26 Jan 2008 - Crewkerne Nil – Nailsea & Backwell 69

A minute silence was held before the game in honour of Sam Butterfield and gave all 34 players a chance to reflect and remember a good rugby player and the minute was spent thinking about the loss his family and friends have suffered, whilst remembering what a great game rugby really is and how lucky we all are to be playing every week.

Some fine weather in South Somerset, added to the big pitch, made for a great afternoon’s rugby. A week-off last week with the rain and mud putting pay to a fixture against Coombe Down saw Nailsea wanting to get back on track and it wasn’t long before Bradley Carr picked a great line to charge over from 22 metres coming from behind the backs to make an early impression and set a tone for the afternoon of excellent support play and clever running.

To complete a full report of the way this game went, would take some time but to summarise 69 points and take nothing away from an opposition who never gave up and will compete as they did today well against sides above and below them. What can we say? The set pieces were well executed against a heavier scrummage and the lineout calls overall were good. The back row of Quack, Crossman and Seidle were every where and tackled everything.  

Maybe early on Nailsea & Backwell wanted to over elaborate things but having realised “Simple things well” was the key they played some exciting rugby. There were one or two lapses in discipline but the team are coming to terms with the fact that the referee usually has the last say.

It was 24 – 0 at half time. This Nailsea & Backwell team are still learning. But boy oh boy in the second half once they had realised their backs had so much to offer and support was key did they put on a display of open running, offloading rugby. Scott Goodall was key to all that happened and his partner in midfield Laurence Trinick really showed how passing quality and pace can disrupt the opposition. It was Trinick’s first game in the centre. It won’t be his last. Goodall was outstanding. His ability is a huge asset when he’s on song. Today he was and kept things working and instilled confidence in the players around him. Johhny Watkins playing on the wing was on fire. A spectator said early on “He looks quick that boy”

Two tries and two cans of the local brew later he said “I said he was quick didn’t I”

It was a feast for fans of open free flowing rugby. Or otherwise an opportunity to complain about forwards not running into each other!

There are still lots to develop in this Nailsea & Backwell team but it really is going in the right direction and these players that give everything on a Saturday afternoon are seeing the rewards. It was a tremendous “team” performance from 1 to 18. Let’s hope this team can continue to put these sorts of performances together. They do and they will get the rewards they deserve. I look forward to watching them.

In the pre game match conference, Nailsea’s fine stand in captain Justin Seidle had this to say:

“it’s been a while since we put together a top of the table performance and today we did just that. We have been under mounting pressure to prove that the start of the season wasn’t a flash in the pan and today’s result goes some way toward proving that.  It was a great performance; however, there is still a long way to go, the real test is still to come.  Today’s game provides us with a platform to go forward; however, it doesn’t guarantee future successes.  The only way to do that is to get training – no matter what the weather"