Sefton RUFC

Sat 12 Feb 2022

Sefton 2nd XV

5 - 66

Widnes 2nd XV

Sefton 2nd XV

Widnes 2nd XV

Yet again Sefton faced Widnes, rugby leagues finest. Pumped up gym bunnies, with no necks, finding games wherever they can as a warm up to the start of their season.

Sefton, alternatively begged, borrowed, and scavenged to produce a team of sixteen able bodies out of the sick, injured, and unavailability’s that Sefton have accumulated.

Brendo added to the list of casualties even before the game started, twisting his ankle on landing in the lineout practice. He was strapped up, and told to run it off.

--- The Game ---

What can be said, apart from, we were involved in some part of the game. Left to watch under the posts as Widnes slotted another conversion. Blandie spent so much time under those posts, he noticed the back of the uprights were in need of a repaint. Something for the ground maintenance team to facilitate.

Widnes decided to take the wind in the first half, which was howling down the pitch, and they used it to good effect to pin Sefton down in their half. It was ok though, at least we had the edge over them in the set pieces, winning most of their lineout’s, and pushing them off their own ball in the scrums, they couldn’t take that away from us. However, not surprisingly, within twenty minutes one of their props was holding his shoulder in an suspicious way. This lad should have been in the theatre, rolling his shoulder, and testing his strength, it was a fine performance of thespian perfection, even down to the facial grimace. With this we knew what was coming, uncontested scrums! All we needed now, is for the lineout jumper to complain of vertigo, and we could ditch the lineout’s as well, to fully commit to rugby league rules.

Sefton persevered until half time, at least our battered side would have the luxury of the wind then, able to pin them back in their own half like they had done to us. We would be able to kick into the corners, then steal their lineout to gain possession.

Second half and the wind dropped, our game plan scuppered. We did have some success in the second half, Colin Pascoe’s 50/22 kick was his highlight of the game, his low point was his broken fingers. As usual JP Ellis was in fine form, borrowed from the first team bench to at least give us a fighting chance in attack.

A substantial period on Widnes’ line gave Sefton their one and only reward, with JP eventually breaking over, and scoring an unconverted try.

This sadly was the only venture over the opposition’s try line, and Sefton were soon back on defensive duties. If anything this gave Sefton plenty of tackle practice, with Isaac Lancaster being the star performer in this department, and probably the only one to bring down their number eight, who enjoyed several runs through the flaying arms of our defence.

As expected there was a few high tackles, although the ref suggested it was quite even in that aspect, James Hamling, Adam Hunter, and Anthony Hawksford might disagree with that, after receiving the majority of the attention.

Man of the Match went to Steve Dwyer who tackled, and carried the ball relentlessly throughout the game.

Next week the seconds can enjoy another rugby league favourite, Liverpool St Helens. I can’t wait, let’s hope there are no scrums to ruin their game.

Lanky