John Lyon
For the Ravers squad the story of this thrilling Friday night away win in the capital began with a hasty 1 pm dash from the day job to catch the 2.08 from Lime Street to Euston. That a few of the squad were unable to travel and a few missed the train was understandable, the day job has to come first. Then the trip across rush hour London for a 7.45 pm kick off under lights at old friends and newly promoted Blackheath.
It was obvious from the off that Blackheath fully deserved their promotion. Led by hooker Billy Harding who last season scored a record breaking 48 tries, Club had the up-front muscle to challenge the Ravers renowned pack. Within 5 minutes the home side also showed they possessed power, pace and invention right across the pitch and they deservedly took the lead with an early try in the corner. After 25 minutes the home side stretched their lead to 12 points when debutant full back Iwan Price- Thomas crashed through two would be Caldy tacklers to score Club’s second try.
With the journey still in their legs the Ravers were doggedly hanging on without really threatening the Blackheath line until man of the match Nye Thomas’s decisive break from the base of the scrum reduced the deficit to 5 points. The Ravers went into the break 5 points down at 12-7. It could have been worse.
Caldy’s Head Coach Matt Cairns was a calming influence at the break. “Friday night in London is a very tough assignment for Caldy’s part-time squad, and I reminded the lads that we were still very much in the game. My instructions were to stay in the contest and if we were in touch with ten minutes to go, we would win through.”
Despite turning around to face a stiff swirling wind the Ravers followed Cairns’ instructions to the letter. Blackheath stretched the lead to 19-7 courtesy of another Price-Thomas score but Caldy stayed connected with another score from Nye Thomas to cut the deficit to 5 points.
The freshness from the Caldy bench reinvigorated the visitors and they started to play with the impressive Reuben Logan leading the charge. When winger Rhys Tudor powered over in the corner just before the 70-minute mark to give the Ravers a slender 19-21 lead it looked as though they had just clinched their first victory of the campaign, but Blackheath weren’t done. With time winding down Ed Scragg dived over from a ruck to restore Club’s lead to 24-21 and now the jubilant home side just had to hold out for a couple of minutes to record their first ever Elior Champ win.
It wasn’t to be. Caldy’s relentless determination allied to Blackheath’s ill-discipline gave the visitors field position which they clinically and patiently exploited for the win rather than securing the draw through a very kickable penalty.
A succession of driven penalty line outs would surely have led to a penalty try if Ollie Hearn hadn’t touched down with the clock in the red zone. Final score Blackheath 24 Caldy 28
Caldy will be pleased to have come through a tough Friday night encounter against a good side who are equipped for life in the Elior Champ. A perfect goal kicking performance from Ollie Davis and Ben Parkin, impressive discipline to only concede a total of 6 penalties throughout the game and Caldy’s relentless doggedness was the difference.
This season Ravers supporters will need to acclimatize to differing kick off times due to the demands of television coverage. The Ravers’ second home fixture is on Saturday 3rd October when the Ravers welcome Chinnor to Paton Field with a 1pm kick off time (Yes, you have read that correctly 1pm!).
Gates will be open at 10 am and you can buy your tickets here.
It will surely be another Stella (or Guinness or Prosecco) day at Paton Field
Wirral 2nd xv 7 Caldy 2nd xv 62
Caldy’s 2nd xv opened their league campaign on Wirral’s 3rd team pitch against their fiercest of local rivals. Nonetheless, such is the pull of a local derby, this competitive fixture was watched by a decent crowd that compared favourably with the numbers on the adjacent pitch supporting Wirral’s 1st xv against Bowden in their starting level 5 fixture.
The home side fielded a number of experienced players and no little size in their pack, but the young Caldy side had their own experienced players to call on in Ryan Higginson and Charlie Attis but unfortunately the expected appearance and experience of JJ Dickinson was thwarted by a hamstring concern.
There was a lot to admire about the 2nd xv’s 100th consecutive league victory which showcased a lot of talent and precision in ball presentation and recycling. The early exchanges showed no shortage of effort and endeavour by both sides. Caldy’s young second row Malama Faasavalu carried powerfully, frequently denting the Wirral defence to set up promising positions.
After the young Ravers had raced into a 0-19 lead through Wiggins, Carroll and Wilson, some early season rust was evident. Two further try scoring opportunities were fluffed and an always committed home side scored a well-worked try to leave the score at 7-19 after a hectic 20 minutes.
This reverse was what the visitors needed. Stand off Charlie Attis limited his kicking and started moving the ball through hands. The home side had no answer to this as their resources were continually stretched by Caldy’s attacking pace.
Wingers Dylan Carroll and Lucas Wiggins both scored hat tricks with Dylan notching up a fourth for good measure. Up front outstanding hooker Max Wilson caused havoc in the loose, scored a couple of tries and provided good line out service to Adam Boodhun who cleaned up in the air. As the visitors clicked into full gear the introduction of powerful youngsters Gabe Mault and Matt Sangare piled further pressure on the home side with Gabe clocking up a score before Max Wilson and Dylan Carroll finished off Caldy’s 7-62 fixture.
Everyone in Caldy’s squad played their part in this good win and all looked to have the real potential and capability to push on and achieve the standards necessary for 1st xv Champ rugby. 18-year-old hooker Max Wilson was deservedly given the Man of the Match award for his tireless aggression and accuracy throughout a whirlwind of a performance.
Caldy coaches, Andrew Soutar and Christian Jones and onlooking Head Coach Matt Cairns will have been pleased with the progress by this young group of players
The Rav3rs 3rd team will have to wait an extra week to start their campaign after the match on Saturday was abandoned and rearranged due to the referee’s car breaking down on the way to the match!
Finally, the Colts started their respective league campaigns on Sunday Afternoon, with the Senior Colts losing out to a tough Heaton Moor side, while the Junior Colts won on the road at Trafford MV, scores below
Senior Colts – Caldy 0 – 20 Heaton Moor
Junior Colts – Trafford MV 5 – 36 Caldy
