The Magnificent 14 Ride Out at Ripon

Almost a carbon copy of last week’s start, a perfectly placed kick-off from Nick Gore and Ryan Wilson was giving chase. It’s a good ploy; with a yellow and black streak hurtling at you, it’s no wonder the receiving forwards take their eye off the ball and this time it bounced into touch for a Ripon line-out. From there, Ripon put up an early high ball to test the mettle of Jack Meggitt at full-back. Jack was up to the task and ran back at the opposition; we set it up nicely and the ball was out to the backs. An early chip from Nick Gore was taken by the Ripon full-back, who had time to get some speed up. An obstruction by Bees gave Ripon the penalty and a fine kick got them a line-out close to the Bees line. A knock-on gave Bees the scrum and a chance to clear but a good drive from the Ripon forwards won it against our 7 man pack and they were over for a converted try. Not the best of starts for the depleted Bees. But another good kick off from Nick Gore - this one a high floater - a chasing Dom Walker put pressure on Ripon and a series of penalties was awarded to Bees. We saw some good rugby from Bees as we had a spell camped in Ripon territory but we were unable to convert and suddenly a breakaway by Ripon took them further ahead at 12-0. Ripon kept the pressure on from the restart and were soon back in the Bees 22. A knock on gave Bees a scrum and a great clearing kick from Nick got us a moment’s relief. Liam Haggerty stole the line-out, as Ripon were pinged for yet another offside. This kick didn’t find touch and as with the first try, it gave Ripon enough space to get up a head of steam, we infringed and Ripon chose to kick the penalty to take the score to 15-0. Once again Bees found themselves on the wrong end of a score-line that didn’t really reflect their contribution to the game. Another Bees kick off and another chase by Ryan; this time all Ripon could do was scramble the ball into touch. Bees won the line-out but a knock on gave Ripon the scrum. A blind side break by the Ripon scrum half looked to have caught us out with men over but Tony Butterworth was having none of it. In an instant, Tony had gone from the back of the scrum to making a try saving tackle down Ripon’s right wing, gaining Bees a scrum in the process as Ripon knocked on. Another Bees penalty for offside and Nick Gore cleared to half way. Liam claimed the line-out again and Bees were on the attack once more. A well placed chip from Nick made us further ground and good pressure enforced the Ripon knock on for another Bees scrum Another offside at the scrum and the ref had had enough – the Ripon scrum half was despatched for 10 minutes to reflect. The replacement wasn’t much better; at the next scrum he positioned himself between Tony and Nick while the ball was still in the scrum! Another penalty, another line-out, and another take by Bees. The Ripon backs were up quickly (too quickly for our liking) – Tony rightly opted against the hospital pass to Nick – instead some quick thinking and he was through the gap left by the advancing Ripon defence. The full back stopped him but Soddy was on hand to sweep up both ball and scrum half and carry them onwards towards the Ripon try line. Desperate defence by Ripon but we set up the ruck and there was no stopping a rampant Cory Spencer as he “picked and went” to gain Bees a well deserved first score on the stroke of half time – score 15-5. A knock to Soddy meant the second half would see 14 play 13 with uncontested scrums.
Joe Bashforth claimed the Ripon kick off and ran back at the home side like a man on a mission. Brooky took it on and we were well into the Ripon half when the ref awarded a penalty for holding on. This time it was Ripon’s turn to miss touch and Ryan Wilson claimed it with a bit of space to work in. More good support play from Brooky and we were into Ripon’s 22; yet more nifty work from Tony Butterworth, who had to spiral through 180 degrees as Nick made the late “blind” call. But it caught Ripon out and Nick released the backs for Ryan Wilson to score in the corner. A great conversion took the score to 15-12. Bees were so near yet so far. Ripon upped their game and ran in a further 3 tries against a flagging Bees that were understandably unable to maintain the momentum. Despite the final score of 30-12, Bees can be immensely proud of this performance. The 14 lads who took to the field showed great character, character epitomised by man of the match Tony Butterworth who punched way above his weight all over the park. Pete Booth deserves a mention for another good performance and another full game under his belt. Dom Walker was crunching Ripon players over every inch of turf whilst Joe Bash built on last week’s rejuvenated showing. Lewis Brook carried and supported well as did Soddy and Corey. No question, great commitment from all 14 - it’s probably fair to say that fatigue played a big part in our eventual defeat but we look forward to another entertaining contest between two decent sides in the return fixture at Wagon Lane.