailability, coaches Alex Loney and Chris Briers named an experienced and accomplished squad. Matt Ashcroft, skipper Ben Gregory and Corey Bowker fronted up the pack with Harlan Corrie and Olli Parkinson putting their heads where the sun doesn’t shine at second row. Dave Fairbrother had Henry Higginson and Toby Harrison for company in the back row. Adam Lanigan and Greg Smith were the half backs, Tom Forster getting a start at centre alongside Sam Stott. Tom Carleton and Ben Turner were on the wings with Connor Wilkinson at full back. Pete Altham and Zach Barrow were welcome returnees on the bench with Matt Garrod, Ben O’Ryan and Scott Rawlings for company.
An excellent playing surface and dry day saw Fylde play into what wind there was in the opening stanza. What then ensued was an almighty arm wrestle of a first half which saw defences on top and, ironically, in a city famous for sharp blades, both teams struggling to find a cutting edge in attack. When there was a half break, errors, scrambling defence or excellent last-ditch tackles denied either team the scoring opportunity. Whilst the error count was higher than either coaching team would have liked to have seen, credit must go to both defences for forcing the errors.
Moments of note in the first half were when the excellent Sheffield number 8, Ryan Burrows, picked up from the base of a scrum on his own 22, rampaged up the blind side and freed his winger to take play deep into Fylde’s 22 before the move was snuffed out. Fylde’s best moment came when a slick move saw Connor Wilkinson give Tom Carleton what looked like enough space to dive into the corner. Dive he did, but a superb intervention by the last Sheffield defender forced the ball loose at the last moment. The running and tackling by both sides was fierce and fearsome, one colossal contact saw Fylde skipper Ben Gregory bounce off Sheffield’s man of the match Burrows and somehow right himself and go back for more. How he didn’t end up dazed and running towards his own line is anyone’s guess.
Very rarely, for a game Fylde are involved in, it looked like the electronic scoreboard was destined to remain at double donut until the half time oranges. However, right on 40 minutes Greg Smith slotted a fine penalty from the 10-metre line to rouse the scoreboard operator into action.
Fylde made changes just before, during and after half time. Rawlings replaced Forster, Garrod came on for Harrison, with Corrie moving to his preferred position at wing forward, Altham and Barrow came on in the front row and O’Ryan replaced Higginson. The message from the coaches was that things don’t always come easily, be patient, up the tempo and reduce the error count. This Fylde did as they slowly ratcheted up the pressure looking for where they could gain some success. This first success came from broken play as Harlan Corrie forced a Sheffield knock on with a huge hit. Tom Carleton popped the loose ball to Connor Wilkinson who exploited a Sheffield line that could not adjust from attack to defence quick enough. Wilkinson picked the pass perfectly as Ben Turner scorched through on an excellent angle to show a clean pair of heels and touch down under the posts. Smith converted and finally there was some real daylight as Fylde led 10-0.
Fylde had found that moment to spark themselves into more fluency. Pete Altham showed he is worth his weight in gold in the set piece by forcing a couple of scrum penalties. These gave Fylde some sustained territorial and possession advantage and ultimately field position for a catch and drive line out try on 54 minutes. The only surprise was that it was Olli Parkinson who was last man up, he surely must have burgled Ben Gregory’s pocket at the last minute. A lovely conversion from wide out by Smith made it 17-0.
Fylde now had the bit between their teeth, and they forged further ahead on 61 minutes. Another scrum penalty gave them a line out in the Sheffield 22. This time they chose to probe the home defence with the heavy artillery until enough of the cavalry had been sucked into the trenches to create space wide out. Quick, and slick, hands across the backline gave Ben Turner an unopposed run into the corner for his brace. Smith’s metronomic boot had no problem with the wide angle as he converted to make it 24-0.
Fylde had nearly 20 minutes to find that crucial fourth try for a bonus point. Usually, that would be plenty of time, however, Sheffield had shown their steel all day and were not going to give one up so easily. A knock on at the re-start by Fylde gave Sheffield some much needed ball in Fylde’s half and they proceeded to keep this and force penalties and pressure of their own. Solid Fylde defence kept the home team at bay until the 72nd minute when Sheffield finally gained reward for their attacking efforts as they pierced the line for winger Matt Adcock to touch down wide out and narrow the lead to 24-5.
Back came Fylde with a mighty last effort for that elusive bonus point try. They forced a penalty 5 metres out and chose the scrum. This led to another penalty and Fylde chose to re-set, could they perhaps earn a rare scrum related penalty try for themselves or should they play the bluff and spin it wide for the fleet footed backs to work some magic? The question became redundant as this time Sheffield won the crucial first contact advantage forcing a stability error and the referee awarded the penalty to Sheffield, with the kick to touch ending the game. Sheffield’s jubilation at this last-minute mini victory was quite right in your reporter’s opinion and demonstrates the value of the bonus point system. If you can’t take one from a game yourself, the challenge is to stop the other team from getting one. In this case it means Sedgley Park move 1 point ahead of Fylde at the top of the table, with Hull Ionians a further 6 points back in third.
Greg Smith was named Fylde’s man of the match by Sheffield, however every one of the squad contributed and did their job effectively and efficiently in a solid team performance. Nearly 30 players have minutes under the belt so far this season, showing just how much strength in depth the Fylde committee, coaching and management team have managed to assemble this season. They are a pleasure to watch.
Coach Alex Loney commented: “Today was a tough game. Sheffield gave us plenty of problems, with and without the ball. Their defence frustrated and caused errors affecting our ability to be as free scoring as we often are. They also move the ball well, so we had to be at our best defensively. Full credit to our lads, in the second half we had energy and focus, managed to cut down our error rate, took control and got the win. It’s fair to say we are a bit disappointed not to get a bonus point, however, they are a good team who play a good brand of rugby and are highly competitive, this was a good win away from home. We move on to a new challenge next week and look forward to that.”
Fylde play the other Sheffield team, the Tigers, at home next Saturday, kick off 3 o’clock, then fourth place Otley away the week after to complete the first half of the season. Then comes the huge local derby against Preston Grasshoppers at home on the 17th of December before a break until the new year.
Click here for some excellent photos by Sheffield RUFC’s Colin Fisher.
Fylde: Wilkinson, Turner (Forster 74), Forster (Rawlings 27), Stott, Carleton, Smith, Lanigan, Bowker (Barrow 53/Bowker 77), Gregory (Captain), Ashcroft (45), Corrie, Parkinson, Harrison (Garrod 40), Higginson (O’Ryan 64), Fairbrother,
Sheffield: Cooke, Adcock, Douglas (Kimpton), Smith, Flint, Posa (Hodgson), Fisher, Lonsdale (Rogers), Keeton (Licence), Hicklin, Crapper, Parsons, Fawdry (Hignell), Taylor, Burrow