Sat 9 Oct 2021
Reading Abbey 25 Wallingford 17
Mark Hoskins
Abbey emerged victorious from a game of fluctuating fortunes on a glorious autumn afternoon at Rosehill. Visitors Wallingford had the better of the first half, and were mostunfortunate with injuries as the game wore on, but Abbey defended well when they wereunder pressure and ultimately deserved their victory. It was a memorable afternoon for Abbey’s outside half Ben Radford; he kicked seven goals out of seven from the tee and ended the match with 20 points.
Both sides lost a key player to injury in the opening minutes, and both were centres. Charlie Shackleford departed for Abbey, with Will Bevan coming on in his place, while Wallingford’s Sam Botting was replaced by Alex Brown. Abbey were soon behind on the scoreboard. They were put under pressure at the opening scrum and conceded a penalty which full back Charlie Campbell landed with ease.
Wallingford continued to press, and both prop Ollie Charlton and second row Max Nugent made good tackles in their own 22 before a run from winger Christian Floyd took Abbey away from the danger area. Scrum half Sol Wallis-Robinson combined well with Nugent to set up winger Will Parrish for a diagonal run in the visitors’ 22. Eventually, Abbey lost the ball forward, but Wallis-Robinson continued where he had left off against Aylesbury last weekend by pouncing on his opposite number Tom Swainston as he tried to clear the ball from the base of the scrum. Wallingford conceded a penalty and Radford levelled the score after 13 minutes.
Wallingford again took the game to Abbey, but brilliant counter-rucking from flanker Ed House won possession back. The visitors were penalised 40 metres from their posts, and Radford’s superb kick gave Abbey the lead. A Wallingford try looked likely moments later, but after a flowing move from their backs winger Matt Fearn was bundled into touch in the left corner thanks to the combined efforts of Parrish and centre Lewis Haigh. But a try was not long in coming, and Wallingford took a deserved lead at the end of the opening quarter when outstanding flanker Nathan Chapman carved through the Abbey defence to set up a try under the posts for centre Tom Cerullo. Campbell converted.
Abbey full back Callum House did well to judge a tricky bouncing ball, and he set up a good position for his side in the Wallingford half. The visitors conceded another penalty, and Radford kicked a superb gaol from 45 metres. This took Abbey back to within a point, but the rest of the half was played mainly in the home 22. Several Wallingford drives took them close to the line, but good tackling and a fine touch kick from Radford kept the visitors out. Things got worse for Abbey when prop Gereie Sutherland was shown a yellow card, but flanker Scott Holland released Ed House on a good run, thus relieving the pressure again. Mark Toland came on instead of Ed House at the next scrum, at which Wallis-Robinson once again disrupted to good effect.
Still Wallingford pressed, and as the half neared its conclusion drive after drive was halted in the shadow of the Abbey posts, with Toland and skipper ‘Treacle’ Knights eventually getting under the ball carrier as he crossed the line. Radford dropped out well from the goal line and as the sin bin time ended Ed Wisener came on to join the action. The half ended with Wallingford deservedly ahead at 10-9, but it could have been a lot worse but for the heroic fourteen-man defence from Abbey.
Another dangerous run from Chapman at the start of the second half was stopped by a brilliant tackle by Floyd. Seven minutes after the restart, there was a crucial shift in momentum when Wallingford replacement prop Jack Thurston went off injured. The visitors now had two props injured and uncontested scrums were called for the remainder of the match. This was clearly to Abbey’s advantage although they had gradually been looking more comfortable at the set piece. At the next scrum No.8 Mike Beckly made a great break, and after a movement involving Wallis-Robinson and Nugent, Abbey won a penalty just outside the visitors’ 22. Radford’s successful kick gave his side a lead they would not relinquish.
Abbey played their best attacking rugby of the game over the next ten minutes. Knights won good lineout ball, and Haigh and Wisener both ran well. Eventually, after a good build-up, a great pass from Radford found Bevan, who ran a great line to burst clear for a try under the posts. Radford’s conversion made it 19-10, and Abbey’s spirits rose visibly. Long probing kicks from Radford, strong drives from Knights and Ed House, plus excellent runs from Callum House and Wallis-Robinson kept the home side on the attack. Then Floyd made a brilliant 50-metre burst up the middle of the field and Wallingford conceded a penalty under the posts. Radford extended the lead to 22-10, and at the same time, with almost 20 minutes still remaining, the visitors’ No.8 Ian Jeffreys left the field with an injury. By now there were no fit Wallingford replacements left, so they had to play the remainder of the match a man short.
Abbey should have felt comfortable at this stage, but Radford was soon yellow-carded for a high tackle and Wallingford sensed a way back into the game. For a while Abbey stayed on the attack, with Ed House, Nugent and Floyd all running well, but the visitors began to threaten, with Chapman again causing Abbey trouble. With normal time almost up, a fine move in the home 22 resulted in Cerullo crossing for his second try, following a good pass from winger Angus Nelson. Campbell held his nerve to land the tricky conversion, and there were now only five points in it.
Fortunately, Abbey controlled the final minutes, especially after Radford returned from the bin. Beckly made a good blindside break to take his side into the Wallingford 22, and after runs from Floyd and hooker Jake Leach the visitors conceded another penalty. Radford preserved his perfect kicking record to make the game safe, and although there was time for Wallingford to get to the Abbey line in search of a losing bonus point, the match ended with Wallis-Robinson running from his own in-goal area and kicking the ball to safety.
There were several pivotal moments in this match. The move to uncontested scrums was one of these, but perhaps even more crucial was the fact that Abbey kept their line intact during the final stages of the first half when another Wallingford try would have made it much harder for them to catch up. Another factor which worked in Abbey’s favour was Wallingford’s wretched luck with injuries, forcing them to play a man short near the end. That said, Abbey were good value for their win. Radford had a match to remember, while Floyd, Nugent and Wallis-Robinson all stood out. Will Bevan too deserves great credit for playing virtually the entire match in an unaccustomed position. All in all, this was a most enjoyable afternoon of rugby at Rosehill.
Abbey: C House, W Parrish, L Haigh, C Shackleford (W Bevan 6), C Floyd, B Radford, S Wallis-Robinson, G Sutherland (E House 40, M Toland 78), J Leach (G Sutherland 49), O Charlton (J Leach 49), J Knights (captain), M Nugent, S Holland, E House (M Toland 34), M Beckly
Wallingford: C Campbell, A Nelson, S Botting (A Brown 4), T Cerullo, M Fearn (J Morris 35), H Day, T Swainston, J Wilcox-Jones (J Thurston 38-46, M Fearn), J Norris (captain), L Dallimore, E Searle, C Murphy, C Tappin, N Chapman, I Jeffreys
Abbey:
Try: Bevan
Con: Radford
Pen: Radford (6)
Yellow cards: Sutherland, Radford
Wallingford:
Tries: Cerullo (2)
Con: Campbell (2)
Pen: Campbell
Referee: R Armitage (East Midlands)
