Bridgwater and Albion - 15
Old Patesians – 22
Referee - Brian Barclay.
Old Patesians claimed their second double of the season with an untidy away win against Bridgwater and Albion in National League 3 South West.
Bridgwater started the game deep in the relegation zone with only one win recorded in the current campaign and just one point above Newbury Blues at the bottom of the table. Their match programme stated that they had just sacked their Head Coach with immediate effect in a desperate attempt to avoid the dreaded drop and from the outset their players responded magnificently to the new regime
Pats had crushed Bridgwater at Everest Road in September by 66 points to 30 points and had targeted this fixture as a comfortable win and a bonus point in the bag.
New look Bridgwater had other ideas and from kick-off to final whistle their defence was outstanding as they scragged, smothered and suffocated the vast percentage of Pats attacking aspirations.
Pats were obliged to recall forty-three year old Bruce Fenley to first team duties as the three players who had worn the number nine shirt so far this year were injured or unavailable for all kinds of reasons.
As usual, Fenley, the former Gloucester favourite, gladly accepted the responsibility and his precision distribution and self-assurance gave his young three-quarter line every chance to express themselves to find a chink in the Bridgwater defence.
Pats began well with fly half Matt Dean making a searching touch find to set up a penalty line-out. Second row Rob Fidler took clean ball off the top and, from the catch and drive, flanker Ben Walsh had his hands on the ball as the steaming maul crashed over the line. Full back James Butler converted and Pats seemed pretty happy with all aspects of their game plan.
Their scrummaging and line-out were secure on their own feed and their heavy ball carriers, Walsh and Lotti Molitika, were smashing holes left, right and centre.
All the backs looked dangerous and capable of breaking the gain line but on the negative side there was an air of predictability in their attacks and concern that established players ignored overlaps when a score seemed certain.
Nothing can be taken away from the impressive Bridgwater defence which, to a man, was resolutely determined to hold the line and then suddenly the game was turned on its head.
Out of the blue and totally against the odds Bridgwater punished the Pats with a try for their jinking, jaunty scrum half general Roger Drabble. Full back and captain Sam Osborne missed a dolly of a conversion but Pats had paid dearly for some sloppy and slack tackling
From the restart Pats continued to boss the first half with unlimited possession and territorial domination but failed in their execution to convert this advantage into a score and only led by 7 points to 5 points at the break.
After the interval Pats carried on with their demolition job in the tight with the Bridgwater front row regularly squirting out the top of the scrum when the squeeze came through. The referee failed to recognise this was illegal and merely ordered reset after reset much to the annoyance of Pats loose head prop Connor Thompson who had his opposite number on toast all afternoon.
Pats fractured yet another Bridgwater scrum and patient control from the forwards created space for winger Joe Ballinger to dash in for a try in his corner.
Pats upped the tempo and Dean kept his forwards on the front foot with penetrating touch finds ably abetted by Fenley and his exquisite box kicks.
.Centre Leo Fielding followed up a Dean bomb for a try between the posts and when Butler added the extras a big score seemed on the cards.
Osborne again punished a moment of Pats indiscipline with a penalty goal but Pats continued to pummel the home team on their own goal line and despite being awarded countless five metre attacking scrums their only reward was a Butler penalty goal.
Pats were angry with themselves for not converting their feast of possession into points and towards the end their discipline again collapsed.
.They were marched back from the Bridgwater 22 deep into their own half by the exasperated referee and replacement wing Ashley Pippard took advantage of their frustration with a try betwixt the posts. An Osborne conversion earned his side a bonus point but the Pats victory cements their mid-table slot.
Man of the Match: Pats flanker – Ben Walsh
By Bob Ellis
