Sat 1 Oct 2022
This weekend Pavs travelled North to play Sandal RFC in Round 5 of the Regional North East One competition. Supporters and former players remembered some tough battles with Sandal in the 90s so there was a clear sense of anticipation as old rivalries were rekindled.
The weather was bright if windy as the game began with Pavs playing up the slope and looking to defend strongly and keep possession of the ball. Opening contacts were somewhat predictable with a number of Sandal attacks and Pavs fighting hard to keep them out. There were always opportunities to break out and it was from one of these that quickly developing flanker Josh Flanagan was able to fight his way over from a driving maul and a George Billam conversion gave Pavs a 7-0 lead. They were able to hold on to this lead until the thirty eighth minute when an overly optimistic handling episode allowed Sandal to grab the ball and finish the movement in the corner bringing the score to 7-5 in Pavs favour at the break.
The game was finely balanced as the game kicked off in the second half and it was Sandal that made the brighter start now playing up the slope. A tactical change saw them attack through the middle of the Pavs defence before offloading to supporting runners. Pavs found this difficult to cope with and it was early in the half that a penalty and a try saw them take a 15-7 lead. A clear sense of anxiety crept into Pavs as they began to chase the game. This engendered errors and a lack of composure that allowed Sandal to extend their lead to 22-7 going into the last quarter. Pavs did have a number of opportunities to score, but were unable to convert them into points. Two further errors and a sin binning further underlined the fact that Pavs had rather imploded under the pressure to get back in touch on the scoreboard. A well worked late try was a positive, but really did little to ameliorate the palpable sense of disappointment Pavs players and supporters felt as the referee brought matters to a close at 34-12 to Sandal.
A curate’s egg of a day for Pavs. A strong first half followed by a strangely out of sorts second half. Pavs now have a weekend off, but will use the time to reflect and build up to play Scunthorpe RFC at The Stump on 15th October. Onwards …..
Squad - Allen, Wells, Baldry, Eggleshaw, Crossland, James, Flanagan, Reeson, Laughton, Billam G, Flint, Rimmington, Billam D, Taylor B, Molyneux.
Reps- Hatton, Langan, Collier.
Pavs Man of The Match- Josh Flanagan.
One to Watch- Dan Flint.
Nigel Youl
