Preston Grasshoppers 20 v Fylde 24: match report by Simon Taylor
Fylde followed up their opening day home draw with Hull Ionians with their first win of the season as they made the short trip down the M55 to renew their rivalry with near neighbours Preston Grasshoppers. An almighty arm wrestle could have gone either way, both teams crossing the whitewash 3 times, in the end it was 2 conversions and some fierce goal line defence that shaded it in Fylde’s favour. Hoppers have assembled a very competitive squad over the summer and enjoyed more of the possession and territory. Had the result gone the other way it would not have been a surprise, or unjust, but Fylde stuck to their task and brought 4 valuable league points back to The Woodlands.
Fylde made 3 changes to their starting XV. With Danny Cassidy injured, Tom Forster partnered Sam Stott in the centres, Jordan Dorrington started at full back and Greg Morgan packed down at second row. Mike Walton moved to the back row, Lewis Quinn and Alex Clayton were part of a strong bench. Local lad Kyle Macauley retained his place on the wing after a solid start to his first XV league career the week previously, with talented newcomers Gabe Maguire and Leo Gilliland also making their second starts in the back line.
With 10 players having played for both teams over the years the squads know each other well. The two stand offs Will Hunt for Fylde and Greg Smith for Hoppers have swapped shirts recently and they would be pivotal in steering their respective ships around the park and kicking from hand and from the tee. A large boisterous crowd and perfect playing surface created the ideal atmosphere for the predictably fast and fierce opening stanza, as both teams clattered into each other from the off in bone crunching fashion.
A couple of early penalties to either side led to the first opening when Fylde missed touch with their kick and Hoppers returned with interest, winning another penalty and setting up the line out catch and drive. This was initially defended well but multiple phases followed ending in second row Hugo Castle crashing over for the try. Smith’s conversion drifted wide, but Hoppers were ahead 5-0. It was a lead that didn’t last long as Hoppers immediately knocked on from the re-start, gifting Fylde a scrum on the 22. From this Gabe Maguire went blind and threw a long pass to Leo Gilliland, who cut back inside and scored near the posts. Will Hunt converted, and Fylde led 7-5. Again, it was only a temporary lead as Fylde were offside on their own 22 right in front of the sticks. Former Fylde favourite Smith knocked over the penalty, and Hoppers were back in front 8-7 after 13 minutes.
In the 20th minute, with Fylde attacking on the left, Hoppers winger Sam Freeman was adjudged to have deliberately knocked on and was yellow carded. Fylde chose the scrum and from this Maguire neatly picked and swivelled to exploit the gap left by Freeman being on the naughty step and dotted down for his debut league try in the corner. A lovely touchline conversion from Hunt saw the lead change hands again as Fylde went 14-8 up.
The second quarter saw both teams wrestling for supremacy but not managing to convert pressure into points. Hoppers turned down a couple of kickable penalties to go for touch and the catch and drive, but Fylde managed to negate these attacks. Just when it looked like time was up Fylde put themselves under pressure with an unsuccessful cross-field kick in their own half. Hoppers regained possession and set up shop leading to a full 5 minutes of extra time and penalties, one of which led to Will Hunt being yellow carded and Fylde being under immense pressure. Only a tremendous last-ditch tackle by Jordan Dorrington prevented Hoppers scoring again and Fylde went into the sheds with their noses in front.
Hoppers started the second half strongly as Fylde looked to see out Hunt’s yellow card period without conceding. An excellent jackal penalty awarded to Tom Forster thwarted Hoppers initially, but Hoppers ramped up the pressure again, forged into Fylde’s 22 on the back of more penalties, and repeated the close quarters hard running with Castle grabbing his second try on 44 minutes. This time Smith converted, and the lead had changed hands again, Hoppers back in front 15-14.
Fylde weathered some heavy pressure and struck back in the 59th minute. Hoppers stripped the ball in the tackle and kicked long, only for Macaulay to return well and set up quick ball. With penalty advantage being played for a high tackle, Sam Stott carried strongly, and Fylde were on the front foot. Maguire showed his eye for space out wide with an excellent kick that bounced into the in-goal area, with Jordan Dorrington showing he still has the pace as he won the race to touch down for the try. Another fine conversion by Will Hunt meant the see-saw nature of having the lead continued, Fylde 21-15 to the good.
The ebb and flow of the contest continued. Both coaching teams utilised their benches and Hoppers began to gain some ascendancy in the scrum, as they forced Fylde into conceding a string of penalties, allowing them to camp out in Fylde’s 22. Multiple phases followed, defence inevitably stretched thin, and Greg Smith went blind, threw the show and go, and slipped through the gap to touch down wide left. Crucially, his conversion attempt drifted wide, meaning for once the lead did not change hands, as Fylde maintained the narrowest margin of lead possible at 21-20 with 15 minutes left.
Back came Fylde to earn a penalty on halfway. Given that any score would have put Hoppers ahead, Fylde chose to have a long range shot at goal, Hunt nailing it with a fine kick, pushing the lead out to 24-20 and meaning Hoppers would now need a try to overhaul Fylde. From the re-start Lewis Quinn set off on a barnstorming run bursting through tackles and carrying 60 yards deep into the Hoppers half, only for a knock on in the next phase to halt Fylde’s flow.
Hoppers tried manfully to force one final opening in the final 10 minutes; however, Fylde tenaciously fought to defend their slender lead and saw time out to earn a very hard-fought win. Gabe Maguire looks to be a great signing and was named man of the match for Fylde with two try Hugo Castle getting the nod for Hoppers. Tom Forster and Gregg Morgan had solid games in their first starts of the season and Kyle Macaulay has shown he can step up to this level. Veterans Dave Fairbrother and Jordan Dorrington keep on performing to their always high standards and having two Waltons in the pack this season is a real bonus. Sam Parker tackled like a demon as the whole team had to, in the face of relentless pressure. This was very much a full squad performance and both teams should be complimented for providing the crowd with a fiercely competitive quality 80 minutes of National League rugby.
Had this game ended in a draw for the second week running nobody could have argued with it being a fair result, but Fylde fought hard to get the win column going for this season. With 3 teams winning both their opening games Fylde sit in 5th with 6 league points, Hoppers in 8th but also on 6 points. The opening fixtures would suggest it is going to be as competitive a league as ever, and the ability to come out on the right side of tight contests like this local derby could well be crucial.
Coach Chris Briers commented; “It was a well fought game by both sides. I thought we defended really well, Hoppers had a lot of possession, and we managed to keep them out for long spells. We showed good character and determination to stick in there, finish the job off and grind out the win. I’m very pleased with the win and the efforts of all the squad.”
Fylde: Dorrington J; Macauley (Clayton 65), Forster, Stott, Gilliland; Hunt, Maguire; Fairbrother, Harrison (Captain), Walton M, Morgan (Greenwood 58), Walton B (Quinn 60), Altham (Trippier 59), Parker (Bowker 73), Bowker (Rudkin 59)
Hoppers: Keohane; Freeman, Russell, Glover (Maher 60), Haigh; Smith, Brand; Ailes, Longson (Captain), Richardson (Willetts 54), Causey, Castle (Norrington 72), Kyle-Clay (Parkinson 41), Holden (Kyle-Clay 60), Corless (Holden 78).