Sat 2 Oct 2021
Aylesbury 9 Reading Abbey 5
Mark Hoskins
Abbey battled bravely in wind and heavy rain on the all-weather pitch at Ostler’s Field before going down narrowly to Aylesbury. The visitors claimed a losing bonus point and had the satisfaction of scoring the only try of the afternoon, although Aylesbury always looked the more likely winners.
Abbey had to face the elements in the first half, and outside half Ben Radford quickly fell foul of the weather when his kick off failed to travel ten metres. From the resulting scrum Aylesbury sent a high kick to the Abbey 22, where full back Callum House made a safe catch. However, Abbey conceded a penalty at the ruck and the home side took the lead inside two minutes when outside half Alex Shearer’s kick succeeded, albeit with the help of the left post.
After this early setback, Abbey competed well. They were under pressure at the scrums, but acting skipper Mike Beckly protected the ball, and a good move involving Radford, centre Charlie Shackleford and winger Christian Floyd took play to the home 22. Unfortunately, the ball was then knocked on, and a big Aylesbury kicked pegged Abbey back well inside their half. However, scrum half Sol Wallis-Robinson made a great 30 metre break from the next scrum despite being under pressure. Abbey were then awarded a penalty which Radford kicked just short of the home 22. Second row Max Nugent won the lineout and a series of drives ensued involving Beckly, Shackleford and props Ollie Charlton and Adam Postlethwaite. Abbey looked good for a score at this stage, but eventually they conceded a penalty and Aylesbury relieved the pressure with a kick.
Despite failing to turn pressure into points, Abbey were soon on the attack again, and this time they got their due reward. They won another penalty in the home 22, and Wallis-Robinson took a quick tap penalty and ran towards the left corner. Charlton was up in support, and his pass gave Floyd sufficient room to dive over for a try. Sadly, Radford’s conversion attempt was well off target, although any kick at goal at this stage was very much at the mercy
of the elements. The first quarter ended with Abbey deservedly ahead at 5-3.
Aylesbury winger Liam Evans troubled Abbey with a brilliant diagonal run, and eventually the visitors were forced to drop out from their goal line. The next scrum saw Abbey in retreat, but again Beckly protected the ball well, and a good run from hooker Mark Toland took play to the halfway line. Another scrum followed, and at this one, Wallis-Robinson did really well to disrupt Aylesbury No.8 Kaz Olayinka as he attempted to pick up the ball. This was by no means the only time that Wallis-Robinson managed this during the course of the game.
Soon after this, Olayinka, who had already been warned twice by the referee, was yellow carded on the halfway line. Radford kicked to the 22, but the subsequent lineout-throw was not straight. Wallis-Robinson again managed to disrupt the Aylesbury back row at the next scrum, and flanker Ed House and second row Chris Shaw made good ground before the ball was knocked forward. Winger Kaspar Strugar then made a good break, but once again a promising move was ruined when the ball was spilled.
With three minutes left of the first half, Aylesbury put Abbey under pressure with a high kick. A penalty was conceded in front of the posts, and Shearer restored his side’s lead with a simple kick. The sin bin period ended at this point, with Abbey having failed to take advantage of having an extra player. Just before the half time whistle sounded, flanker Scott Holland put in a great tackle on home scrum half Max Milham, but in the final play of the half another penalty was conceded. Shearer went for goal from 42 metres, but his kick dropped wide of the posts.
With wind advantage in the second half, Abbey must have fancied their chances, but in truth they rarely threatened to score after the break. Hooker Lewis Jones came on for Toland at half time, with Matt Eldridge replacing Holland, and a good diagonal run from Strugar set up a position from which Abbey were awarded a penalty. Radford went for the posts from 35 metres out, but the ball dropped just wide to the left. Will Parish joined the action soon afterwards, replacing centre Lewis Haigh, but his arrival coincided
with a spell of Aylesbury pressure. This eventually resulted in Nugent being shown a yellow card, but Aylesbury failed to score while he was off the field, thanks to some brave Abbey defence. Once again, Wallis-Robinson was a thorn in Olayinka’s side at the base of the scrum, and Ed House, Shaw and Beckly tackled well.
With Nugent back on the field, Abbey continued to defend successfully. Wallis-Robinson made a good 20 metres with one break, but play rarely left the visitors’ 22 in the final quarter. A combination of good tackling and poor Aylesbury handling when tries seemed likely kept the score at 6-5. Holland replaced Shaw for the final minutes, and still Aylesbury attacked without reward. Finally, with two minutes of injury time played, Ed House was yellow-carded near his own line, and Shearer landed the only points of the second half with his third successful penalty of the afternoon. The referee, New Yorker Philip Schwan, blew the final whistle straight afterwards.
It was a shame that this game had to be played in such foul conditions. Abbey’s backs would surely have enjoyed the experience of running on the artificial surface and it would have been great to have seen the wingers given more chances to shine, as both Floyd and Strugar made the most of the ball that came their way. Beckly was the pick of the forwards, while Wallis-Robinson really stood out with his sniping runs and his disruptive efforts at Aylesbury scrums. The Abbey defence in the final stages was superb, and they can feel proud to have kept their line intact. Abbey will be hoping for better weather in which to display their talents when Wallingford visit Rosehill next weekend.
Abbey: C House, K Strugar (L Haigh 71), L Haigh (W Parish 54), C Shackleford, C Floyd, B Radford, S Wallis-Robinson, O Charlton, M Toland ( J Leach 40), A Postlethwaite, M Nugent, C Shaw, S Holland (M Eldridge 40-76), E House, M Beckly (captain)
Aylesbury: N Mercer, L Evans, M Dennis, S McKenzie (captain), D Chowns (S Page 40), A Shearer, M Milham, B Dukes (J Buckland 38), R Phillips, J Jackson, A Inglis (G Smith 57-72, D Chowns 72), E Baildon, M Phillips, G Smith (C
Neighbour 50), K Olayinka
Abbey:
Try: Floyd
Yellow cards: Nugent, E House
Aylesbury: Pen: Shearer (3)
Yellow card: Olayinka
Referee: P Schwan (East Midlands)
