Glossop 2nd XV…15 Manchester 3rd XV…21
Glossop 2nd team slumped to their fourth consecutive defeat this weekend, this time at the hands of visitors Manchester. Players have every right to feel frustrated at the current run, as three of the four defeats have been to teams they are more than capable of beating, but indiscipline has cost them very dearly.
The same was true in Saturday’s showdown at Hargate Hill. The first ten minutes saw a period of sustained pressure from Manchester, and the survivors from the previous week’s hammering by Northwich were right to be wary of another embarrassing performance. That said, ten minutes of pressure yielded only 5 points for the visitors, thanks in no small way to some outstanding defensive work by the Glossop forwards. The healthy competition between Cox and Wilson to outplay one another on the opposing flanks of the scrum was almost as important to the team endeavour as the first Hargate appearance of Marsden.
Although the Manchester boys executed a good set piece penalty through the backs, they will have felt that they should have had more to show for their endeavours in the opening exchanges. Almost as if in response to a collective decision to start competing in the game, following some stern words from Lindsay after conceding the try, Glossop re-grouped and attacked with purpose. In the first determined visit to the Manchester 22, Glossop cleared the ruck area quickly, made quick yards and had men to spare on the wings when quick hands from Hughes to Cox opened up the Manchester defence, as Cox sent Percy over to open the scoring.
The remainder of the first half saw half chances created by Glossop. Both Cassell – last week’s man of the match - and Gibb had good chances to stretch their legs and were just tackled and put into touch respectively in the nick of time for Manchester. Manchester posed little further threat in the first half, and despite lengthy periods of domination, the curtain came down on the first half with scores tied at 5-5.
The second half commenced in much the fashion the first had ended as Glossop sought to exert some more pressure, hoping to create some daylight between the scores. After the opening exchanges, Manchester fancied the easy points offered by poor discipline around the ruck and slotted over a penalty. 8-5.
From the kick off, a great chase won the ball back for Glossop, and Wrigley (back from his first team travels) crashed up to the line but was tackled short. The referee adjudged the Manchester player to have stopped being played and awarded a penalty. Hughes reacted quickly, but was again wrapped up inches short. The Glossop forwards piled in, cleared out the ruck quickly and knowing his scrum half was tied in the bottom of it all, Cox picked up from the ruck and ducked under his opposite number to score. Sonczak added the extras from the conversion to give Glossop a 12-8 lead.
Manchester were suddenly the team looking a little flustered, and from a further ruck offence, Sonczak added another 3 points. The following decision to go for points after further infringements was always high risk as it was right on the edge of his range, but Sonczak was striking the ball well. Composed, he struck the ball which drifted agonisingly wide, to the audible dismay of the swelling crowd (fresh from watching the international match). The score was 15-8.
Time was ticking and the Glossop defence looked quite sound. Until, that is, a penalty was awarded on the 22 for coming in the side of the ruck. Manchester used their inside centre on the scissor, who wasn’t picked up and crossed the line with ease. An easy conversion attempt tied the scores again.
The referee inexplicably sin-binned Cox with under 10 minutes to go – a decision that proved to be costly. On two subsequent visits to the Glossop half, over-zealous refereeing of the ruck area saw two late penalties conceded and scored. The game slipped slowly from the grasp of a Glossop team staring down the barrel of their fourth straight defeat.
Whilst such form is not disastrous, poor discipline could affect the final standings ion the league and really must be addressed as soon as possible. Performance-wise, there’s much to be optimistic about, including the man-of-the-match performance from Gerrard who showed great versatility to slot into the vacant full-back position.