Sat 1 Apr 2023
Last weekend Pavs welcomed Banbury RFC to The Stump in the newly inaugurated Papa John’s Cup. As Pavs look towards next season, the squad included a number of fresh faces in the guise of talented Academy players Noah Bhatia, Danny Green, Daniel Hodges and Bailey Mayo along with returning Alex Barton, Jonty Green, Alistair Plant and Aaron Langan.
From the kick off, Banbury sought to grab the initiative until wing Alex Barton rounded off a fine move in the corner to give Pavs a 5-0 lead. Banbury bounced back and on the twentieth and twenty second minutes with two good tries to take them into the lead at 12-5. Not to be outdone, on twenty five minutes, the returning Jonty Green darted through a gap to score and narrow the Banbury lead to 10-12. More was to follow on thirty minutes when hooker Kieran Wells fought his way over following a powerful lineout and forward drive. Half time arrived with Pavs in the lead at 15-12.
Straight after the break Banbury again went in front with a well taken try at 15-19. The entertainment continued with young abrasive flanker Josh Alton-Smith going over and giving Pavs back the lead at 20-19. At this point Banbury again grabbed two tries in as many minutes to go in front at 31-20 on sixty eight minutes. Youngster Daniel Hodges entered the fray as Pavs continued to battle away. It was no surprise on seventy six minutes when a very classy break by youngster Noah Bhatia saw him dive over for his debut try in senior rugby. With minutes left, Pavs pressed for the winning score, but just ran out of time.
Another highly entertaining tussle at The Stump. Five tries each emphasised the closeness of the game with Banbury just taking the victory at the end. Pavs now have a three week break before they play Matlock at home in the NLD Cup on the 29th April. This will afford the squad the opportunity to take a rest and recover after eleven hard games in as many weeks. Onwards ……!!
Squad - Steve Allen, Kieran Wells, Theo Collier, Josh Flanagan, Alistair Plant, Owen Taylor, Josh Alton-Smith, Bailey Mayo, Jonty Green, George Billam, Dan Flint, Alex Rimmington, Danny Green, Alex Barton, Matt Molyneux.
Replacements - Noah Bhatia (65),Daniel Hodges (68), Aaron Langan (23)
Try Scorers - Alex Barton (12), Jonty Green (25), Kieran Wells (30), Josh Alton-Smith (60), Noah Bhatia (76)
Forward of The Match - Owen Taylor
Back of The Match - Jonty Green
Player of The Match - Josh Alton-Smith
Nigel Youl
1st XV Manager
