CLUB NEWS

MATCH REPORT V NEWCASTLE

Bedford Blues trail by nine points in the RFU Championship final after they suffered an 18-9 first-leg defeat against Newcastle Falcons at Goldington Road on Wednesday night.

 

Playing in the Championship final for the first time, Bedford took the lead in the tie as Myles Dorrian converted a penalty on six minutes.

 

But Newcastle came back in commanding fashion as they enjoyed much of the possession and Jimmy Gopperth kicked four penalties to put his side 12-3 in front at the break.

 

Gopperth kicked another two penalties after the interval, however a packed Goldington Road roared the Blues on and they responded as Dorrian and replacement fly-half Jake Sharp kicked a penalty a piece.

 

Despite finishing strongly the result means that Bedford will have to overcome a nine-point deficit when they travel to Kingston Park in a week’s time.

 

The Blues made just one change to the 22 man squad that overcame Nottingham, as winger James Stephenson replaced Josh Bassett who was ruled out with illness.

 

With just over a minute on the clock the Falcons looked to take the initiative as Adam Powell burst up the slope and broke through a number of challenges.

 

Bedford recovered as Newcastle spilt the ball and Stephenson kicked down field, racing after it, yet the visitors were on hand to collect the ball keeping the scores level.

 

Nevertheless, the home side did have the lead on six minutes as Newcastle conceded a penalty for offside inside their own 22, which enabled Dorrian to send his kick straight through the uprights.

 

The lead lasted just five minutes though as it was Bedford’s turn to concede a penalty for offside in their own 22. Gopperth whistled his kick through the posts and straight from the restart Powell went on another attack.

 

The Blues broke the move down, but at the expense of a scrum inside their 22. And from the set piece Newcastle were awarded a penalty as their burly forwards forced Bedford to buckle, which left Gopperth with a simple conversion.

 

The Falcons were causing Bedford problems with their robust approach and Warren Fury tried to play in winger Ryan Shortland with a kick out the back of the scrum.

 

Mark Atkinson did enough to put the winger off as he knocked on, however the winger was involved again moments later as he collected Brendan Burke’s deep kick and ran it back, evading the challenges flying his way.

 

Shortland raced up over half way, only for the ball to eventually be knocked on as he tried to offload. Bedford were finding life difficult as they struggled to get the ball out of their half and the pressure told as Newcastle were awarded a penalty as the Blues failed to release in the tackle.

 

Gopperth sent over his third penalty of the evening as the Falcons now led 9-3, yet Ben Ransom got the Goldington Road crowd on their feet as he danced his way through the Newcastle defence in search of the games first try.

 

Luke Baldwin kept the move going as he kicked the ball to touch in a good position, but once again the Falcons defence was on hand to remove the danger.

 

As the rain started to come down Bedford knocked the ball on inside their own half and gave away a scrum. The ball didn’t look to go in straight from Fury, however the Falcons were awarded a penalty as Bedford failed to bind.

 

Gopperth made no mistake with his kick on the stroke of half time and Newcastle took a 12-3 lead into the interval.

 

The Falcons missed an opportunity to grab the games first try after the break as Gopperth’s grubber kicked bounced kindly to Cato who darted down the wing. He then passed the ball back to Gopperth, but James Short was on hand to deny him with a brilliant covering tackle.

 

However, the Falcons did extend their lead with another penalty as a good driving maul got them in position and when the ball was set free Nick Fenton-Wells failed to release in the tackle.

 

Gopperth was again on hand to convert and Bedford were beginning to get frustrated with their opposition as they conceded another penalty for coming in at the side that left Gopperth with another simple kick.

 

The Blues did offer their first attack of the half on 52 minutes as the ball went long from the home side and Short used his rapid pace to put some pressure on the Falcons.

 

Newcastle again recovered, however Bedford were enjoying their best spell of the game and their hard work paid off as they won a penalty that Dorrian kicked superbly from the left touchline.

 

Back came the Falcons on 70 minutes as they won another penalty after Bedford fail to roll away in the tackle, yet Gopperth fired his kick wide for the first time in the match.

 

With the match coming to a close the Goldington Road crowd started to become more vocal and their support worked as the Blues swiftly worked their way forwards and were awarded a penalty.

 

Sharp made no mistake from the tee and Bedford were again on the attack when Ransom slipped a kick in for Stephenson and as the winger bore down on the line he felt he was held back.

 

Yet Newcastle conceded a scrum five metres out and Bedford kept the pressure on, winning a penalty in the process.

 

With the final kick of the match Sharp’s penalty drifted wide, and Newcastle could breathe a sigh of relief as they hold the advantage going into the second leg.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves, Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 60), Phil Boulton (Dan Seal 49), Mike Howard (Don Barrell 67), Paul Tupai (Ben Gulliver 54), Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (C), Nick Fenton-Wells, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 60), Myles Dorrian (Jake Sharp 69), James Short, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke (Ollie Dodge 69), James Stephenson, Ben Ransom.

 

Replacements all used:

 

P: Dorrian (2) Sharp.

 

Newcastle Falcons: Grant Shiells (Jonny Golding 61), Rob Vickers (Michael Mayhew 77), Oliver Tomaszczyk (Scott Wilson 66), Carlo del Fava, Scott MacLeod, Mark Wilson (Taiasina Tu’ifua 61), Will Welch (C), Ally Hogg, Warren Fury (Rory Lawson 51), Jimmy Gopperth, Ryan Shortland, Adam Powell, Suka Hufanga, Noah Cato, Alex Tait.

 

Replacements not used: James Hudson and Waisea Luveniyali

 

P: Gopperth (6).

 

Referee: Luke Pearce.

 

Touch Judges: Simon McConnell and Roger Baileff.

 

Attendance: 4,588.

MATCH REPORT V NOTTINGHAM

A scintillating first half performance from Bedford and dogged and committed rearguard defence in the second half saw them triumph 23-21 at Nottingham this evening as they won through to the RFU Championship final for the first time.

 

Blues were in breathtaking form in the first half as they ran riot, crossing the whitewash twice through James Short and Luke Baldwin, with Myles Dorrian kicking 10 points as they looked home and dry at the break.

 

Trailing by 29 points on aggregate the Green & Whites came storming back in the second half and showed the quality that had seen them finish the regular season in second place.

 

They ran in three converted tries as Bedford were forced to battle throughout for victory, but Dorrian’s second half penalty secured victory on the night, a memorable victory and a place in the final.

 

Bedford made three changes from the team that had triumphed 26-17 in the first leg the week before. Wasps-bound wing Josh Bassett came in for James Stephenson and Ricky Reeves and Phil Boulton started in the front row as Dan Seal dropped to the bench and Darren Fearn missed out entirely.

 

Nottingham, meanwhile, made just the one change from last weekend as star centre Timothy Streather started in place of Andrew Forsyth who dropped to the bench.

 

Bedford were handed an early chance on three minutes when they were awarded a penalty on the halfway line but Dorrian’s ambitious attempt faded just wide.

 

A Dorrian grubber kick just eluded Bedford’s onrushing players, while a Nottingham penalty to the corner was superbly kept in by Ben Ransom who cleared well, before Bedford drew first blood with a superb score on the counter.

 

Joe Munro telegraphed his pass and dual-registered Saracens star Short stole the pass and streaked 60 metres to score under the posts as Dorrian added the simplest of conversions.

 

The pre-match rain meant conditions were difficult for both sides to put their phases together as the magnitude of the game made for a tense atmosphere.

 

Bedford were dealt a blow when Brendan Burke was forced off with what looked like a shoulder injury following a great tackle and he was replaced by Ollie Dodge.

 

And the visitors were able to increase their lead further on 20 minutes when the home side failed to release in the tackle and Dorrian nailed a fine kick.

 

The Green & Whites proceeded to put Bedford under pressure as the Blues were penalised for pulling down a catch-and-drive move close to their own line as captain Darren Fox was warned for his side’s behaviour, but Nottingham butchered their chance as they failed to deliver the subsequent lineout straight.

 

In complete contrast to the weekend Bedford’s scrum was in imperious form and won a penalty which allowed them to clear their lines.

 

Trailing heavily on aggregate the Green & Whites were having to try and run the ball at every opportunity and a knock-on on the edge of their own 22 put them in trouble and Bedford’s pack again did the business to win a penalty which Dorrian sent through the sticks on 29 minutes.

 

The turnaround at scrum-time compared to the game at Goldington Road was incredible as Nottingham’s game started to implode. Even the basics were going wrong for the hosts as hooker Joe Duffey was penalised four times for failing to throw the ball in straight.

 

Ambitious Bedford were evidently growing in confidence as Baldwin took a quick tap from a penalty as the backs were set into motion, only for Short to be tackled into touch just inside the 22.

 

However, Bedford were in dreamland on the stroke of half time as a Nottingham lineout again went awry and from the scrum Blues’ pack again took control. Impressive number eight Nick Fenton-Wells pealed off the back and burst into space, off-loading in the tackle for Baldwin to dash to the line. Dorrian then landed another excellent conversion as Bedford led 20-0 at half time and 29-0 on aggregate.

 

A change at the break saw Seal replace Boulton at prop and the hosts got themselves right back into the encounter just three minutes in. A penalty again allowed them to kick to the corner and, although the driving maul was stopped, winger Alexander Lewington was able to find the gap and tumble over as James Arlidge added the simplest of conversions.

 

Things got even better for the Green & Whites as they scored a second try just nine minutes in. Great work by Duffey saw him charge up to Bedford’s line and, although stopped just short, Daniel Montagu was driven over as Arlidge again added the extras.

 

A fine driving maul from the visitors eventually saw them win the penalty and Dorrian again kept his cool to give Bedford some breathing space.

 

A double change for Bedford followed as Ben Gulliver and Darryl Veenendaal came on for Mike Howard and Baldwin, while Nottingham made a treble change.

 

Handbags broke out in the Nottingham half as Paul Tupai and Thomas Calladine were both warned and, although the penalty was reversed in Bedford’s favour, the visitors couldn’t make it count.

 

A flying Nottingham attack was held up over the line, but the hosts’ third try did come on 67 minutes when they spread the ball wide and Rhys Crane was able to force his way over in the corner. Arlidge then stepped up to land a great touchline conversion and narrow the gap to two points on the night.

 

Boulton came back on for Reeves on 69 minutes, while Bedford changed things up again as Jake Sharp replaced Dorrian with seven minutes to go.

 

A nervy finish saw the Green & Whites throw everything at Bedford in the closing stages as a superb kick and gather by Streather saw him off-load to David Jackson, but he could only knock-on.

 

Valiant Bedford produced an outstanding rearguard action late on and tackled with real bravery and commitment as, despite around seven minutes of stoppage-time, they held on for victory.

 

The first leg of the play-offs will take place a week on Thursday with the second leg the following Wednesday, but the location of the games and the opponents will depend on Sunday’s second leg fixture between Newcastle Falcons and Leeds Carnegie.

 

Nottingham: Matthew Parr, Joseph Duffey (Shaun Malton 58), Michael Holford, Daniel Montagu, Nicholas Rouse, Rupert Cooper (Thomas Calladine 58), Brent Wilson (C), Alexander Shaw, Sean Romans, James Arlidge, Rhys Crane, Joe Munro (Andrew Forsyth 58), Timothy Streather, Alexander Lewington, David Jackson. Replacements not used: Ryan Bower, Thomas Price, Harrison Lee-Everton, Rory Lynn. T: Lewington, Montagu, Crane. C: Arlidge 3.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves (Phil Boulton 69), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 80+5), Phil Boulton (Dan Seal 41), Mike Howard (Ben Gulliver 58), Paul Tupai (Don Barrell 80), Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (C), Nick Fenton-Wells, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenenaal 58), Myles Dorrian (Jake Sharp 73), Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke (Ollie Dodge 17), James Short, Ben Ransom. T: Short, Baldwin. P: Dorrian 3. C: Dorrian 2.

 

Referee: Martin Fox.

 

Assistant Referees: Brian Ravenhill and Chris Sharp.

 

Attendance: 3,070

MATCH REPORT V NOTTINGHAM

Bedford Blues hold the advantage in their RFU Championship semi-final against Nottingham after a 26-17 first-leg victory at Goldington Road on Saturday afternoon.

 

The Blues have suffered disappointment at the semi-final stage in the last two seasons, however Myles Dorrian kicked them into an early lead with a well-taken penalty.

 

Nottingham’s response was instant as James Arlidge made no mistake with a penalty, but Dorrian gave the Blues a 9-3 lead thanks to two sweetly-struck penalties.

 

Yet with half time approaching Arlidge charged down Ben Ransom’s clearance for the afternoon’s first try as the Green & White’s took a slender 10-9 lead into the break.

 

The home side were undeterred though and Mark Atkinson touched down a minute into the second half, before Dorrian kicked another penalty.

 

The Blues were now in control of the match and Ransom’s converted try gave the home side a 16-point lead.

 

However, Nottingham were given a lifeline as an injury-time penalty try means that everything is still to play for in less than a week’s time.

 

Bedford kept faith with the side that narrowly lost out against Newcastle last weekend as there were no changes to the starting line-up, however there was one alteration on the bench as the fit-again Ben Gulliver replaced Tom Armes.

 

It was the Blues that applied the early pressure inside five minutes as Brendan Burke offloaded to James Short who slipped a grubber kick down the right touchline to win a lineout.

 

The home side dominated possession and it paid off on 13 minutes as the Blues won a penalty that Dorrian swept through the uprights.

 

The lead didn’t last long though as Burke’s kick out of defence ran dead and, from the resulting scrum, Nottingham were awarded a penalty that Arlidge converted.

 

With the rain now pouring down Bedford restored their lead on 18 minutes as Nottingham conceded a penalty at the breakdown and Dorrian superbly converted from 40 metres.

 

After a brief rush of points both sides traded possession and, from a lineout, Atkinson went in search of the game’s first try as he broke through the Green & Whites’ defence.

 

The visitors recovered as Bedford knocked the ball forward just before the line, yet the pressure was still on Nottingham as the Blues won a series of lineouts inside the 22.

 

But they couldn’t make the most of them as Nottingham eventually cleared their lines.

 

And it was the visitors who were next to attack as they won a lineout in the Blues 22.

 

Nottingham looked to use the ball quickly, but Nick Fenton-Wells and Darren Fox combined superbly to rip the ball back off the visitors and set up an attack, with Ransom looking to be played in down the touchline.

 

The Green & Whites scrambled back to play the ball to touch, however Bedford were rewarded on 37 minutes as they won a penalty after Nottingham were caught crossing trying to set up a maul.

 

Dorrian nailed his kick, but with half time minutes away disaster struck as Ransom’s kick was charged down and Arlidge was left with a simple finish for a converted try.

 

Nottingham took a 10-9 lead into the break and would be playing down the slope in the second half.

 

However, that didn’t seem to make a difference as less than a minute into the second period Bedford scored their first try with an almost carbon copy of that of the visitors.

 

Green & Whites fly-half Arlidge’s clearance was charged down by Atkinson and the ball fell to Burke, who hacked on.

 

Atkinson was quickest on to it, taking a couple of touches with the boot and then diving over the whitewash for a converted score.

 

Back came the visitors once more and they produced a sweeping move across their backline and looked set to score, only for centre Andy Forsyth to spill the ball with the line at his mercy.

 

Bedford then missed a chance to extend their lead on 56 minutes as Dorrian sent a penalty wide after Nottingham failed to roll away at the breakdown.

 

Just four minutes later Dorrian had another chance from the tee as a high tackle on Neil Cochrane gifted the Blues a penalty and the fly-half this time made no mistake.

 

And Bedford had the visitors on the ropes as they scored again soon after.

 

The home side worked their way up the slope patiently and with precision, enabling Ransom to spot a gap and scorch his way over as the ball was spread wide.

 

Dorrian, who was in fine form with the boot, converted, and the Goldington Road crowd voiced their appreciation as the Blues now led 26-10.

 

Another opportunity came Bedford’s way moments later as they earned a penalty, but Dorrian kick faded wide.

 

The Blues could smell blood as Ransom tried to play Short in with a grubber kick and, with David Jackson struggling to collect it, Short knocked the ball on as he came under pressure.

 

With time past 80 minutes, Nottingham got themselves back in the tie.

 

Bedford replacement prop Phil Boulton was sin-binned four minutes into stoppage time when he pulled down a rolling maul for a second time and referee JP Doyle quickly tired of Bedford’s spoiling tactics and awarded Nottingham a penalty try at the death, which Alridge converted with the final kick of the game.

 

It’s advantage Bedford, but with just nine points in it they know everything is still to play for at Meadow Lane on Friday night.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Phil Boulton 50), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 74), Dan Seal, Mike Howard (Don Barrell 74), Paul Tupai (Ben Gulliver 50), Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (C), Nick Fenton-Wells, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 74), Myles Dorrian, James Short, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke, James Stephenson, Ben Ransom. Replacements not used: Jake Sharp, Ollie Dodge. T: Atkinson, Ransom. C: Dorrian 2. P: Dorrian 4.

 

Nottingham: Matthew Parr, Joseph Duffey: (Shaun Malton 67), Michael Holford, Daniel Montagu, Nicholas Rouse, Rupert Cooper (Tom Calladine 67), Brent Wilson (C), Alexander Shaw, Sean Romans, James Arlidge, Rhys Crane, Joe Munro, Andy Forsyth, Alex Lewington, David Jackson. Replacements not used: Ryan Bower, Tom Price, Harrison Lee-Everton, Rory Lynn, Jack Cobden. T: Arlidge, Penalty Try. C: Arlidge 2. P: Arlidge.

 

Referee: JP Doyle.

 

Touch Judges: Roger Baileff and Simon McConnell.

 

Attendance: 2,533.

MATCH REPORT V NEWCASTLE

Bedford Blues’ hopes of British & Irish Cup glory came to an end as, despite a scintillating comeback, they fell to a slender 18-15 defeat against Newcastle Falcons at Goldington Road this afternoon.

 

Bedford fought bravely against a Falcons side that has lost just once this season and, in a tight opening period, Myles Dorrian sent an early penalty attempt wide.

 

The Blues fly-half then missed a second chance and the home side were made to pay as Newcastle’s Jimmy Gopperth converted two quick penalties, which gave the Falcons a 6-0 lead at the interval.

 

Jonny Golding went over for a converted try at the start of the second half for Newcastle, before Jake Sharp pulled three points back for Bedford.

 

Yet the Falcons looked to be on course for a simply victory when Noah Cato went over, only for the Blues to fight back in superb fashion as James Short and Mike Howard scored in the final 10 minutes.

 

Time eventually ran out for the home side though, and they must now turn their attentions to Nottingham in the semi-finals of the RFU Championship.

 

Bedford made just three changes to the side that beat Moseley last weekend as Ben Ransom, Brendan Burke and Darren Fearn all returned to the starting line-up.

 

The Blues made a lively start to the match and were awarded a penalty for an offside. The home side went for the corner and looked to implement a catch-and-drive drive move from the lineout but the Falcons stole the ball.

 

Back came Bedford and they continued to pass the ball around well in the opening five minutes. Inside centre Mark Atkinson broke free from a few tackles and, when he was brought to ground, the Blues conceded a penalty for side entry at the breakdown.

 

Fly-half Dorrian then missed a golden opportunity to put the first points on the board for Bedford as he sliced a penalty wide from 40 metres.

 

Mark Wilson provided the visitors’ first meaningful attack when he hurdled a few challenges before Warren Fury tried to slide a kick through, however Ransom was on hand to remove the danger.

 

Newcastle were then dealt a huge let-off after they conceded a penalty for hands in the scrum. Dorrian’s kick looked to be heading over, only for a gust of wind get hold of the ball as it hit the outside of the post.

 

It was then the visitors’ turn to have a go from the tee on 24 minutes as Bedford gave away a penalty for coming in at the side of a maul.

 

Tempers flared with Golding throwing a punch, yet the decision stood, although Gopperth’s kick missed the uprights.

 

With nothing between the two sides, James Stephenson looked to break clear on the half an hour mark, but the Newcastle defence stood strong.

 

The Falcons turned defence into attack as Tom Catterick burst forward, however the full-back passed the ball forward under pressure.

 

But on 35 minutes the deadlock was finally broken as Bedford strayed offside at a ruck inside their own 22 and Gopperth whistled his kick through the posts.

 

With their noses in front, Newcastle looked to extend their lead as they made valuable yards up the Goldington Road slope, however, Bedford were determined not to slip further behind.

 

But right on the stroke of half time Gopperth doubled his side’s advantage as he converted a second penalty as Newcastle led 6-0 at the break.

 

Battling up the slope in the second period, Howard knocked the ball forward after the restart to put the hosts straight under pressure.

 

The resulting scrum for the Falcons was a good one as Gopperth broke quickly towards the line and, after some patient build-up play, Golding went over for a converted try.

 

The Blues went in search of a response as Luke Baldwin weaved his way through the Newcastle defence, but then Short spilt it as the move broke down.

 

Winger Stephenson then looked to spark life into the Goldington Road crowd with a chip and chase, but as he bore down on the goal he looked to be eased off course by Adam Powell and the Falcons kicked to touch.

 

Bedford were determined to claw themselves back into the tie as replacement hooker Scott Spurling nimbly worked his way forwards, with Ollie Dodge taking over, but once again Newcastle did enough at the breakdown as the Blues were penalised for holding on to the ball.

 

A yellow card for Darren Fox followed, but it didn’t prove too costly as a Newcastle scrum failed to bind and replacement scrum-half Sharp sailed his penalty kick through the posts.

 

Falcons fly-half Gopperth then missed a drop-goal attempt, only for the drop-out to sail straight to Cato who raced down the right flank to score.

 

Gopperth failed to convert and shortly after the Falcons went reduced to 14 men as Jordi Pasqualin was sin-binned for cynically pulling back Darryl Veenendaal as he scampered after his own charge down.

 

And Bedford took full advantage of the extra man on 78 minutes as Ransom slipped a delightful grubber kick in behind the Newcastle defence for Short to dart over.

 

Sharp converted and with the scoreline now at 18-10 in the visitors’ favour Bedford needed to score quickly to have any hope.

 

And they did just that as a swift passing move from left to right saw second row Howard force his way over.

 

Sharp failed to convert, but there was now just three points in it with a minute to go.

 

However, professional Newcastle had done just enough and won a late penalty which they sent to touch to seal victory.

 

In spite of the defeat, Bedford can take plenty of spirit into their two-legged Championship semi-final against Nottingham.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Phil Boulton 60), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 49), Dan Seal, Mike Howard, Paul Tupai (Don Barrell 60), Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (C) (Tom Armes 72), Nick Fenton-Wells, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 60), Myles Dorrian (Jake Sharp 68), James Short, Mark Atkinson (Ollie Dodge 48 Blood), Brendan Burke (Mark Atkinson 58), James Stephenson, Ben Ransom. T: Short, Howard. C: Sharp. P: Sharp.

 

Falcons: Jonny Golding, Michael Mayhew (Rob Vickers 64), Oliver Tomaszcyzck (Scott Wilson 51), Scott MacLeod, James Hudson (Carlo de Fava 64), Mark Wilson (Ollie Stedman 64), Will Welch (C), Ally Hogg, Warren Fury (Jordi Pasqualin 75), Jimmy Gopperth (Michael Tait 75), Alex Tait, Jamie Helleur, Adam Powell, Noah Cato, Tom Catterick. Replacements not used: Joel Hodgson. T: Golding, Cato. C: Gopperth. P: Gopperth 2.

 

Referee: Mark Paton.

 

Touch Judges: Simon McConnell and Roger Baileff.

 

Attendance: 1,991.

MATCH REPORT V MOSELEY

Bedford Blues confirmed a third place finish in the RFU Championship table with a hard-earned 41-29 victory over Moseley at Billesley Common this afternoon.

 

The result means that they will face Nottingham over two legs in the semi-finals, while table-topped Newcastle Falcons will take on Leeds Carnegie.

 

In an action-packed first half it was the home side that took the lead thanks to Tom Stephenson.

 

Bedford responded in a fine manner though as James Short and James Stephenson went over in quick succession.

 

Jake Sharp converted both tries, as well as a penalty from distance, before Sam Wilkes pulled a try back for Moseley.

 

With a third place finish at stake the Blues ran in two further tries from Mark Atkinson and Luke Baldwin, meaning they had recorded a try bonus point and confirmed a top four finish before half time.

 

Moseley fought back in the second period as Addison Lockley and Olly Robinson scored, while Ollie Thomas’ penalty meant there was just five points between the two sides.

 

However, Scott Spurling’s last-minute try meant Bedford could breathe a sigh of relief in the knowledge they had secured a semi-final with Nottingham.

 

Playing their third game in eight days, Bedford made six changes to the side that beat Doncaster on Wednesday night.

 

Atkinson, James Stephenson, Sharp and Baldwin all lined up in the Blues backline, while Dan Seal and Neil Cochrane were included in the pack.

 

Bedford boast an impressive record at Billesley Common having won on each of their last six visits, yet it was the hosts who burst out of the traps.

 

A swift passing move from Moseley created space down the right flank for centre Tom Stephenson to finish off. Simon Hunt converted and the Blues were behind with two minutes on the clock.

 

Bedford went in search of an instant response and gained valuable territory from a catch-and-drive lineout, but when the ball was worked out the back of the maul it went forwards.

 

All was not lost and the Blues continued to enjoy much of the possession inside the Moseley 22.

 

The hosts’ defence was standing strong, but Bedford were awarded a penalty for hands in the ruck, giving Sharp a simple conversion.

 

It got better for the Blues just after the restart as Myles Dorrian, playing at inside centre, broke through the Moseley ranks and off-loaded to Short whose rapid pace saw him go in unchallenged from 50 metres.

 

Sharp converted, yet the hosts missed a golden opportunity to score moments later as Hunt knocked the ball forward with the line at his mercy.

 

And Bedford made them pay as Ollie Dodge’s buccaneering run saw him fight off several challenges before the ball was worked through the hands of Dorrian and Sharp, enabling James Stephenson to score.

 

Moseley continued to show plenty of determination and Hunt had a chance to reduce the deficit with a penalty but he sent his kick wide.

 

That allowed Bedford to inflict further punishment on the hosts as they failed to release the ball and Sharp sent over a monster penalty from 40 metres.

 

Moseley had been playing some neat rugby and they were rewarded with a scrum five metres from the Blues line. Despite a strong set-piece from Bedford, the hosts threw the ball out quickly to Wilkes who bundled his way over.

 

Hunt converted, but straight after the restart Bedford were awarded a penalty and they went for the corner.

 

The visitors kept the pressure up from the lineout and full-back Atkinson jinked his way over the line, leaving a simple conversion for Sharp.

 

Right on half time the Blues sealed a try bonus point as a quickly-taken tap penalty inside their own 22 released James Stephenson who fed the ball to Baldwin who ran in from 70 metres. Sharp converted and the Blues took a 34-14 lead into the interval.

 

Nevertheless, Moseley started the second period in a similar vein to the first and from a lineout Lockley forced his way over.

 

Hunt added the extras and Bedford were made to sweat even more as another good spell of pressure saw Robinson weave his way over for Moseley.

 

Both sides were exchanging possession in a frantic manner and Moseley scored again as replacement kicker Thomas sent a penalty through the posts.

 

With just five points in it Moseley conceded a penalty for hands in the ruck and Bedford opted for the lineout.

 

Replacement scrum-half Darryl Veenendaal tried to squeeze through a gap only to be held up and from the resulting scrum the hosts defended for their lives and dumped Ricky Reeves into touch.

 

However, with the full time approaching a lapse in concentration gifted a try to Spurling as the lineout was thrown long and he canterted over.

 

Sharp converted with the final kick as Bedford reigned triumphant, and they now face Nottingham in the semi-finals.

 

Moseley: Craig Voisey (Stefan Thorp 68), Sam Wilkes (Matt Williams 58), Adam Parkins (Ben Evans 47), Addison Lockley, Mike Powell, Buster Lawrence, Olly Robinson, Ben Pienaar, Ryan Glynn (Ollie Thomas 65), Brad Davies (Coalan Ryan 47), Paul Diggin, Anthony Carter (Glyn Hughes 55), Tom Stephenson, Simon Hunt (Brad Hunt 63), Billy Robinson. T: Stephenson, Wilkes, Lockley, Olly Robinson. C: Simon Hunt 3. P: Thomas.

 

Blues: Dan Seal (Ricky Reeves 52), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 60), Phil Boulton (Ben Cooper 52), Mike Howard, Paul Tupai (Don Barrell 74), Gregor Gillanders (C), Darren Fox (Joe Vandermolen 60), Nick Fenton-Wells, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 52), Jake Sharp, James Short, Myles Dorrian, Ollie Dodge (Ian Vass 60), James Stephenson, Mark Atkinson. T: Short, Stephenson, Atkinson, Baldwin, Spurling. C: Sharp 5. P: Sharp 2.

 

Referee: Matthew Carley.

 

Touch Judges: Phil Watters and Roger Baileff.

 

Attendance: 1,455.

MATCH REPORT V DONCASTER

Bedford Blues held their nerve at Goldington Road tonight to secure a vitally important 38-26 victory and relegate Doncaster Knights out of the RFU Championship.

 

The bonus-point win lifted Bedford back up to third in the table and a single point from Saturday’s final regular season fixture at Moseley will confirm their place in the play-offs, although forwards coach Martin Hynes afterwards declared nothing else but a victory would do.

 

Bedford bounced back from Saturday’s disappointing home defeat to play-off rivals Leeds in ideal fashion as they ran in six tries in an engrossing and entertaining contest.

 

The hosts seemed well in control at the break as they led 28-7 playing down the slope thanks to try doubles from Scott Spurling and the impressive Ollie Dodge as Myles Dorrian converted all four.

 

Sandwiched in the middle was Knights captain Matt Challinor’s score as the visitors stared relegation in the face at the interval.

 

With the sin-binned Chris Hallam back on for Doncaster after the break the Knights sensed an unlikely comeback as a penalty try and superb score, finished off by Dante Mama, plus two more conversions from the boot of Dougie Flockhart, moved Doncaster to within seven points.

 

But the Blues found renewed resolve to seal victory with two unconverted tries. First Neil Cochrane was driven over and winger James Short then lit up Goldington Road with a length-of-the-field score as Dorrian’s second conversion attempt hit a post.

 

Never-say-die Doncaster were given a glimmer of hope when Connor Braid earned them a bonus point with their fourth try, as the otherwise flawless Flockhart failed to convert, but Bedford finished the game on the front foot to secure a massively important victory.

 

Bedford made seven changes from the team that lost so disappointingly to Leeds on Saturday as Spurling, Phil Boulton, Nick Fenton-Wells, Darryl Veenendaal, Dorrian, Dodge and Short were all handed starts.

 

Needing victory to stand any chance of staying up Knights started well and turned down a kickable penalty on three minutes to go for the corner instead. Bedford pinched back possession as players from both teams proceeded to clash as three Knights and two Blues, including both captains, were given a long talking to by referee David Rose.

 

However, Bedford took the lead when Dodge’s brilliant break saw him elude three tacklers before being brought down close to the line. The hosts proceeded to win a penalty and kicked to the corner where a catch-and-drive move followed and Spurling touched down on nine minutes with Dorrian adding the extras.

 

Relegation-threatened Doncaster though looked dangerous though as they ran the ball at every opportunity.

 

A nippy break from Veenendaal promised much but the ball went loose before the hosts ran in a fine second try midway through the half. Quick feet from Short created the opening and he found the supporting Dodge to cross to the left of the posts with Dorrian doing the rest.

 

But Bedford gave Knights a glimmer of hope when they butchered a move in midfield and Phil Boulton’s pass was intercepted. Flockhart was brought down just short of the line but a spell of pressure on the line eventually saw Challinor force his way over on 27 minutes and Flockhart added the extras.

 

Bedford themselves enjoyed a spell of pressure as their forwards impressed, but Josh Bassett was stopped just short of the line as the visitors survived.

 

Ben Ransom, Dodge and Short counter-attacked well as ex-Blue Adam Kettle gave away a cynical penalty at the breakdown, before Knights were penalised at a ruck and Hallam was maybe wrongly identified as he was yellow-carded.

 

Veenedaal’s chip and chase almost bore fruit before Blues got their third try a minute before the break when Spurling darted in under the posts for his second try of the night and Dorrian landed a simple kick.

 

Ben Cooper replaced Boulton just before the break and there was still time for Bedford to secure a try bonus point in stoppage time. Veenendaal’s kick put the visitors on the back foot and Ransom’s quick-thinking saw him take a quick long throw for Dodge to go in under the posts and Dorrian converted to make it 28-7 at the break.

 

Joseva Nayacavou replaced ex-Blue Jamie Lennard at the break and almost made an immediate impact as he burst through and found Kettle, but he was brought down close to the line.

 

Back to their full complement Knights hit back with a second try as they looked to have lost the ball at a scrum in the corner but a penalty try was given and Flockhart added the easy extras.

 

And the Knights got themselves right back into the game with a third try on 52 minutes when a superb break by Tyson Lewis saw him find Mama on the overlap and he looped in as Flockhart was on target again to narrow the gap to seven points.

 

Bedford finally found a response as they exerted pressure on the Donny line and from a catch-and-drive Cochrane rumbled over the line just past the hour, but Dorrian missed his kick.

 

Will Hafu and Nayacavou threatened again for the visitors before a brilliant length-of-the-field score from Short seemingly killed the contest. He hacked on a grubber kick out of defence and shrugged off an ankle tap to score on 67 minutes, but Dorrian sent his conversion against the near post.

 

Another darting Dodge impressed the Goldington Road faithful before Donny set up a nervous finish with a fourth try with 10 minutes to go.

 

Bassett stepped in as opposite wing Flockhart roared into the open space and found Braid to score in the corner as the winger missed his conversion attempt for the first time.

 

From there there were few alarms though as Brendan Burke’s jinking run almost opened up the Doncaster defence.

 

Bedford finished the match on the front foot, forcing a series of penalties close to the Doncaster line who continued to try and run the ball from their own try-line right until the final whistle which confirmed their relegation to National Division One.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn, Scott Spurling (Neil Cochrane 49), Phil Boulton (Ben Cooper 40), Mike Howard, Paul Tupai (Joe Vandermolen 76), Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (C), Nick Fenton-Wells, Darryl Veenendaal (Luke Baldwin 55), Myles Dorrian, Josh Bassett (Jake Sharp 78), Ollie Dodge, Brendan Burke, James Short, Ben Ransom (Mark Atkinson 74). Replacements not used: Dan Seal. T: Spurling 2, Dodge 2, Cochrane, Short. C: Dorrian 4.

 

Knights: Tom Davies, Ben Sowery, Tom Francis (Ben Hooper 64), Matt Challinor (C), Dom Parsons, Andy Boyde (Jack Bergmanas 64), Will Hafu, Adam Kettle (Chris Planchant 58), Chris Hallam (Louis Silver 64), Jamie Lennard (Joseva Nayacavou 41), Tyson Lewis, Connor Braid, Dante Mama, Dougie Flockhart, Michael Keating. Replacements not used: Andy Brown. T: Challinor, Penalty Try, Mama, Braid. C: Flockhart 2.

 

Referee: David Rose.

 

Assistant Referees: Simon Harding and Darryl Chapman.

 

Attendance: 1,552.

MATCH REPORT V LEEDS

Bedford Blues’ place in the semi-finals of the RFU Championship is on hold after they suffered a frustrating 33-24 defeat against Leeds Carnegie at Goldington Road.

 

With both sides vying for that all-important top four finish, it was the visitors who raced into a first half lead as Joe Ford, Josh Griffin and David Doherty scored in quick succession.

 

Bedford were poor in the opening quarter of the game, missing countless tackles, yet Brendan Burke provided the fightback for the Blues as he scored two tries.

 

Referee Ian Tempest, who had an off afternoon, was then called into action as tempers flared and both sides were reduced to 14 men.

 

James Stephenson also saw yellow just before the break and it was Carnegie who took a 27-12 lead into the interval.

 

Ford converted a penalty for Leeds at the start of the second period, while Tom Armes and Neil Cochrane’s scores provided what could tunr out to be a crucial a try bonus point in an otherwise disappointing afternoon for the Blues.

 

Bedford made just two changes to the side that beat Llanelli last time out. Dan Seal returned to the front row in place of Ben Cooper, while James Stephenson came in for James Short on the wing.

 

Both sides exchanged possession in the opening five minutes, but it was the visitors who put the first points on the board.

 

Josh Griffin ran through a gap in the Blues defence and then tried to latch on to his own kick.

 

Ben Ransom recovered, but was he put to touch and from the resulting lineout Ford slipped a clever grubber kick behind the Bedford defence to score himself.

 

The fly-half converted his own try and hooker Scott Freer attempted to double Carnegie’s advantage as he broke his way through the holes in the Blues ranks, only to knock the ball forward as he tried to offload.

 

Bedford responded as Luke Baldwin burst up the Goldington Road slope and fed Mark Atkinson who gained further yards. The Blues kept the move going and Burke dived over in the corner.

 

Sharp failed to covert, and Leeds, who have scored more tries in the first 20 minutes of matches than any other Championship side, scored their second as the lively Griffin went over.

 

Ford converted as Bedford were making life far too easy for their opponents as Carnegie scored again just after the restart.

 

Leeds worked the ball with precision along their backline and, as the Blues defence dropped off tackles, winger Doherty sprinted 50 metres down the touchline to score a length-of-the-field try for the visitors.

 

Ford converted, and with less than 20 minutes on the clock, Bedford trailed 21-5.

 

Armes went in search of a comeback for the Blues as he burst out the back of a scrum, before offloading to Baldwin who gained valuable yards up field.

 

And the pressure paid off as Bedford were awarded a penalty and, having opted for the lineout, the game came to an abrupt halt as the first of several brawls broke out.

 

Gregor Gillanders and Calum Green received yellow cards for their part in proceedings, while referee Tempest overturned a penalty he had awarded in Bedford’s favour - one of a number of contentious decisions that went against the hosts.

 

Leeds came back once again and the Blues had their ranks depleted further as Stephenson was carded for a dangerous tackle close to his own line, which enabled Ford to convert a penalty.

 

Despite only having 13 men, Bedford showed plenty of fight as Burke scored his second of the afternoon as he cut a nice line to dot the ball down.

 

Sharp sailed the conversion through the posts, but Ford converted another penalty after home side were penalised for using hands in the ruck.

 

The half time whistle couldn’t come quick enough for the Blues as they went into the break 27-12 behind.

 

Leeds got the second half off to a flier as Ford converted a penalty after Mike Howard was deemed not to have to rolled away in the tackle.

 

A spell of heavy pressure for Bedford then followed and they got within touching distance of a try as Dan Seal was held up.

 

The Blues tried to set up another attack from the five-metre scrum, but Armes knocked the ball forward with the line beckoning.

 

Sharp then tried to create an opening as he chipped the ball over the Leeds defence and was taken out with a high tackle while in the air, only for referee Tempest to bizarrely wave play on.

 

The Goldington Road crowd voiced their frustration, but there was reason to cheer soon after as Armes bundled the ball home for a try that Sharp converted.

 

Bedford then conceded another penalty for pushing too early in the scrum and Ford took full advantage to make the score 33-19 in Carnegie’s favour.

 

It was going to take a miracle for the Blues to turn it around as Stephenson looked to weave his magic down the right flank, but was denied by a brilliant covering tackle from Steve McColl.

 

The pressure mounted as replacement fly-half Myles Dorrian tried to slide Stephenson in with a neat grubber, however McColl was again on hand to avert the danger.

 

The Blues’ refusal to let Leeds out of their own 22 finally paid off as a catch-and-drive move from a lineout saw Cochrane bundle his way over.

 

Dorrian missed the kickable conversion and, as time ran out, Bedford were left to rue their first 20-minute performance that ultimately left them with too big mountain to climb.

 

The result leaves Bedford in fourth place on points difference ahead of Bristol with two games to play.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn, Neil Cochrane, Dan Seal (Ben Cooper 58), Mike Howard (Nick Fenton-Wells 58), Paul Tupai, Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (C), Tom Armes (Joe Vandermolen 56), Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 79), Jake Sharp (Myles Dorrian 58), Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson (Ollie Dodge 64), Brendan Burke, James Stephenson, Ben Ransom. Replacements not used: Chris Locke. T: Burke 2, Armes, Cochrane. C: Sharp 2.

 

Leeds Carnegie: Lee Imiolek (Ben Harris 58), Scott Freer (Joe Graham 58), James Currie (Damien Tussac 79), Calum Green, Dominic Barrow (Pierce Phillips 71), Rob Baldwin, Chris Walker (Ryan Burrows 53), Jacob Rowan (C), Craig Hampson (James Doherty 36), Joe Ford, David Doherty, Pete Lucock, Josh Griffin, Oli Goss, Stevie McColl. Replacements not used: Christian Georgiou. T: Ford, Griffin, D Doherty. C: Ford 4. P: Ford 3.

 

Referee: Ian Tempest.

 

Touch Judges: David Procter and Simon McConnell

MATCH REPORT V LLANELLI

Bedford Blues battled into the semi-finals of the British & Irish Cup with a 32-18 victory over Llanelli..

 

The two sides have recent history in this competition, as Luke Baldwin’s last-minute try was enough to scrape a draw for Bedford in December 2011.

 

Despite taking an early lead thanks to the boot of Jake Sharp, Bedford fell behind as Kristian Phillips and Nic Reynolds scored two quick tries for Llanelli.

 

The home side reduced the deficit as Sharp played in Josh Bassett for a superb try before both sides traded penalties as it was the home side who trailed 15-13 at the interval.

 

However, the Blues were resurgent after half time as Bassett grabbed his second of the afternoon, while Sharp continued to put points on the board as he kicked penalties at regular intervals.

 

Bedford made six changes to the side that beat Cornish Pirates on Easter Sunday as Baldwin and Sharp covered the half-back positions, while James Short started on the wing. There was also a place on the bench for new singing Nick Fenton-Wells.

 

As the only Welsh side to make it through to the quarter-final stages, Llanelli looked to attack Bedford from the off as Dale Ford and Kyle Evans tried to create openings.

 

Both sides were looking fired-up as referee Sean Gallacher was called in to calm things down and, after the restart, Bedford were awarded a penalty that Sharp confidently hammered home.

 

The home side continued to fight their way up the Goldington Road slope and were awarded a second penalty after Llanelli were judged to have pulled the maul down.

 

Sharp this time missed and Bedford were punished moments later as Llanelli turned the ball over and Phillips cut through to put the ball under the posts.

 

Ford converted and the travelling fans were on their feet again five minutes later as Gareth Davies and Jonny Lewis combined to play in Reynolds to score.

 

Bedford made the perfect response though as Sharp picked the ball up in midfield and chipped a delightful kick over the Llanelli backline for Bassett to dive over the whitewash.

 

The two sides then traded penalties as Ford sent one over from 40 metres out but, not to be outdone, Sharp matched him for distance just before half time.

 

Trailing 15-13 at the break, Bedford got off to the perfect start in the second period as Sharp converted a simple penalty after he was taken out kicking ahead.

 

And the Blues had a spring in their step as Mark Atkinson sliced through the Llanelli defence and raced down field, enabling Bassett to score his second.

 

Sharp converted superbly from the touchline, yet Llanelli were given a lifeline as Ford converted another kick from distance to make cut Bedford’s lead to 23-18.

 

The home side continued to make life difficult for their Welsh opposition and, when Llanelli popped the scrum up deep in their own half, Sharp converted his fourth penalty of the afternoon.

 

Blues fly-half, Sharp, then missed another penalty but he made amends from the tee two minutes later as Llanelli replacement prop Craig Cross saw yellow for a high tackle.

 

And with 80 minutes on the clock there was still time for Sharp to convert his sixth penalty of the afternoon as Bedford marched into the semi-finals.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn, Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 72), Ben Cooper (Dan Seal 55), Mike Howard, Paul Tupai, Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (C), Nick Fenton-Wells 57), Tom Armes, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 66), Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson (Ollie Dodge 51), Brendan Burke, James Short, Ben Ransom. Replacements not used: Joe Vandermolen, Ian Vass. T: Bassett 2. C: Sharp 2. P: Sharp 6.

 

Llanelli: Rhys Thomas (Jamie Kaijacks 80), Kirby Myhill, Aled Hopkins (Craig Cross 61), Adam Powell (C), Joel Galley (Nathan White 57), Lewis Rawlins (Duane Eager 70), Daniel Thomas, Craig Price, Gareth Davies (Ryan Jones 80), Jonny Lewis (Jordan Williams 70), Kyle Evans, Chris Keenan, Nic Reynolds, Kristian Phillips, Dale Ford. Replacements not used: Craig Hawkins. T: Phillips, Reynolds. C: Ford. P: Ford 2.

 

Referee: Sean Gallacher.

 

Touch Judges: Simon Harding and Roger Baileff.

 

Attendance: 2,162.

MATCH REPORT V CORNISH PIRATES

Bedford Blues put their recent disappointing form behind them as they produced a strong second half performance to beat the Cornish Pirates 26-18 at a windswept Mennaye Field on Sunday afternoon, writes Dick Straughan.

The Pirates started brightly on a freezing cold afternoon in West Cornwall, taking the game to the Blues from the outset.

 

Flanker Phil Burgess quickly established himself as a menace in open play, while fly-half Jonny Bentley, on his return to action after 17 months on the sidelines, showed glimpses of his old magic.

Junior Fatialofa’s barnstorming break drew a penalty on eight minutes and full-back Grant Pointer stepped up to give the Pirates a deserved lead.

 

But the Bedford response was quick to come and former Pirates 10 Myles Dorrian set about his own personal points haul of 19 for the game with a 14th-minute penalty to level the game.

 

Dorrian struck twice more before the half-hour mark in a helter-skelter first half as the Pirates struggled with handling errors and a malfunctioning lineout which gave the Blues possession and frustrated the home team.

 

Centre Tom Riley should have scored for the Pirates only to knock-on when well placed and Bentley was forced off with a turned ankle just before the interval.

 

But the Pirates did respond when Matt Evans carved a path through the Blues rearguard and Fatialofa crashed over the line for an unconverted try.

 

Trailing by one point at the break the Pirates started the second half slowly as Dorrian and Darryly Veenendaal orchestrated the midfield for the Blues.

 

Wing James Stephenson was proving a tricky customer for the home defence and he set up Dorrian’s 43rd-minute try in the corner.

 

The Australian converted and then, after Neil Cochrane’s breakdown offence had given Kieran Hallett three points back for the Pirates, he linked well with Stephenson to set up Josh Bassett for his 11th try of the season as Dorrian banged over the extras for a 23-11 lead.

 

Three minutes later the Pirates were reduced to 14 men as Fatialofa smashed into the ball-carrying Dan Seal in front of the Pirates posts but failed to roll away.

 

Another simple penalty brought another easy three points for Bedford, but the Pirates were not finished.

 

With Dorrian again probing in the home 22 the Pirates seized on a loose pass and broke first with Tom Kessell and then Matt Evans who showed great composure before offloading to Phil Burgess for a try at the posts.

 

Hallett converted but the Pirates couldn’t claw back any more as Bedford defended well and forced errors in a scrappy final 10 minutes.

 

For Bedford their recent wobble in form now appears behind them with the play-offs firmly back on track, while the Cornish Pirates have a cup quarter-final against Munster next week as they look to take something from a tough season.

 

Pirates: Andrew, Elloway (Semmens 66), Joyce (Prescott 52, Joyce 59), Barry (Lyons 66), Johnson, Marriott (C) (Cheesman 55), Burgess, McGlone, Kessell, Bentley (Hallett 37), Evans, Fatialofa (Bedford 66), Riley, Mercer, Pointer. Replacements not used: Cattle. T: Fatialofa, Burgess. C: Hallett. P: Pointer. Yellow Cards: Fatialofa.

 

Blues: Reeves (Fearn 48), Cochrane (Spurling 74), Seal (Cooper 66) Howard, Tupai, Gillanders, Fox (C), Barrell (Armes 48), Veenendaal (Baldwin 66) Dorrian, Bassett, Atkinson, Burke (Dodge 55), Stephenson, Ransom. Replacements not used: Sharp. T: Dorrian, Bassett. C: Dorrian. P: Dorrian 4.

 

Referee: M Carley (RFU)

 

Attendance: 2,032.

MATCH REPORT V NEWCASTLE

Bedford Blues were denied a sensational victory in the most cruel of circumstances as Newcastle Falcons scored a last-gasp try on a bitterly cold evening at Kingston Park on Friday night.

Blues were leading 15-10 before Newcastle debutant Noah Cato scored a try in the dying moments which was converted by Jimmy Gopperth with the last kick of the game as Falcons wrapped up top spot.

 

Bedford did not score a try, but that did not seem set to matter one bit as the boots of Mark Atkinson and Myles Dorian did the trick. League leaders Falcons produced a late surge, though, and denied the Blues a famous win.

Blues made seven changes to the side which lost to Bristol on Saturday. Injured captain James Pritchard was replaced by Brendan Burke, while there were starts for Josh Bassett, Daryl Veenendaal, Myles Dorrian, Darren Fearn, Chris Locke and Ben Cooper.

 

Cato made his debut for the Falcons, who were looking to preserve their unbeaten record in the league and secure top spot.

 

The Blues made the perfect start as Dorian took advantage of a late tackle from Falcons captain Will Welch, striking his penalty from midway inside Newcastle’s half cleanly through the posts for a 3-0 lead three minutes in.

 

Bedford enjoyed good possession and put their opponents under pressure in the opening exchanges, showing that the gap between these two teams is perhaps not as large as the league table may suggest.

 

The Falcons threatened to burst into life as they attacked with added verve, but two handling errors from fly-half Gopperth saw the effort eventually foiled.

 

Newcastle retained possession beyond Bedford’s 22-yard line though, but the move ultimately came to nothing.

 

If Bedford were in any doubt as to Newcastle’s threat, that passage of play from the Falcons proved it beyond any doubt as the crowd began to get behind the home side.

 

The Falcons enjoyed a number of penalties, but Blues’ defence was holding firm and refusing to be overawed.

 

Good kicking from the hosts ensured they continued to gain significant territorial advantages, but with only one real threat of a try which ultimately came to no avail.

 

Tensions between the sides gradually grew over the opening half hour and the Falcons were awarded a penalty on 30 minutes, which Gopperth hit wide from about 10 yards inside the Blues’ half.

 

And then, against the run of play, a piece of magic from inside centre Atkinson doubled Blues’ lead.

He let fly from just inside the Falcons’ half to hand his side a 6-0 advantage and put Newcastle’s unbeaten record under serious threat in the closing stages of the first half.

 

All Bedford’s hard work was undone though by one of the most bizarre tries of the season on the stroke of half time.

 

Gopperth’s penalty from 15 yards inside Bedford’s half hit both posts, bounced down, hit the bar and dropped kindly into the arms of inside centre Jamie Helleur to touch down for a try.

 

Falcons fly-half Gopperth then converted to give his side a 7-6 lead at the interval to send Bedford into the dressing room ruing their luck.

 

Gopperth had a chance to extend the Falcons’ lead just a matter of minutes into the second half, but he again sent a long-range penalty wide to give Bedford a reprieve.

 

The game entered a bit of a lull then, but burst back into life with a 25-man brawl which saw Blues’ James Stephenson and Falcons’ Gopperth sin-binned.

 

Bedford were also awarded a penalty, which Dorian duly curled home to regain his side’s lead, this time 9-7.

 

With the game getting increasingly tetchy, Newcastle’s Ally Hogg took the man out at the restart and was carded by the referee, making it temporarily 13 versus 14 in.

 

By this point the home side were looking increasingly ragged, with a number of kicking errors exacerbating their one-man disadvantage.

 

Bedford took full advantage of their opponents’ troubles, with Atkinson again striking a sweet drop-goal from near the halfway line to extend his side’s lead to 12-7.

 

He had another go just a matter of minutes later, but hit it narrowly wide.

 

Blues would not be denied, though, and after Newcastle were penalised for obstruction, Dorian made it 15-7 with yet another sweet penalty.

 

The hosts were given hope though heading into the last 10 minutes as Gopperth easily converted a penalty following a Blues offside.

 

The crowd were becoming increasingly vocal, and clearly encouraging the home side forward as the game reached a grandstand finish.

 

And Newcastle broke through after a period of great pressure when Cato eventually touched the ball down, and Gopperth converted with the last kick of the game.

 

Falcons: Jonny Golding, Matt Thompson (Mayhew 69), Oliver Tomaszczyk (Kieran Brookes 48), Scott MacLeod, James Hudson, Mark Wilson, Will Welch (C), Ally Hogg, Rory Lawson, Jimmy Gopperth, Ryan Shortland, Jamie Helleur, Michael Tait (Alex Crockett 72), Noah Cato, Tom Catterick. Replacements not used: Sean Tomes, Taiasina Tu’ifua, Warren Fury, Joel Hodgson, T: Helleur, Cato. C: Gopperth 2 P: Gopperth.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Neil Cochrane 48), Chris Locke (Ricky Reeves 48), Ben Cooper (Dan Seal 70), Mike Howard, Ben Gulliver (Paul Tupai 48), Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (C), Don Barrell, Daryl Veenendaal (Luke Baldwin 75), Myles Dorrian, Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Ollie Dodge, James Stephenson, Brendan Burke. Replacements not used: Joe Vandermolen, Luke Baldwin, Jake Sharp. P: Dorian 3. DG: Atkinson 2.

 

Referee: Llyr ApGerraint-Roberts.

 

Attendance: 3,967.

 

MATCH REPORT V BRISTOL

Bedford Blues produced a disappointing display as they suffered an 18-6 defeat against Bristol at Goldington Road this afternoon, writes Michael Hann.

 

Bristol had won the last three meetings between the two sides coming into this fixture and they enjoyed the better of the first period as Adrian Jarvis kicked two penalties, while Luke Eves scored the first try of the afternoon.

 

James Pritchard converted two penalties after the break for the Blues, but Ryan Edwards’ converted try gave Bristol a comfortable win.

 

Bedford made four changes to the side that beat Plymouth two weeks ago. Dan Seal and Ben Gulliver started amongst the forwards, while Mark Kohler and Ollie Dodge took their place in the back line.

 

Plenty of aggression was on display as the two packs tore into each other from the start, knowing the outcome of this match could prove all-important come the end of the season.

 

Bristol had an early chance to put points on the board when they won a penalty after the Blues failed to release in the tackle, but Jarvis sent his kick went wide and, after the restart, it was Bedford’s turn to go on the attack.

 

The home side worked the ball well across the backs, however there was no way through the resolute Bristol defence.

 

And it was Andy Robinson’s men who took the lead as they kept the pressure on from a lineout and won a penalty that Jarvis converted.

 

Blues scrum-half Luke Baldwin then provided his side’s first meaningful attack as he broke away superbly from the Bristol defence and chipped the ball towards the try line.

 

Jack Tovey recovered the ball for the visitors, but he was dumped into the goal area for a five-metre scrum and the pressure was eventually lifted as Bristol were awarded a penalty.

 

Much of the play was now with Bristol and they were rewarded when Eves crashed over in the corner after some patient build-up play.

 

Jarvis missed the conversion from the touchline, but Bristol now lead 8-0.

 

Ruki Tipuna then looked to extend the visitors’ advantage as he burst out the back of a scrum inside the Blues half.

 

The scrum-half tried to slide a grubber kick in behind the Bedford defence, but Kohler was on hand to put the ball into touch.

 

There was a lack of fluidity to the Blues’ game and, as they tried to create openings, handling errors started to prove costly.

 

And, with half time approaching, Bristol extended their lead as a lineout inside the Blues 22 saw the home side concede another penalty that Jarvis converted.

 

Bristol led 11-0 at the break, but the first cheer of the second half belonged to Blues fans as Pritchard converted a penalty.

 

Yet any joy was short-lived as the visitors scored their second try soon after.

 

Bristol worked the ball superbly and spun it through the hands of Fautua Otto and Tovey before it was worked to Edwards who bludgeoned his way over.

 

Jarvis converted, however the Blues response was instant as Pritchard converted his second penalty of the afternoon.

 

But from the restart Bristol were again the aggressors as they had another try held up.

 

The visitors were not deterred and they continued to control the game as they stole another Blues lineout that enabled Otto to race down the touchline.

 

The buccaneering centre looked to have scored, but the home side had done enough to turn the ball over in the nick of time.

 

Bedford responded with a surge up the slope and got to within 10 metres of the Bristol line, only to be penalised for not releasing the ball quickly enough.

 

With time running out for Bedford, the visitors continued to starve them of possession.

 

And there was to be no way back for the Blues as they tasted defeat at Goldington Road for only the second time this season.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves (Ben Cooper 49), Neil Cochrane (Chris Locke 51), Dan Seal, Mike Howard, Ben Gulliver (Paul Tupai 67), Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox (Joe Vandermolen 67), Don Barrell, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 60), Jake Sharp (Myles Dorrian 51), Mark Kohler, Mark Atkinson, Ollie Dodge (Brendan Burke 60)., James Stephenson, James Pritchard (C). P: Pritchard 2.

 

Bristol: Kyle Traynor, Ross Johnston (Rhys Lawrence 77), Wayne Thompson (Bruce Douglas 54), Mariano Sambucetti (Ben Glynn 54), Glen Townson, Marco Mama, Redford Pennycook (James Merriman 72), Mitch Eadie, Ruki Tipuna (C) (James Grindal 77), Adrian Jarvis (Tristan Roberts 74), Ryan Edwards, Luke Eves, Fautua Otto (Ben Mosses 80), George Watkins, Jack Tovey. T: Eves, Edwards. C: Jarvis. P: Jarvis 2.

 

Referee: Ian Tempest.

 

Touch Judges: Phil Watters and Simon McConnell.

 

Attendance: 2,933

MATCH REPORT V PLYMOUTH

Bedford Blues narrowly overcame Plymouth Albion 28-27 in a topsy-turvy encounter at Brickfields on Saturday.

 

Paul Roberts missed a last minute conversion as Bedford secured a bonus point victory by a single point.

The home side had only beaten the Blues once in their previous 10 meetings and they got off to the worst possible start when Neil Cochrane scored after five minutes.

 

Bedford continued to enjoy much of the possession in the opening half an hour as James Stephenson added a second.

 

However, Plymouth responded and scored a converted try through Rhodri McAtee, while Roberts slotted home a penalty right on half time as Bedford led 14-10 at the break.

 

Albion continued to apply the pressure at the start of the second half and they were rewarded as Harrison Tovey went over.

 

Josh Bassett was the next man to cross for the Blues, but the visitors’ lead was short-lived as Ruairi Cushion put Plymouth back in front.

 

With five minutes to go Mark Atkinson set up Darryl Veenendaal to score, but in time added on Aaron Carpenter’s try moved Plymouth to within a point, only for Roberts to miss with the final kick.

 

Bedford made five changes to the side that beat Jersey last weekend. Phil Boulton, Paul Tupai, Darren Fox, Luke Baldwin and Brendan Burke all returned to the starting line-up, while there was a place on the bench for the returning Myles Dorrian.

 

The Blues got off a flying start and scored the game’s first try within five minutes. After opting for a lineout from a penalty, the Bedford forwards got to work and drove Albion back 10 metres, enabling Cochrane to score.

 

James Pritchard converted and Bedford went close again minutes later. Atkinson broke free from the Plymouth defence and he played in winger Stephenson who cut back inside his man, however, when he tried to offload Albion cleared the ball to touch.

 

The visitors kept on coming and Baldwin thought he had scored when his quickly taken penalty deceived the Plymouth defence, only for the ball to be held up in the goal area.

 

As the first half wore on the home team enjoyed their first spell of possession, yet it was the Blues who came closest to scoring again.

 

A lineout 10-metres from Plymouth’s line again saw the Bedford forwards drive them back. Cochrane got the ball down but referee, Steve Lee, said the ball had been held up again.

 

But from the resulting five-metre scrum Bedford did get their second try. The ball was worked out of the set-piece quickly and Stephenson crashed over, with Pritchard again adding the extras.

 

However, Plymouth scored instantly from the restart. They turned the ball over inside the Blues’ 22 and, after several phases, McAtee crossed and Roberts converted to put the home side right back in it.

 

With their tails up, Plymouth reduced the deficit further thanks to a Roberts penalty after Bedford failed to release in the tackle as Blues led 14-10 at the break with everything still to play for.

 

And it was the Albion who made a rapid start to the second period as second row Tovey ran down the wing and powered his way past Bassett to score.

 

Roberts missed the conversion, but for the first time in the match Plymouth led at 15-14.

 

Nevertheless their advantage didn’t last long. Bedford worked the ball well in the middle of the pitch and Jake Sharp spotted Bassett with a pass that allowed the winger to race through and score.

 

Pritchard converted and, with the game was being played at a frantic pace, Plymouth touched down soon after.

 

A scrum inside the Blues half fed Bevon Armitage who combined well with Cushion and the scrum-half dived under the posts as Roberts conversion once again edged the hosts into the lead.

 

As time wore on the home side kept the ball well as they made life difficult for the Blues.

 

However, with five minutes to play Atkinson split the Albion defence with a superb break, before playing in replacement scrum-half Veenendaal to score.

 

Pritchard converted the pressure kick, but if anyone thought the game was over then they were mistaken.

 

With the clock ticking past 80 minutes, Albion camped themselves deep in the Blues’ territory and, after a series of penalties, the ball was sprayed wide to Carpenter who scrambled it home in the corner.

 

Brickfields erupted, but any hope of a victory was short-lived as Roberts skewed his kick from the touchline wide.

 

Time was up and Bedford had just about done enough for a victory to keep them second in the Championship table.

 

Albion: Jack Andrew (David Morton 73), Jon Vickers, Lloyd Fairbrother, Rupeni Nasiga, Harrison Tovey (Sam Matavesi 67), Sean-Michael Stephen, Sam Hocking, Aaron Carpenter, Ruairi Cushion (C), Paul Roberts, Tom Bowen (Paul Rowley 62), Bevon Armitage, Tobias Howley-Berridge, Lewis Warner, Rhodri McAtee (Paul Bailey 40). Replacements not used: Ben Rogers, Tom Cowan-Dickie, Wayne Sprangle.

 

T: McAtee, Tovey, Cushion, Carpenter. C: Roberts 2. P: Roberts.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves, Neil Cochrane, Phil Boulton (Dan Seal 46), Paul Tupai (Ben Gulliver 46), Mike Howard, Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox, Don Barrell (Tom Armes 40), Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 74), Jake Sharp (Myles Dorrian 50), Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke (Ollie Dodge 63), James Stephenson, James Pritchard (C). Replacements not used: Chris Locke.

 

T: Cochrane, Stephenson, Bassett, Veenendaal. C: Pritchard 4.

 

Referee: Steve Lee.

 

Touch Judges: Nick Williams and James Minards.

 

Attendance: 1,548.

MATCH REPORT V JERSEY

Bedford Blues produced a master class in forward play as they beat Jersey 38-21 at Goldington Road on Saturday afternoon.

 

Having lost their last two Championship fixtures, the Blues claimed a much-needed win over a Jersey side that had not won away from home in the league this season.

It was the home side that took the initiative in a tight first period as James Pritchard kicked three penalties, while Neil Cochrane scored the game’s first try.

 

Former Blue Ross Broadfoot did kick three penalties for Jersey, but it was Bedford who led 14-9 at half time.

 

And the Blues put in an excellent performance after the break as they ran in four more tries. Cochrane got his second, while Jake Sharp, Mark Atkinson and Ben Gulliver helped secure a bonus point victory.

 

Jersey did score twice through Nicky Griffiths and Guy Thompson, but the damage had already been done.

 

Bedford made just minor changes to the side that demolished Bedwas last time out. There were starts for Neil Cochrane and Ben Cooper in the front row, while leading try scorer Josh Bassett started on the wing.

 

The match started at a frantic pace and the opening five minutes saw the two sides trade penalties.

 

An early offside gave Pritchard the chance to put his side in front, but the scores were level minutes after as Broadfoot converted one of his own.

 

It was end-to-end stuff and Pritchard converted his second penalty just after the restart as the visitors failed to roll away in the tackle.

 

The Islanders were again next to score as a strong maul from a lineout earnt them precious territory up field.

 

The Blues pack struggled to contain them and, when they came in at the side, a penalty was conceded that Broadfoot converted.

 

Jersey then took the lead as a series of retaken scrums saw Bedford concede another penalty that Broadfoot slotted between the uprights.

 

But the home side were not behind for long as they scored the first try of the afternoon.

The Blues’ forwards started a maul on Jersey’s 22 and drove them right back to their own try-line, which enabled Cochrane to scramble the ball over.

 

Pritchard missed the conversion, but he made amends right on half time as he converted a penalty after Chris Levesley failed to release in the tackle as he saw yellow for his troubles.

 

The Blues led 14-9 at half time, but had to play up the slope in the second period.

 

However, that did not seem to affect them and they started the second period magnificently as Sharp capped off a fine move.

 

James Stephenson’s piercing run up field got it started and the ball was then worked to Sharp who went over by the touchline.

 

Pritchard missed the conversion from a tight angle, while Broadfoot failed to reduce the deficit for his side as his penalty chance went wide.

 

And Bedford punished them as they grabbed a third try. After winning a lineout five metres from the Jersey line the Blues pack showed real strength and determination to force the opposition back as hooker Cochrane again touched down and Pritchard added the extras.

 

But Jersey were not dead and buried just yet as the impressive Thompson set up Griffiths to score with a superb offload as he looked to be heading for touch.

Broadfoot’s successful conversion meant there were just 10 points in it with the Islanders looking buoyant.

 

Nevertheless, Bedford’s defence was showing no signs of breaking as Jersey started to take the game to them.

 

And the pressure was lifted when replacement scrum-half Luke Baldwin broke free from the Jersey defence, before combining with Atkinson who put the ball underneath the posts.

 

There was still time for a fifth Bedford try of the afternoon as the Blues forwards once again bullied the Islanders back towards their own line and Gulliver went over to score his first try for the club.

 

As the clock ticked past 80 minutes Thompson scored an unconverted try, but the Blues triumphed as they moved back up to second in the Championship table following Nottingham’s 25-13 defeat at London Scottish.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves (Dan Seal 65), Neil Cochrane (Chris Locke 77), Ben Cooper (Phil Boulton 61), Mike Howard, Ben Gulliver, Gregor Gillanders, Tom Armes (Darren Fox 61), Don Barrell (Joe Vandermolen 56), Darryl Veenendaal (Luke Baldwin 61), Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Ollie Dodge (Brendan Burke 74), James Stephenson, James Pritchard (C).

 

T: Cochrane 2, Sharp, Atkinson, Gulliver. C: Pritchard 2. P: Pritchard 3.

 

Jersey: Richard Barrington (Sean McCarthy 48), Dave Felton (Charlie Clare 48), Jon Brennan (James Gethings 67), Nathan Hannay, Dave Markham, Kingsley Lang (Talite Vaioleti 75), Joe Buckle (Fred Silcock 56), Guy Thompson, Nicky Griffiths (C), Ross Broadfoot, Chris Levesley (Ashley Maggs 71), Tom Cooper, Max Stelling, Ed Dawson, Mike Le Bourgeois. Replacements not used: Dave McCormack.

 

T: Griffiths, Thompson. C: Broadfoot. P: Broadfoot 3.

 

Referee: Greg MacDonald.

 

Touch Judges: Rowan Kitt and James Minards.

 

Attendance: 2,242.

MATCH REPORT V BEDWAS

 

Bedford Blues concluded the pool stage of the British & Irish Cup with an emphatic 64-0 win against Bedwas on Friday night.

 

Having already secured their passage into the knockout stage, the Blues went into the game knowing a win would set up a home quarter-final against Llanelli.

 

And they set about doing that with a dominant first half performance in which they scored five tries. A penalty try got things under way, before Mark Kohler scored twice, while Darren Fearn and Darryl Veenendaal also got on the scoresheet.

 

The home side continued to bully their opponents after the break, scoring another five tries, with Kohler completing his hat-trick.

 

The Blues made nine changes to the side that lost to Nottingham last weekend. Fearn, Chris Locke and Dan Seal all started in the front-row, while there were also starts for the likes of Tom Armes, Don Barrell and Kohler.

 

Playing up the slope in the first half, it was Bedford who did the early pressing and Mike Howard looked to have scored when he burst through the visitors’ backline, only to be pulled back for a double movement.

 

The Blues continued to enjoy much of the possession and the pressure told as Deri Mattravers saw yellow for the visitors.

 

With a man advantage Bedford then punished the Welsh side as a scrum five metres from the Bedwas line proved too powerful for the visitors and a penalty try was awarded. Pritchard converted and the Blues didn’t have to wait long for their second.

 

James Stephenson burst up field superbly, leaving the Bedwas defence out of shape. The ball was then worked out wide to Kohler who dived over the whitewash.

Bedwas continued to struggle with Bedford’s pace and power and, after some good work from the Blues pack, Kohler received the ball on the wing and scored a similar try to his first.

 

With just over half an hour on the clock the Blues had their fourth try as prop Fearn bundled the ball over after more heavy pressure.

 

The visitors’ evening was then made worse when they were reduced to 14 men for a second time, with Tom Rowlands sent to the stands.

 

From the resulting penalty scrum-half Veenendaal spotted a gap in the Bedwas backline and dived under the posts for another try.

 

Pritchard converted as the Blues went into the interval with an emphatic 31-0 lead.

 

Bedford continued to enjoy most of the possession at the start of the second period, however the Bedwas defence seemed to be putting up more resistance.

 

Nevertheless, their defiance didn’t last long as replacement Joe Vandermolen dotted down after some patient build-up play, Pritchard adding the extras.

 

The floodgates had once again opened and Mark Atkinson split the Bedwas defence in half with a good break, before the ball eventually found its way to Stephenson to score.

 

Another break followed shortly after and this time it was Pritchard who darted through the heart of the visitors’ defence.

 

The Blues skipper then combined with Kohler who completed his hat-trick with the simplest of finishes.

 

Jake Sharp, now on kicking duty converted, and Bedford were 50 points in front.

 

As the game wore on the Welsh side looked dejected and they conceded yet another try when a scrum on their five-metre line was turned over, enabling Sharp to score.

 

The fly-half dusted himself off to convert and there was still time for Vandermolen to grab a second of the evening after some smart offloads.

 

Sharp once was again on target and, as the game came to a close, the Blues waltzed into the next round of the competition.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Ricky Reeves 72), Chris Locke (Neil Cochrane 72), Dan Seal (Ben Cooper 51), Mike Howard, Ben Gulliver, Gregor Gillanders (Joe Vandermolen 51),Tom Armes, Don Barrell (Darren Fox 72), Darryl Veenendaal (Ian Vass 67), Jake Sharp, Mark Kohler, Mark Atkinson, Ollie Dodge (Brendan Burke 61), James Stephenson, James Pritchard (C).

 

T: Penalty Try, Kohler 3, Fearn, Veenendaal, Vandermolen 2, Stephenson, Sharp. C: Pritchard 4, Sharp 3.

 

Bedwas: Aaron Coundley (Ian George 49), Ben Roberts (Rhys Hutcherson 47), Mathew Petit (Mathew Phelps 56), Chris Bundy, James Thomas, Simon Grainger (C), Thomas Organ (Aaron Harris 47), Deri Mattravers, Tom Rowlands (Rob Carter 64), Lewis Robling, Lewis Hudd, Scott Williams, Mathew John, Rory Budina, Mathew Minty (Josh Davies 56). Replacements not used: Phil Rees.

 

Referee: Darren Gamage.

 

Touch Judges: Nick Cockburn and Simon McConnell.

 

Attendance: 1,191.

MATCH REPORT V NOTTINGHAM

Bedford Blues suffered a 25-17 defeat against Nottingham in front of the Sky cameras at Meadow Lane this afternoon.

 

Only points difference separated the two sides coming into this game, however Bedford had won the last six Championship meetings against the Green and Whites.

 

But it was Nottingham who started the match brightly and they raced into an early lead as James Arlidge scored two quick penalties.

 

Bedford struggled to get out of their half for much of the first period and Tim Streather and Sean Romans both got on the scoresheet as the hosts led 18-0 at half time.

 

Nottingham continued to press at the start of the second half and were awarded a penalty try to further their advantage.

 

However, the visitors did stage a late fightback as Josh Bassett and James Stephenson went over, but it proved too little too late.

 

The Blues made wholesale changes to the side that narrowly beat Stirling two weeks ago. Most notably there were recalls for Neil Cochrane and Ben Gulliver, while Ben Ransom started his first match since November at full-back.

 

As the teams ran out in front of the Sky cameras it was the home side that took an early lead as Arlidge converted a penalty after the Blues infringed in the scrum.

 

The home side were already looking like a force to be reckoned with and they doubled their advantage minutes later as Arlidge converted a second penalty.

 

Bedford were really struggling to get to into the match and Nottingham’s expansive brand of rugby meant much of the play was inside the Blues’ 22.

 

And the Green and Whites’ dominance eventually paid off as a sweeping move saw winger Alex Lewington spot a gap in the Blues defence and he offloaded to Streather, who dived over in the corner. Arlidge missed the conversion though as Bedford trailed 11-0.

 

It was one-way traffic and Nottingham had a chance to further their lead as they won another penalty, but Arlidge missed from 48 metres.

 

The Blues’ troubles were then made worse as prop Phil Boulton saw yellow and shortly afterwards the Green and Whites thought they had scored a second, only for the TMO to rule that David Jackson’s effort had been held up.

 

However, from the resulting five-metre scrum the home side did score as scrum-half Romans bundled the ball home and Arlidge converted to make it 18-0.

 

Nottingham continued to press and they could have had their third try when Lewington stole the ball from Ransom and raced for the line.

 

Fortunately Jake Sharp was on hand to put the winger into touch and spare the Blues’ blushes.

 

With half time approaching Bedford did have a chance to pull three points back with a penalty, however James Pritchard sent his kick wide.

 

And that proved to be the final action of a fairly miserable first half for the Blues as they went into the break 18-0 down.

 

An offside at the start of the second period gave Bedford the chance to reduce the deficit, which Pritchard took to bring the scores back to 18-3.

 

Yet Nottingham continued to dominate proceedings and a string of penalties moved them deep into Blues’ territory.

 

And a scrum five-metres out gave the Green and Whites their third try of the afternoon as they were awarded a penalty try after the scrum rolled over.

 

Arlidge converted, but the travelling Blues fans were then given something to cheer as Ollie Dodge played in Bassett to score and Pritchard converted as, with 20 minutes to go, Bedford were still in with a shout.

 

But Nottingham were in no mood to let their lead slip like they had in September and Rhys Crane thought he had killed the Blues off with a try, only for it to be deemed that he had knocked the ball on as he crossed the line.

 

With five mintues to go Bedford did spark back into life with a superb try. Ransom’s break got the move started, before Darryl Veenedaal took over.

 

The ball was worked to Mark Atkinson who side-stepped his man and offloaded to Stephenson to score.

 

Sharp converted and with the scoreline now at 25-17 there was a nervy few minutes for the home side.

 

But the Green and Whites had done enough to triumph and the result means Bedford stay third in the Championship table, four points behind Nottingham.

 

Nottingham: Matt Parr, Joe Duffey (Shaun Malton 72), Michael Holford (Ryan Bower 69), Dan Montagu, Nic Rouse, Rupert Cooper, Brent Wilson (C), Alex Shaw (Tom Calladine 68), Sean Romans, James Arlidge, Rhys Crane, Joe Munro, Tim Streather, Alex Lewington, David Jackson. Replacements not used: Joe Quinn, Finlay Barnham, Rory Lynn, Joe Cobden. T: Streather, Romans, Penalty Try. C: Arlidge 2. P: Arlidge 2.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves, Neil Cochrane (Chris Locke 75), Phil Boulton (Dan Seal 50), Mike Howard, Ben Gulliver, Gregor Gillanders (Alex Rae 50), Darren Fox, Paul Tupai (Don Barrell 50), Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 75), Jake Sharp, James Pritchard (C) (James Stephenson 69), Ollie Dodge, Brendan Burke (Mark Atkinson 65), Josh Bassett, Ben Ransom. T: Bassett, Stephenson. C: Pritchard, Sharp. P: Pritchard.

 

Referee: Matthew Carley.

 

Touch Judges: Brian Ravenhill and Simon McConnell.

 

Attendance: 2,136.

MATCH REPORT V STIRLING

Bedford Blues held out against a late Stirling County comeback to triumph 24-21 in an enthralling match at Bridgehaugh on Saturday.

 

The bonus points victory sees Bedford top their British & Irish Cup Pool Two group and qualify for the quarter-finals of the competition.

 

County were looking to build on last week’s Premiership win in Aberdeen and were bolstered by props Ed Kalman and Jon Welsh from Glasgow Warriors, with Kalman starting.

 

Flying Scotland Sevens winger Rory Hughes returned from injury to also give the home side more attacking options, while Bengy Barsanti returned at number eight.

 

Bedford, who currently sit joint-second in the RFU Championship, came into this match having taken maximum points from their previous four British & Irish Cup Pool Two matches, and had convincingly won the earlier match between the two clubs at Goldington Road in October.

 

Bedford played with pace from the first whistle and, after attacks down both flanks, centre Ollie Dodge found a gap in the stretched home defence before putting supporting openside flanker Tom Armes in for the visitors’ opening try under the posts on seven minutes, converted by James Pritchard.

 

County responded and from a lineout inside the Blues’ half, the ball found Mark Bennett who broke through the centre but couldn’t find the final pass to supporting winger Rory Hughes.

 

However from the resultant Blues lineout, five yards from their try-line, Robbie Boswell stole the loose throw to the tail and scored a try unchallenged, converted by Brian Archibald to tie the scores at 7–7 after 10 minutes.

 

Bedford continued to press forward with their fast open running style of rugby, and regained the lead on 21 minutes when the visitors forwards drove County back over their own try line from 10 yards out and hooker Chris Locke was at the back to touch down. However the conversion was missed as the Blues led 12-7.

 

County defended well and weathered the Blues’ attacking play for the remainder of the first half with resolute, if at times unorthodox defence, as Bedford led 12-7 at the break.

 

County brought on props Jon Welsh and Colin Hutton for Ed Kalmam and Mike McDonald at the start of the second half.

 

But Bedford extended their lead on 48 minutes when the Blues pack gathered a lineout and drove forward before releasing the ball out to winger James Stephenson who sped over the try line to score, converted by Pritchard.

 

Three minutes later and the Blues secured the bonus point and qualification to the quarter-finals of the competition with their fourth try scored by Mark Atkinson, following a length of the field move finished off by the inside centre in the right corner, as the visitors led 24–7.

 

County brought on Reyner Kennedy for Alex Moffat at hooker and Danny Gilmour for Johnny Hope in the backs, and to the home side’s credit they came straight back at Bedford. and scored a try on 56 minutes.

 

A break by Bennett, following a scrum on halfway, carved open the Blues defence and the centre drew the cover before precisely offloading to winger Byron McGuigan to score, with the conversion by Archibald reducing the deficit to 24-14.

 

Tim Clarke replaced Steve Swindall, and Struan Robertson came on for Bengy Barsanti, while the Blues were reduced to 14 men when Darren Fearn was sin-binned for blatant offside.

 

County exploited the numerical advantage and McGuigan sprinted down the right side-line to score his second try, which Archibald converted to make the score 24-21 with 12 minutes remaining.

 

This set up a grandstand finish to excite the large crowd as County threw everything at Bedford, and only a last ditch tackle in the final play prevented County scoring in the left-corner.

 

The Blues held-out to narrowly win the match and maintain their 100 per cent record as they secured top spot in Pool Two, while County remain in second place.

 

Stirling County: Hope, McGuigan, Bennett, Archibald, Hughes, Edwards, S Kennedy, Boswell, Barsanti, Swindall, Deacons, Leishman, Kalman, Moffat (C), MacDonald. Replacements: Welsh, R Kennedy, Hutton, Robertson, Clarke, Gilmour, Turnbull. T: Boswell, McGuigan 2. C: Archibald 3.

 

Blues: Reeves, Locke, Cooper, Howard, Rae, Gillanders, Barrell, Armes, Baldwin, Vass, Kohler, Atkinson, Dodge, Stephenson, Pritchard (C). Replacements: Cochrane, Boulton, Fearn, Gulliver, Vandermolen, Price, Burke. T: Armes, Locke, Stephenson, Atkinson. C: Pritchard 2.

Referee: N Correll.

MATCH REPORT V LON SCOTTISH

Bedford Blues fell to a narrow 26-23 defeat to London Scottish at the Athletic Ground this afternoon.

 

Confidence should have been high for the Blues coming into this fixture as the three previous Championship meetings between the two sides had resulted in Bedford scoring 139 points.

 

But they faced a Scottish side resurgent after a narrow defeat to Newcastle two weeks ago and it showed as Andy Reay and Tyler Hotson ran in two first half tries.

 

James Love kicked two penalties for the hosts as, despite two from James Pritchard, Bedford trailed 17-6 at the break.

 

The Blues fought back in the second period as Josh Bassett scored two converted tries, but it proved to be in vain as Love continued two kick penalties at regular intervals, leaving Bedford with only a losing bonus point.

 

The visitors made just three changes to the side that started against Rotherham on Boxing Day. Ricky Reeves and Dan Seal started in the front row in place of Darren Fearn and Phil Boulton, while Luke Baldwin came in at scrum-half.

 

It was the London side that came out of the blocks quickest and they were ahead two minutes in. James Stevenson was pinned to the floor in the tackle, giving Love a penalty chance from 35 metres which he duly took.

 

Bedford went in search of an early response and, after several passes, Pritchard tried to set up Paul Tupai with a neat grubber, but the number was ruled offside.

 

The ball was now in Exile hands and they didn’t have to wait long for their first try.

 

An excellent maul got the move started and scrum-half Stevenson then ran at the Blues defence before playing in Reay for the easiest of finishes.

 

Love converted and, as the bagpipes rang around the Athletic Ground, Bedford trailed by 10 points.

 

An offside call gave Pritchard the chance to reduce the deficit with a penalty, but what Bedford really craved was a try.

 

And just as the Blues looked to be getting back into the match they found themselves further behind as they conceded a second try.

 

A neat passing move enabled the Exiles to gain valuable yardage and Hotson was on hand to get the ball over the line as the bagpipes once again rang out.

 

Love converted, but a second Pritchard penalty followed for Bedford after they had camped themselves in the Scottish 22.

 

The visitors had grown into the match and Jake Sharp put the Exiles under further pressure when he chased his own kick down as it headed for the Scottish line.

 

Love collected it, but fly-half Sharp was on hand to dump him back into the goal area for a five-metre scrum.

 

The resulting scrum saw the Blues again keep the pressure on but they could not find a way through the rugged Scottish backline.

 

As half time approached Jim Thompson was sent to the sin bin for Scottish, but it didn’t prove too costly as they were able to see out the half for a 17-6 lead.

 

Bedford needed a second half to remember if they were going to get anything out of the match, but they were facing a determined Scottish side.

 

The hosts started the second half in similar vein to the first and they were rewarded for their efforts as Love converted a monster penalty from 40 metres.

 

The situation was starting to get a little desperate for the Blues, but a series of penalties got them some territory.

 

And they finally got their first try of the afternoon when the ball was worked wide to Bassett who dived over in the corner.

 

Pritchard converted magnificently from the touchline and there was now just seven points in it.

But no sooner had Bedford scored than the gap was restored as Love converted his third penalty of the afternoon.

 

PJ Gidlow then saw yellow for repeated infringements, which did allow Pritchard to claw another three points back, but when Love scored his fourth penalty as the game looked to be beyond Bedford’s reach.

 

However, the Blues’ never-say-die attitude again came to the fore when Bassett grabbed his second converted try of the afternoon and the game was back on with two minutes to go.

 

But Bedford couldn’t quite complete another memorable comeback as the Blues tasted defeat for the first time in seven games.

 

Scottish: Nick Mayhew (Darryl Marfo 56), Adam Kwasnicki, (Gareth Evans 66), Colin Quigley, (Alex Mackenzie 66), Paul Spivey, Tyler Hotson, Chevvy Pennycook, Lewis Calder, (Joe Trayfoot 56), Mark Bright (C), Jamie Stevenson (Richard Bolt 60), Phil Godman, Miles Mantella (PJ Gidlow 30), Andy Reay, Oli Grove, James Love, Jim Thompson.Replacements not used: Josh Thomas Brown. 

 

T: Reay, Hotson. C: Love 2. P: Love 4.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves, Neil Cochrane (Chris Locke 56), Dan Seal, (Ben Cooper 55), Mike Howard, Ben Gulliver, Alex Rae (Gregor Gillanders 55), Darren Fox, Paul Tupai (Don Barrell 56), Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 66), Jake Sharp (Ian Vass 66), Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke, James Stephenson (Ben Ransom 56), James Pritchard (C). 

 

T:Bassett 2. C: Pritchard 2. P: Pritchard 3.

 

Referee: John Meredith.

 

Touch Judges: Keith Lewis and Dino Madden.

MATCH REPORT V ROTHERHAM

Bedford Blues downed Rotherham Titans with a hard-earned 22-16 victory at Goldington Road on Boxing Day.

As over 4,000 Blues fans braved the torrential rain it was the Titans who took an early lead thanks to two penalties from Garry Law.

 

Bedford responded as James Pritchard kicked two of his own, but a third penalty from the away side gave them a 9-6 lead at the break. The Blues hit back at the start of the second period as Jake Sharp’s drop-goal levelled the scores before James Stephenson scored a converted try.

 

Two Pritchard penalties followed and, despite a late Peter Homan try, it was too little too late as the Blues moved back into second in the Championship.

 

The Blues made a number of changes to the side that demolished Neath last time out. Darren Fearn, Neil Cochrane, Phil Boulton all returned to the front-row.

 

As the rain crashed down on the Goldington Road pitch, Rotherham got the game’s first points thanks to a Law penalty.

 

The visitors kept the early pressure up and Law nailed a second penalty 40 metres out after the Blues failed to bind in the scrum.

 

However, Bedford responded as Pritchard converted a penalty after gaining territory up the slope.

 

The game was now swinging in the Blues’ favour and a lineout 20 metres out saw Bedford drive the Titans back. As the visitors struggled to contain the Blues pack, full-back Law saw yellow for diving in at the side, conceding a penalty for his troubles. Pritchard levelled the scores with his kick, but the visitors were not deterred and James McKinney, now on kicking duty, scored his side’s third penalty of the afternoon.

 

With half time approaching it was Bedford who came close to scoring the game’s first try. Another powerful maul put the Titans on the backfoot and hooker Cochrane burst through, only to be held up in the goal area by Charlie Mulchrone.

 

The play went back for a scrum and after a few phases Bedford won a penalty, but Pritchard’s kick went wide and the Blues trailed 9-6 at the break.

 

As the rain came down harder at the start of the second half Bedford again levelled the scores after some patient build-up play enabled Sharp to convert a drop-goal attempt.

 

The Blues seemed to have worn their opposition down and Pritchard showed incredible vision to pick out Stephenson with a grubber kick and the winger dived on the ball for the game’s first try.

 

Pritchard converted, but Law could have closed the gap with a penalty, however his kick missed.

 

It proved costly as Bedford extended their advantage through a third Pritchard penalty from distance and the Blues skipper converted his fourth after Titans replacement Pale Nonu was sin-binned.

 

That penalty seemed to kick the Titans back into life and a good break upfield saw Homan touch down in the corner. Law converted and the game was back on with five minutes left.

 

But Bedford were never in trouble again as they made it six wins in a row.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Ricky Reeves 40), Neil Cochrane, Phil Boulton (Dan Seal 40), Mike Howard (Gregor Gillanders 76), Ben Gulliver, Alex Rae, Darren Fox, Paul Tupai (Don Barrell 69), Darryl Veenendaal (Luke Baldwin 56), Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke, James Stephenson, James Pritchard (C). Replacements not used: Chris Locke, Ian Vass.

 

Blues scorers: T: Stephenson. C: Pritchard. P: Pritchard 4. DG: Sharp.

 

Titans scorers: T: Homan. C: Law. P: Law 2, McKinney.

 

Referee: Darren Gamage.

 

Touch Judges: Simon Harding and Darryl Chapman.

 

Attendance: 4,418.

MATCH REPORT V NEATH

Bedford Blues all but confirmed their place in the quarter-finals of the British & Irish Cup with a 69-23 victory over Neath at Goldington Road.

 

The Blues have never lost a home tie in this competition, but a spirited first half display from an injury ravaged Neath side saw them take the lead through a Dean Cummins penalty.

However Bedford responded well and scored four tries in the first period thanks to James Stephenson, Chris Locke, Darryl Veenendaal and a penalty try.

 

The Blues continued their dominance in the second half scoring a further seven tries, including a hat-trick from Josh Bassett, as Neath’s ill-discipline saw them reduced to 13 men.

 

Bedford made wholesale changes to the side that beat Neath in the reverse fixture last weekend. Most notably Locke came in for his first start of the season at hooker, while Ricky Reeves and Ben Cooper joined him in the front row. There was also a place on the bench for young academy star Aaron Morris.

 

After last weeks demolition of the Welsh side anyone who expected the Blues to walk this one would have been shocked when Dean Cummins’ second minute penalty put Neath 3-0 ahead.

 

However normal service was resumed as Bedford responded instantly. Ian Vass kicked a penalty to touch and from the resulting lineout the Blues forwards drove up the slope and towards the line.

 

The ball was then worked out wide after several phases and Stephenson raced over the line. Pritchard’s conversion cannoned back off the post, but Bedford were in front.

 

Neath responded brightly and were showing no signs of a team that were depleted in numbers.

 

After the restart a neat passing move looked to have set the Welsh All Blacks up for their second try but a pass was misplaced at a crucial time.

 

Nevertheless, the Welsh side kept the pressure on and after a string of passes Steffan Jones managed to get the ball over in the corner. Cummins missed the conversion but Neath led 8-5.

 

By this stage it was clear Bedford were going to be made to work for this win and yet again they responded instantly. Another Vass penalty to touch allowed the Blues to win a lineout five metres from the Neath line and a strong maul gave hooker Locke the chance to score.

 

But the Welsh side were not disheartened and centre Ryan Evans showed a quick turn of pace as he went in search of the Blues line.

 

He was stopped in his tracks by an excellent Tom Armes tap tackle, but from the breakdown in play Neath were awarded a penalty that Cummins converted to move his side within a point.

 

However that proved to be as close as they got to the home side as Bedford scored their third try soon after.

 

Bassett gained valuable yards with a burst up field and despite Neath turning the ball over 10 metres from their own line, scrum half Luc Jones’ clearance was charged down by Veenendaal who scored the Blues third.

 

Bedford looked to have finally worn their opposition down and had camped themselves in the Neath 22 towards the end of the first period.

 

As they began to turn the screw Alun Wyn Davies was sin binned for disrupting the play illegally and Bedford were awarded a penalty try for repeated infringements.

 

The Welsh side did have chance to pull three points back right on half time as they were awarded a penalty, but Cummins failed to convert and Bedford led 24-11 at the break.

 

The Blues continued to apply pressure at the start of the second half and after some patient build up play prop Ben Cooper bullied his way over the line to score.

 

As Bedford’s lead increased Neath began to lose their cool and as tempers flared Gareth Howells was deemed to have struck a Blues player in the face and was dismissed by referee Mark Patton.

 

A converted penalty try to Bedford shortly followed and Brendan Burke played a crucial role in the Blues next score as his break enabled Stephenson to go over for his second.

 

Bedford were now running riot and Bassett got his first of the afternoon when he broke clear of the Neath defence 40 metres out and touched down.

 

Neath’s misery was then compounded as Davies saw a second yellow for a high challenge.

 

With a two-man advantage in Bedford’s favour Locke then scored his second of the afternoon and a tenth followed shortly after as Bassett latched on to Vass’ chip over the Neath backline.

 

The young Blues winger completed his hat-trick in superb fashion moments later. Pritchard kicked the ball downfield from 22 metres and with the Neath defence out of position Bassett showed an incredible burst of speed to run 80 metres and dive on the ball in the goal area just before it went dead.

 

The Welsh All Blacks did pull two quick tries back thanks to a second from Steffan Jones and winger Kyle Davies, but the damage had already been done and Bedford triumphed.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves, Chris Locke (Neil Cochrane 65), Ben Cooper (Phil Boulton 59), Paul Tupai, Ben Gulliver (Mike Howard 61), Gregor Gillanders, Tom Armes (Don Barrell 54), Joe Vandermolen, Darryl Veenendaal (Luke Baldwin 54) (Jake Sharp 72), Ian Vass, Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke, James Stephenson (Aaron Morris 59), James Pritchard (C).

 

T: Stephenson (2), Locke (2), Veenendaal, Penalty Try (2), Cooper, Bassett (3). C: Pritchard (7).

 

Neath: Nicky Downs (C) (Owain Ford 59) (Rhodri Clancy 62), Alun Wyn Davies, Tom Price; Rhys Jones (Liam Puckett 72), Gareth Howells, Nathan Ace, Leon Ward (Matthew Rees 68), Steffan Jones, Luc Jones (Ben Jones 68), Dean Cummins, Kyle Davies, Lloyd Phillips, Ryan Evans (Gareth Davies 72), Kevin James, Aaron Bramwell.

 

T: S Jones (2), K Davies. C: Cummins. P: Cummins (2).

 

Referee: Mark Patton.

 

Touch Judges: Thomas Davis, Chris Sharp.

 

Attendance: 2004.

MATCH REPORT V NEATH

Bedford Blues look favourites to qualify for the knock-out stages of the British and Irish Cup after a dominant win over Neath on Saturday.

The Blues took the lead in the second minute after James Pritchard kicked a 40 metre penalty when Neath were penalised for offside.

 

Aaron Bramwell had the chance to level things four minutes later but his long range penalty kick went short and wide.

 

Those were the only penalty attempts of the game. After that, free flowing open rugby was the order of the day, mainly from the exciting away side.

 

Bedford took control and increased their lead on 12 minutes thanks to superb move that ripped the Neath defence apart. Ben Gulliver, laid the ball off nicely to Scott Spurling who in turn fed Josh Bassett to run home. Pritchard converted.

 

Reece had a try chalked off for a forward pass but it was his former Scorpions team mate, Kevin James, who finally scored for the home side on 24 minutes and it was all the least they deserved after constant pressure.

 

From a scrum, Matthew Rees and Morgans set up the opportunity, and James used his speed and strength to power through. Bramwell converted.

 

But three Blues tries just before the interval effectively gave them control of the game.

 

James Stephenson and Pritchard scored consecutive tries in the same right hand corner, Pritchard converting the second, before Bassett broke through the centre for a fine try that Pritchard goaled to give Bedford a 29-7 lead and a valuable bonus point.

 

They then took just three minutes to get on the board in the second half. Stephenson broke through the back-line and grounded under the sticks with Pritchard converting.

 

Scott Spurling increased the Blues lead with a try from a rolling maul five minutes later which Pritchard again converted.

 

Neath hit back on 55 minutes when Morgans set up James to dive home for his second try of the match.

 

But Bedford finished well with three fine tries in the last 15 minutes.

 

Bassett romped through for his third and Bedford’s seventh on 65 minutes which Pritchard goaled.

Then Ali Price set up Mark Kohler to score in the corner which Pritchard converted.

 

And finally, a Pritchard try in the corner, unconverted after a casual attempt from Atkinson after the final whistle, completed the rout.

 

Neath: 15 Aaron Bramwell; 14 Kevin James, 13 Ryan Evans, 12 John Leyshon, 11 Lewis Reece, 10 Kyle Davies 9 Chris Morgans; 1 Nicky Downs (captain), 2 Rhodri Clancy, 3 Marc Jones; 4 Rhys Jones, 5 Jonny Griffiths, 6 Leon Ward, 7 Matthew Rees, 8 Steffan Jones.

 

Replacements: 16 Tom Price, 17 Alun Wyn Davies, 18 Owain Ford, 19 Tom Davies, 20 Simon Pengelly, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 Lloyd Phillips

 

Scorers. Tries: James (24, 55). Cons: Bramwell (24)

 

Bedford: 15 James Pritchard (captain); 14 James Stephenson, 13 Mark Atkinson, 12 Ian Vass, 11 Josh Bassett; 10 Jake Sharp, 9 Darryl Veenendaal; 1 Darren Fearn, 2 Scott Spurling, 3 Dan Seal; 4 Mike Howard, 5 Ben Gulliver; 6 Alex Rae, 7 Darren Fox, 8 Joe Vandermolen.

 

Replacements: 16 Chris Locke, 17 Ben Cooper, 18 Greg Gillanders, 19 Tom Armes, 20 Ali Price, 21 Brendan Burke, 22 Mark Kohler

 

Scorers. Tries: Bassett (12, 40, 65), Stephenson (27, 43), Pritchard (38, 79), Spurling (48), Kohler (69). Cons: Pritchard (12, 38, 40, 43, 48, 65, 69). Pens: Pritchard (3)

Referee: Cammy Rudkin (Scotland)

MATCH REPORT V LEEDS

Bedford Blues warmed up the freezing conditions with a brilliant display to beat Leeds Carnegie 45-25 at Cross Green on Sunday afternoon as their game ended 10 minutes early because of an unsafe pitch.

In a terrific bonus point victory for the Blues, the game was marred by what looked to be a serious leg injury to Sacha Harding.

 

The Blues skipper was stretchered off and, as the temperature dropped, referee Ian Tempest decided to end the game early in order to avoid any further injuries on the frozen pitch.

 

It was the home side that took a first minute lead as Joe Ford converted a penalty.

 

However, Bedford responded in excellent fashion and scored five first half tries thanks to Paul Tupai, Mark Atkinson, Josh Bassett and two from Jake Sharp.

 

The visitors continued their dominance after the break and scored two more tries as Bedford went on to record their biggest win against Leeds.

 

The Blues made three changes to the side that beat Cornish Pirates. Fit again James Stephenson returned on the wing, while Ian Vass came in for the injured Henry Vass at centre and there was also a start for Alex Rae at blindside-flanker.

 

It took the home side just 40 seconds to take the lead as they won a penalty 40 metres out that Ford converted.

 

Carnegie had started the match in a lively fashion and David Doherty broke immediately from the restart to set up another attack.

 

The Blues recovered, but centre Fred Burdon looked to have squeezed through a gap in the Bedford defence, only to be pulled back for crossing.

 

There was hardly time to draw breath as scum-half Luke Baldwin went in search of a response for the Blues.

 

His quickly-taken tap penalty left the Carnegie defence out of position, before some slick Blues passing set up Tupai who touched down under the posts.

 

Another Baldwin tap penalty caused havoc again moments later as he fed Alex Rae who raced up the wing.

 

The flanker off-loaded to Bassett and, with the line at the winger’s mercy, he was denied by Stevie McColl who produced a brilliant covering tackle.

 

Nevertheless, Bedford kept the pressure up and camped themselves inside Leeds’ 22 metre line.

 

Carnegie couldn’t clear their lines and Bedford punished them as Atkinson nipped through a gap in the Leeds defence to score and Sharp converted as Bedford led 14-3.

 

But their lead was reduced minutes later as Burdon again showed his lightning pace to dart through the Blues defence and play in Doherty who dived over the whitewash.

 

Ford converted from a tight angle and the scoreline now read 14-10 to the Blues.

 

However, Bedford were undeterred and Atkinson again worked his way through the Leeds defence to allow Sharp to score.

 

It was end-to-end stuff and Leeds responded as they won a penalty just after the restart that Ford slotted confidently through the posts.

 

But the home side couldn’t get to grips with their opponents and winger Bassett scored the Blues’ fourth try.

 

Bedford won a scrum 15 metres out and Tupai emerged from the back of it to burst for the line.

The Leeds defence got back into position but the was ball was recycled to Bassett who ran through to score.

 

The Blues were well in control and they missed a glorious opportunity for their fifth try just before half time.

Sharp collected his own chip and chase and played in Baldwin who raced clear, but somehow the scrum-half knocked the ball forward as he was tackled on the line.

 

However it didn’t prove too costly as the Blues got their fifth try moments later.

 

Bedford once again exploited the cracks in the Leeds defence and Sharp offloaded smartly at the last moment to play in Tupai for his second try.

 

The fly-half then converted and the Blues went into the break with a 33-13 lead.

 

Leeds needed to score early at the start of the second half if they were to salvage anything from the game, and they did just that as Phil Nilsen bundled the ball home after a lineout five metres from the Blues’ line.

 

Ford cannoned his conversion of the crossbar and the score now stood at 33-18 in the Blues’ favour.

 

But any hope of a comeback was dashed as Phil Boulton was the next man to score against the Yorkshire side.

 

The Blues built some good pressure with a number of phases and Rae broke through, enabling prop Boulton to score.

 

However, the game then came to an abrupt halt as Blues skipper Harding took a heavy knock.

 

He was down for about 10 minutes before eventually being stretchered off with Darren Fox coming on in his place.

 

The break in play didn’t seem to have too much effect on the Blues as they went in search of another try and they didn’t have to wait long for their seventh.

 

Once again the Blues built the move with several phases of passing before the forwards got involved with a powerful maul towards the line.

 

The ball was worked to Atkinson and he dived over for his second.

 

Leeds again responded quickly as replacement Ben Hooper pulled another one back, but the game was already beyond doubt.

 

And with over 10 minutes of the game left to play, referee Tempest deemed the playing surface had become too unsafe to continue.

 

The game came to an abrupt halt, but with over an hour played the result stood, although the excellent result will be overshadowed by the injury to their captain.

 

Leeds Carnegie: Sam Lockwood (Ben Harris 69), Phil Nilsen (Joe Graham 50), Damien Tussac (Ben Hooper 72), Calum Green, Matt Smith (Dominic Barrow 60), Richard Beck (Rob Baldwin 40), Jacob Rowan (C), Ryan Burrows, James Doherty (Craig Hampson 60), Joe Ford, David Doherty, Fred Burdon, Josh Griffin (Curtis Wilson 60), Oli Goss, Stevie McColl.

 

T: David Doherty, Phil Nilsen, Ben Hooper. C: Joe Ford. P: Joe Ford 2.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Dan Seal 47), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 68), Phil Boulton (Ben Cooper 68), Mike Howard, Ben Gulliver, Alex Rae, Sacha Harding (C) (Darren Fox 60), Paul Tupai (Don Barrell 48), Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 68), Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Ian Vass, Brendan Burke (James Pritchard 38), James Stephenson, Mark Atkinson.

 

T: Tupai 2, Atkinson 2, Sharp, Bassett, Boulton. C: Sharp 5.

 

Referee: Ian Tempest.

 

Touch Judges: Andrew Taylorson and Michael Patz.

MATCH REPORT V CORNISH PIRATES

Bedford Blues produced a thoroughly professional performance to sink Cornish Pirates 32-6 at Goldington Road on Friday night.

 

Playing up the slope in the first half, Bedford took an early lead thanks to a Jake Sharp penalty.

The fly-half looked to be in fine form with the boot and he kicked a further three penalties in the opening 40 minutes.

 

Pirates did have three penalties of their own, but they failed to convert any of them and went in at the break 12-0 behind.

 

The visitors responded at the start of the second period as Kieran Hallett scored two quick penalties, but Sharp continued to kick at regular intervals and tries from Neil Cochrane and Brendan Burke helped put the game beyond doubt.

 

Bedford made six changes to the side that beat Doncaster two weeks ago. Darren Fearn, Cochrane and Phil Boulton started in the front row, while Ben Gulliver, Sacha Harding and Luke Baldwin also returned to the Blues line-up.

 

The Blues made an energetic start to the match and were ahead just three minutes in as Sharp hammered home a penalty.

 

Bedford were enjoying the early possession and they won a second penalty 45 metres out. Sharp stepped up and struck the ball sweetly for another three points.

 

The Pirates did have a chance to reduce the deficit through an Aaron Penberthy penalty, but the fly-half’s kick was sent wide from distance.

 

Scrum-half Baldwin then went in search of the game’s first try as his quickly taken tap penalty sparked fear in the Pirates defence.

 

He raced up field, but the move broke down as the visitors recovered to clear their lines.

However, Bedford did extend their lead after the Pirates went it at the side of a maul, giving away a third penalty.

 

Sharp took it from 40 metres and the outcome was the same – another three points for the hosts.

The game had offered little in terms of try-scoring opportunities, but the visitors did have another chance of three points from a penalty only for Penberthy to pull his kick wide.

 

Mark Atkinson then saw yellow for playing the man as Phil Burgess chipped the ball over the Blues defence and looked to be heading for the line – only to be chopped down by the full-back.

 

After putting the resulting penalty to touch the Pirates thought they had grabbed a try from a lineout, however they were denied by some rugged Bedford defending.

 

Losing a man didn’t seem to have any effect on the Blues as they came close to crossing the whitewash.

 

An excellent maul gained them precious territory and Baldwin broke out the back of it, only to be denied just before the line.

 

The move wasn’t over though and ball was worked out wide to Josh Bassett who dived for the line.

The winger looked like he had done enough, however referee Greg McDonald had other ideas and deemed that the ball had been held up in the try area.

 

The resulting scrum then saw same outcome as this time Paul Tupai’s effort was held up and the Blues were again denied.

 

Nevertheless, Bedford continued to impose themselves and were rewarded as they won another penalty. Sharp, who was looking good with the boot, was again successful as he moved his side further in front.

 

With half time now approaching it was the Pirates who won the game’s next penalty but, with Grant Pointer was now on kicking duty, it made no difference as his effort went wide.

 

That proved to be the final action of the first period as the referee blew up at least 20 seconds early with the Blues 12-0 in front.

 

The Pirates needed to start the second half strongly and they did just that when a good drive up field earned a penalty.

 

Hallett, on for Penberthy, took it and made no mistake to get his side’s first points.

Former Blue, Hallett, was then given the chance of another penalty after Bassett didn’t release in the tackle.

 

The fly-half confidently took it, sending it through the posts and the visitors were now back in the contest.

 

Bedford needed to reassert themselves and Burke’s kick over the Pirates backline won the hosts a lineout deep in the opposition half.

 

The Blues forwards then stepped into action, driving for the line, and their hard work paid off as they won a penalty.

 

Sharp took it and for the first time in the match he misplaced his kick as he sent it wide.

 

However, it didn’t prove too costly as Bedford scored the game’s first try minutes later.

 

A lineout was won by the Blues 22 metres out, and the forwards, who had been in imperious form all evening, plus a number of backs drove towards to line.

 

Hooker Cochrane emerged from a sea of steaming bodies to claim it and Sharp converted as the home extended their lead.

 

Bedford’s tails were up and Mark Kohler broke free of the Pirates defence before working the ball to Sharp who dinked it over the oncoming defenders. Bassett tried to latch on to it, but the chance went begging.

 

Nevertheless, the Blues did further their advantage as Sharp converted his fifth penalty of the match.

 

And they didn’t have to wait long for another Sharp penalty after the Pirates were penalised for an obstruction.

 

Bedford were now cruising and there was just enough time on the clock for Burke to snatch a late try as he gathered Sharp’s chip to dive over the line.

 

Sharp converted with the last kick of the game, giving the Blues a comfortable win against the Cornish side.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Ricky Reeves 47), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 76), Phil Boulton (Dan Seal 63), Mike Howard, Ben Gulliver (Alex Rae 68), Gregor Gillanders, Sacha Harding (C), Paul Tupai (Darren Fox 62), Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 62), Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Henry Staff (Ian Vass 73), Brendan Burke, Mark Kohler, Mark Atkinson. T: Cochrane, Burke. C: Sharp 2. P: Sharp 6.

 

Pirates: Paul Andrew (Ben Prescott 65), Rob Elloway (Jack Yeandle 72), Alan Paver (Paul Andrew 72), Darren Barry (David Lyons 68), Gary Johnson, Ben Maidment (Joe Buckle 68), Phil Burgess, Laurie McGlone, Gavin Cattle (C) (Tom Kessell 72), Aaron Penberthy (Keiron Hallett 40), Ben Mercer, Junior Fatialofa (Alex Cheeseman 68), Tom Riley, Grant Pointer, JJ Kilmartin. P: Hallett 2.

 

Referee: Greg McDonald.

 

Touch Judges: Michael Tutty and Simon McConnell.

 

Attendance: 3,155.

MATCH REPORT V DONCASTER

Brendan Burke’s injury time conversion gave Bedford Blues a heroic 22-21 victory against Doncaster Knights at Castle Park on Friday night.

 

The first 40 minutes of the game was something of a cagey affair, with both sides creating little in the way of scoring opportunities.

 

Nevertheless, Doncaster went into the break leading after Dom Parsons’ converted try gave the Championship’s bottom side the advantage.

 

Burke pulled a try back for the Blues at the start of the second half, but two quick tries from Brian McGovern and Dante Mama looked to have sealed the win for the home side.

However, Bedford’s never-say-die attitude saw Ricky Reeves get the comeback under way five minutes from time and in the 10th minute of injury time Burke converted Josh Bassett’s try to claim a famous win.

 

Bedford made several changes to the side that lost to Newcastle last time out. Mark Atkinson started at full-back in place of James Pritchard who is away on international duty with Canada, while Darryl Veenendaal and Mark Kohler came in for Saracens duo Luke Baldwin and Ben Ransom.

 

It was the Blues that enjoyed the early possession and Atkinson was looking lively, but the visitors couldn’t create an opening to score.

 

Doncaster, who have struggled in the Championship so far this season, proceeded to grow into the half and fashioned a number of chances.

 

Jamie Lennard’s penalty to touch looked to be staying in play but a kind bounce of the ball saw the ball creep out for a lineout.

 

That put the Blues on the back foot as the home side started to build pressure for the first time in the game.

 

And the Knights were rewarded when another lineout was worked out to lock Parsons who crashed his way through the Blues defence to score.

 

Former Blue, Jamie Lennard, converted as Bedford were trailed to the Yorkshire side.

The Knights had an opportunity to extend their lead moments later as Bedford conceded a penalty – but Lennard couldn’t convert from 45 metres.

 

The game then came to an abrupt halt as Henry Staff was forced off with an injury and Ian Vass came on in his place.

 

From the restart the Blues got their first points of the game as Doncaster gave away a penalty after failing to bind fully in the scrum and Jake Sharp threaded the posts.

 

Bedford were rejuvenated and Sharp had another chance for three points – but his kick from 45 metres went wide.

 

With the first half drawing to a close Doncaster looked to finish the period with a flourish.

A flowing moved looked to have created a golden opportunity to score but the ball was knocked forward.

 

That proved to be the last piece of action of the first half as Bedford trailed 7-3 at the interval.

The Blues made the perfect start to the second half as they scored a try six minutes in. Darren Fox’s initial break was built upon by Mike Howard and he fed Burke superbly who went over for Bedford’s first try of the match.

 

Sharp converted and the Blues were in front for the first time.

 

Doncaster could have levelled the scores moments later but Lennard’s penalty from 45 metres again went wide.

 

However, the Knights continued to impose themselves on the game and, after winning several penalties on the Blues’ five-metre line Neil Cochrane was sin-binned.

 

And Bedford were made to pay for losing a man as the resulting lineout saw replacement prop Brian McGovern dive over the whitewash and Lennard converted as the Blues trailed once again.

The game then looked to have slipped further out of Bedford’s reach as they conceded their third try of the match when Dante Mama intercepted a Blues pass and raced 50 metres downfield to score.

 

Lennard’s conversion meant the visitors were now 21 -10 behind.

 

But Bedford refused to roll over and with five minutes to go they pulled a try back when Ricky Reeves finished off a good phase of play.

 

Sharp couldn’t convert from a tight angle and the score now stood at 21-15 – with the Blues needing a converted try to triumph.

 

However, they looked to be running out of time as the clock ticked past the 80-minute mark.

The Blues camped themselves on the Knights’ five-metre line as the hosts continued to give away penalties.

 

Tom Davies eventually saw yellow for his part in proceedings and it was now or never for the Blues.

 

A quickly-taken penalty started the move and, after several phases, Bassett somehow managed to scramble to ball over the line.

 

All that was needed now was the conversion and with regular kicker Sharp off injured the nerve-racking task fell to Burke.

 

The Irishman stepped up and coolly slotted the ball between the posts, sending Bedford bench into ecstasy as Doncaster were left wondering how they came away with another defeat, although Bedford won’t mind a jot.

 

Knights: Tom Davies, Rhys Buckley (Ben Sowery 70), Tomas Francis (Brian McGovern 60), Matt Challinor (C), Dominic Parsons, Adam Kettle (Andy Boyde 54), David Bradford, Chris Planchant, Chris Hallam (James Munro 75), Tom Luke (Sam Pailor 80), Tyson Lewis, Will Simpson (James Tincknell 40), Dante Mama, Dougie Flockhart, Jamie Lennard.Replacements not used: Phil Hoy. T: Parsons, McGovern, Mama. C:Lennard 3.

 

Blues: Ricky Reeves (Darren Fearn 80), Scott Spurling (Neil Cochrane 54), Dan Seal (Ben Cooper 57), Mike Howard, Alex Rae (C), Gregor Gillanders (Ben Gulliver 70), Darren Fox, Paul Tupai (Don Barrell 70), Darryl Veenendaal (Ali Price 75), Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Henry Staff (Ian Vass 30), Brendan Burke, Mark Kohler, Mark Atkinson. T: Burke, Reeves, Bassett. C: Sharp, Burke. P: Sharp

 

Referee: Greg Macdonald.

 

Touch Judges: Rowan Kitt and Darryl Chapman.

Attendance: 908.

MATCH REPORT V NEWCASTLE

Bedford Blues fell to their second defeat in a row at the hands of relegated Newcastle Falcons in a superb game at Goldington Road. Following their 23-13 loss at Bristol last weekend, Mike Rayer would have hoped to bounce back and, in spite of a superb performance from James Pritchard, the Blues were left empty handed.

 

Newcastle began the match playing downhill but it was the hosts whose game got off to a worse start. The Blues failed to take Jimmy Gopperth’s up and under and after several phases, referee Martin Fox caught Darren Fearn offside -Gopperth made no mistake from 22 metres.

 

Only two minutes later the New Zealand fly-half was presented with another opportunity for three points, however he pulled his attempt wide of the posts. The Blues took inspiration from Gopperth’s error and were soon level thanks to  Pritchard’s boot following a period of incisive play inside the Falconss 22.

 

Though the hosts’ newfound confidence was short-lived when a Newcastle maul was pulled down a metre out and Fox sent Samoan Paul Tupai to the cooler for 10 minutes. The chill that had replaced the early afternoon warmth in Bedford did not affect the visitors however and they made light work of the resulting maul to register the afternoon’s first try through Richard Mayhew. Gopperth converted with aplomb.

 

Fox began to enjoy his time in charge of the top of the table clash and, perhaps harshly, reached into his pocket for the second time as he sent Sean Tomes to the bin for failing to roll away – only 20 minutes had been played. Pritchard failed to add three points however and nine minutes of Tomes’ time in the sin-bin would elapse before the Canadian full-back brought the Blues back to within four.

 

As the half drew towards its conclusion, Gopperth restored Newcastle’s seven-point lead with a penalty from the same spot as he scored his first. But the league leaders were not happy to settle for that at half-time and got their reward when Tom Catterick finished off a sweeping move. Converted by his fly-half, Dean Richards’ men went into the changing rooms in far higher spirits than the Blues.

However, Mike Rayer was the happier boss for the first four minutes of the second-half as his side ran with endeavour deep into Newcastle territory. But the visitors, wearing white, refused to surrender – and when the ball was fly-hacked clear their resilience was rewarded with a penalty. Gopperth went for the jugular with a kick to touch and only stout defending from the hosts prevented Newcastle extending their advantage.

 

Play was halted for Darren Fox’s introduction in place of Don Barrell and Bedford caught their visitors cold when Pritchard burst onto the ball at pace and his speed saw the full-back race in from 40 metres to bring the scores to within nine. The Blues captain dusted himself down to add the extras and suddenly the game, now being played under floodlights, had burst into life.

 

Only a superb tackle on Ally Hogg prevented Newcastle from bouncing straight back. The Falcons pressurised the Blues at the resulting scrum, Jake Sharp’s hurried clearance kick was taken quickly by Joel Hodgson and clearly smarting from conceding Pritchard’s try, the visitors’ forwards burst onto the ball at pace, the Blues were caught offside and Gopperth kicked his third penalty.

The renowned goal kicker was on target again minutes later and suddenly Bedford’s good work had all but been undone.

 

Or had it? Leading from the front is seemingly impossible at full-back but Pritchard was putting in a captain’s performance to remember. His chip and chase to score his second try was up there with the best individual try you could see. Again the conversion was successful and Bedford trailed by six with 10 minutes remaining.

 

Newcastle’s Premiership experience began to show though – Rory Lawson and Gopperth pulled the strings and camped their side inside the Blues’ 22. The latter sat back in the pocket and his sweetly struck drop-goal meant the Falcons made the trip up the A1 victorious with an eleven point lead over their hosts in the race for a place amongst England’s elite.

MATCH REPORT V BREISTOL

Bedford Blues fell to a first defeat of the season as they lost 23-13 to Bristol at the Memorial Stadium.

In adverse weather conditions the Blues took an early first half lead through a James Pritchard penalty.

 

Bristol responded with a penalty of their own, but Pritchard’s try gave Bedford a 10-6 lead in a cagey opening period.

 

Bristol battled back at the start of the second half and put quick points on the board thanks to the boot of Tristan Roberts and two Luke Eves’ tries.

 

The Blues couldn’t respond as they fell to their first defeat of the season, continuing their record of only winning once at Bristol in their 126-year history.

 

Bedford made several changes to the side that ran riot against Stirling last weekend.

 

Phil Boulton, Mike Howard and Sacha Harding returned to the Blues’ pack, while Henry Staff and Ollie Dodge were included amongst the backs.

 

As the rain poured down, Bedford took the initiative when they won a penalty 22 metres out and Pritchard nailed his kick to put the Blues 3-0 in front.

 

The away side were looking to put points on the board at every opportunity and they came close again when Jake Sharp attempted a drop-goal – only for it to go wide.

 

Bristol, who had lost their last three Championship games, were starting to affirm themselves in the game and they were passing the ball round nicely despite the conditions.

 

The Blues defence was standing firm, but there was a break in play when winger Dodge suffered a serious injury and was replaced by Ben Ransom.

 

The rain was having an effect on the game as there was very little fluidity to it, with both sides trying to apply pressure with long kicks downfield.

 

Bristol finally levelled things up when Roberts converted a penalty after the Blues failed to release in the tackle.

 

The hosts were now on top and enjoying most of the possession. Prop Kyle Tarynor tried to create an opening when he broke down the right hand side only to be stopped by a brilliant covering tackle by Ransom.

 

Then, against the run of play, the Blues sparked into life and grabbed the game’s first try in a superb running move.

 

The Blues won a lineout 10 metres from their own line and Luke Baldwin raced up to halfway. The ball was worked out to substitute Ransom who did brilliantly to fight off a series of challenges and off-load to Pritchard to score.

 

The try re-energised the Blues and they looked certain to score again when Brendan Burke had the ball in a good position with men over.

 

However, the Bedford centre elected to go on himself only to knock the ball forward just before the line.

 

As half time approached Bristol pulled three points back when the Blues conceded another penalty for failing to bind in the scrum.

 

Roberts made no mistake, but the visitors led 10-6 at half time with everything still to play for.

The rain eased at the start of the second half and Bristol won a penalty just after the restart, but Roberts dropped his kick short.

 

Nevertheless they had their first try of the afternoon minutes later. Paul Tupai charged down a drop-goal attempt, only for the ball to fall kindly to Eves who spotted a gap in the Blues defence and went over.

 

Roberts converted and Bristol were now in front for the first time in the match.

 

The Bristol fly-half then moved his side further in front when he kicked his third penalty of the afternoon.

 

Bedford needed to reduce the deficit and Pritchard had a chance to do that when the Blues won a penalty, but he sent his kick wide.

 

Bristol prop Traynor was then sin-binned after not getting back 10 metres when Baldwin attempted a quick tap penalty.

 

Pritchard converted the resulting penalty but the Blues were still trailing.

 

Despite playing with an extra man Bedford could not make their numerical advantage count and they fell further behind when Eves slipped through the Blues backline to score his second of the afternoon.

 

Adrian Jarvis, now on kicking duty, converted as Bristol led 23-13.

 

With time running out the Blues tried desperately to salvage something from the match and, despite putting a series of good phases together, they couldn’t get through the resolute Bristol defence.

 

Bedford huffed and puffed some more, but it proved to be in vain as Bristol took the points, leaving the Blues tasting defeat for the first time this season.

 

Bristol: Kyle Traynor, Ross Johnston, Gaston Cortes (Bruce Douglas 57), Ben Glynn, Roy Winters, Redford Pennycook, James Merriman (Iain Grieve 75), Mitch Eadie, James Grindal (C) (Ruki Tipuna 60), Tristan Roberts (Adrian Jarvis 57), Mike Tagicakibau, Jack Gadd, Luke Eves, Ryan Edwards, Jack Tovey. Replacements not used: Tom Channon, Glen Townson, George Watkins. T: Eves 2. C: Roberts, Jarvis. P: Roberts 3.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Dan Seal 60), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 73), Phil Boulton, Alex Rae, Mike Howard, Gregor Gillanders, Sacha Harding, Paul Tupai (Joe Vandermolen 73), Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 73), Jake Sharp (Mark Atkinson 68), Josh Bassett, Henry Staff, Brendan Burke, Ollie Dodge (Ben Ransom 17) James Pritchard (C).Replacements not used: Ben Gulliver. T: Pritchard. C: Pritchard. P:Pritchard 2.

 

Referee: Darren Gamage.

 

Touch Judges: Philip Davies and Brian Ravenhill.

 

Attendance: 4,609.

MATCH REPORT V STIRLING

Bedford Blues produced one of the most one-sided displays you will ever see to beat Stirling County 87-10 at Goldington Road on Saturday.

The Goldington Road crowd, awash with the pink for Ladies Day, witnessed Bedford run in seven first half tries including two from Mark Kohler.

The home side managed another six in the second period as they eased their way to back-to-back wins in the British & Irish Cup.

 

Bedford made seven changes to the team that started against Bedwas last weekend. Paul Tupai and Joe Vandermolen came into the Blues’ forward line while Luke Baldwin, Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke and James Pritchard started amongst the backs.

 

It took the Blues just 58 seconds to grab the game’s first try. A quickly-taken Baldwin penalty got the move started and after several phases the ball was worked out wide to Mark Kohler who scored. Pritchard missed the tricky conversion but the Blues had made a fantastic start.

 

Stirling then got their first points of the afternoon when they won a penalty after the Blues didn’t release in the tackle and Brian Archibald stepped up to pull three points back for the visitors.

 

However, the Blues were in no mood to let their Scottish opposition back into the match and an incisive breakaway saw Atkinson sidestep his man before off-loading to Pritchard who scored.

 

And it didn’t take Bedford long to score their third try of the match – Baldwin the man going over this time.

 

The Blues won a lineout 25 metres from the Stirling line and the Bedford forwards stepped into action driving the opposition defence back to a metre out.

 

From the resulting breakdown scrum-half Baldwin spotted a gap underneath the posts and dived over the line.

 

The Blues were looking well in control of the match and they had their fourth try within half an hour.

 

A Bedford lineout 10 metres from the try line was won by prop Darren Fearn who crashed over the whitewash.

 

Winger Kohler then scored his second after clever off-loads from Atkinson and Jake Sharp cut the Stirling defence apart.

 

Bedford were running riot and Tupai was the next man to get on the score sheet when he capped off another flowing passing move that Stirling couldn’t cope with.

 

And the hosts scored their seventh right on half time when a lineout produced another powerful maul, giving Vandermolen the chance to score.

 

Pritchard needed the help of the post with his conversion, but Bedford went into the half time break with a 47-3 lead.

Stirling head coach Graeme Young gave his players plenty to think about at the interval as he conducted his half time team talk on the pitch.

 

But it didn’t seem to have any effect as Bedford picked up from where they left off as they scored again just after the restart.

 

Baldwin’s quickly-taken tap penalty went unnoticed by the Stirling players and he raced 60 metres downfield to score.

 

Atkinson then extended the Blues’ lead further as he capitalised on Josh Bassett’s searing break to touch down.

 

The visitors did mange to pull one try back moments later when Stuart Edwards made the most of some slack Bedford defending and Archibald converted as Stirling crept into double figures.

 

But Bedford reaffirmed their dominance shortly afterwards as some more heavy pressure resulted in Darren Fox bundling the ball over the line.

 

Pritchard then got his second of the afternoon when Burke played him in and the Blues skipper added the extras as Bedford led 73-10.

 

Burke was the next man to cross after Bedford turned the ball over in a dangerous area, allowing the Blues centre to run through and score.

 

And Bedford completed their demolition of the RBS Premiership side when they were awarded a penalty try after Stirling kicked the ball out the side of the scrum on their own line.

 

The game drew to a close with Bedford taking the points and putting themselves in the driving seat at the top of Pool Two in the process.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn, Neil Cochrane (Dan Seal 48), Ben Cooper (Phil Boulton 60), Paul Tupai (Mike Howard 60), Alex Rae, Gregor Gillanders (Sacha Harding 60), Darren Fox, Joe Vandermolen (Don Barrell 48), Luke Baldwin (Ali Price 48), Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Brendan Burke (Ollie Dodge 66), Mark Kohler, James Pritchard (C). T: Kohler 2, Pritchard 2, Baldwin 2, Fearn, Tupai, Vandermolen, Atkinson, Fox, Burke, Penalty Try. C: Pritchard 11.

 

Stirling: Michael McDonald (Colin Hutton 24), Alex Moffat (C) (Reyner Kennedy 61), Garry Mountford, Ruaridh Leishman (Ross Aitken 40), Craig Deacons, Adam Ashe, Robbie Boswell, Steve Swindall (Tim Clarke 40), Sean Kennedy (Stephen Gillies 68), Stuart Edwards, Matt Lamb (Struan Robertson 40), Brian Archibald (Jonnie Hope 59), Danny Gilmour, Graham Lindsay, Ben Addison. T: Edwards. C: Archibald. P: Archibald.

 

Referee: Steve Lee.

 

Touch Judges: Michael Tutty and Dino Maddern.

 

Attendance: 2,801.

MATCH REPORT V BEDWAS

Bedford Blues got their British & Irish Cup campaign off to the perfect start with an impressive 48-23 win over Bedwas in Pool Two on Saturday afternoon.

 

In the heart of the welsh valleys Bedford produced an excellent first half display and scored four tries thanks to scores from Ollie Dodge, Neil Cochrane and two from Mark Kohler.

 

The home side did pull one back but the Blues led 24-11 at the break.

 

Bedford were equally dominant in the second period and ran in another four tries, including two from winger James Stephenson, to give themselves the points.

 

The Blues made eight changes to the side that beat Plymouth last weekend. Ben Cooper, Darren Fox and Tom Armes started up front, while Ben Ransom, Dodge, Jake Sharp and Darryl Veenendaal came into the back line. Winger Kohler was also given his first start of the season.

 

Bedwas started the match in great fashion and were ahead 20 seconds in when Dodge failed to release the ball in the tackle - giving the home side a penalty that Richard Powell converted.

 

The Welsh side then missed a golden opportunity to get the game’s first try when Sharp’s grubber kick was intercepted by Phil Rees who raced towards the line only to misplace a pass at a crucial moment.

 

The Blues punished them moments later when a good spell of pressure saw Dodge cut through the Bedwas defence and fly over the whitewash. Sharp converted and Bedford were in front.

 

The visitors were continuing to enjoy most of the possession and they were rewarded when hooker Cochrane scored their second of the match.

 

The Blues won a lineout on the Bedwas five-metre line and a strong maul proved too much for the home side’s defence as Cochrane touched down.

 

However, Bedwas responded when full-back Stuart Thomas broke down the wing and played in the supporting Rory Budina who went over.

 

It was now Bedwas that were applying the pressure and they had a chance to reduce the deficit when they won a penalty 50 metres out – but it proved too far for kicker Powell.

 

Kohler, starting in his first match of the season, then extended the Blues’ lead as he got himself on the scoresheet.

 

Scrum-half Veenendaal sprayed a brilliant pass out wide to Kohler who beat his man and scored. And Sharp had the inside of the post to thank as his conversion brushed the woodwork on its way over.

 

Bedwas responded straight from the restart as the Blues conceded a penalty, giving Powell an easy chance to add three points.

 

But with the first half drawing to a close the Blues got their fourth try as Cooper broke for the line, before passing to Kohler who got his second of the match. Sharp missed the conversion but Bedford were 24-11 up at the interval.

 

Bedford picked up from where they left off at the start of the second half when Stephenson got his first try of the match.

 

With Bedwas lock Chris Bundy in the sin-bin the Blues won a scrum 20 metres out. The ball was switched wide to Stephenson and there was no stopping the tricky winger as he went over.

 

And the Blues winger got his second just minutes later when he scored a magnificent solo effort.

 

Ransom’s break started the move and he off-loaded to Stephenson who refused to be brought down on his way to the line as the Bedwas defence threw tackles his way.

 

Cochrane then scored his second of the match in a similar move to his first. The Blues maul was too strong for the Bedwas defence and the Bedford hooker bundled the ball over the line.

 

Bedwas did pull a try back when Ian Smerdon raced away from the Blues’ defence before passing to Budina who showed his lightning pace to put the ball under the posts.

 

The home side were trying their best to salvage something from the match and they grabbed their third try of the match when Stuart Thomas capped off a well-worked passing move.

 

But any hope of a comeback was extinguished when replacement Blues hooker Dan Seal capitalised on another strong driving maul from a lineout to score.

 

Sharp converted with the final kick as Bedford sealed an emphatic win.

 

Bedwas: Daniel Preece (Ian George 48), Elliott Dee (Rhys Hutcherson 48), Matthew Pettit, Phil Rees, Chris Bundy, Tom Organ, James Benjamin, Derri Mattravers (C) (Sam Feehan 18), Tom Rowlands (Joshua Davies 58), Richard Powell (Ethan Davies 58), Ryan Owen, Ross Wardle, Iain Smerdon, Rory Budina, Stuart Thomas. Replacements not used: James Thomas, Matthew John.

T: Budina 2, Thomas. C: Davies. P: Powell 2.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Phil Boulton 78), Neil Cochrane (Dan Seal 65), Ben Cooper, Mike Howard (Paul Tupai 65), Alex Rae (C), Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox, Tom Armes (Joe Vandermolen 38), Darryl Veenendaal (Ali Price 62), Jake Sharp, Mark Kohler, Henry Staff, Ollie Dodge, James Stephenson (Brendan Burke 52), Ben Ransom (Ian Vass 56).

T: Dodge, Cochrane 2, Kohler 2, Stephenson 2, Seal. C: Sharp 4.

 

Referee: Sean Gallagher.

 

Touch Judges: David Jones and Steve Vaudin.

MATCH REPORT V PLYMOUTH

 

Bedford Blues produced their best performance of the season to beat Plymouth 55-17 in a rampant display at Goldington Road this afternoon.

In front of their highest crowd of the season the Blues were a class above their opponents in the first half and scored four tries thanks to James Stephenson, Josh Bassett, James Pritchard and Gregor Gillanders.

Plymouth tried to recover in the second half and scored two tries of their own, but it was to be in vain as the Blues ran in four more tries, giving themselves a memorable bonus-point victory.

Bedford made three changes to the side that overcame Jersey last weekend. Winger James Stephenson returned to the side after recovering from an injury that kept him out of the last two games, while Darren Fearn and Alex Rae also started.

The visitors had the first chance to put points on the board when they won a penalty just inside the Blues half.  Paul Roberts stepped up, but he dragged it wide and the fly-half missed another penalty minutes later.

Albion’s failure to open the scoring proved costly when Stephenson broke the daedlock with the first try of the match. Picking up from where he left off two weeks ago, the Blues winger received the ball 30 metres out and danced his way through the Albion defence to go over.

Pritchard missed the conversion, but the home side did not have to wait long for their second try of the match.  Bedford won a lineout in the Plymouth half and the ball was recycled to Bassett who burst through the defence to go over. Pritchard converted and Bedford were already in control of the match.

The Blues looked like scoring with every attack and Pritchard moved his side further in front when he kicked a penalty.  Plymouth did respond when Roberts finally converted a penalty, but the visitors were now 15-3 down.

Bedford’s expansive style of rugby was causing all sorts of problems for Albion and after some heavy pressure Pritchard went over. The Blues skipper then dusted himself off to add the extras with a difficult kick out wide.

Gregor Gillanders then capped off a scintillating first half performance when he scored the Blues’ fourth try after a wonderful passing move. Pritchard again added the extra and the Blues went into the break with a 29-3 lead.

Plymouth needed to score early in the second half and they did just that when Sam Hocking got their first try of the match after a good spell of pressure. Roberts converted to reduce the deficit to 29-10.  Albion needed to score again, but they were victims of their own downfall when Jake Sharp intercepted a loose pass and raced clear. He off-loaded to Henry Staff who placed the ball underneath the posts.

Hooker Jonathon Vickers did manage to pull another one back for Plymouth, but when Neil Cochrane capitalised on another poor pass he enabled substitute Ben Ransom to cross.

The visitors’ afternoon was made even worse when Sharp scored a terrific solo effort after racing through the Plymouth backline. And Pritchard completed the rout when he grabbed his second try of the match as the game drew to a close.

The Blues skipper could not convert, but it didn’t matter as Bedford had triumphed, extending their unbeaten run against Plymouth to nine games in the process.

Blues: Darren Fearn (Ben Cooper 52), Neil Cochrane (Dan Seal 72), Phil Boulton, Mike Howard (Tom Armes 57), Alex Rae, Gregor Gillanders, Sacha Harding (Darren Fox 66), Paul Tupai, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 72), Mark Atkinson (Jake Sharp 52), Josh Bassett, Henry Staff, Brendan Burke (Ben Ransom 59), James Stephenson, James Pritchard (C).

T: Stephenson, Bassett, Pritchard 2, Gillanders, Staff, Ransom, Sharp. C: Pritchard 6. P: Prichard.

Abion: Luke Cowan-Dickie (Jack Andrew 80), Jonathon Vickers (James Salter 72), Lloyd Fairbrother (David Morton 52), Brett Beukeboom, Ien Ascroft-Leigh (Aaron Carpenter 52), Wayne Sprangle (Rupeni Nasiga 52), Sam Hocking, Sean-Michael Stephen (C), Ruairi Cushion (Rhodri McAtee 52), (Keni Fisilau 62), Paul Roberts, Lewis Warner, Bevon Armitage, Toby Howley-Berridge, Paul Bailey, Henry Slade.

T: Hocking, Vickers. C: Roberts 2. P: Roberts.

Referee: Tim Wigglesworth.

Touch Judges: Rowan Kitt, Darryl Chapman.

Attendance: 2,725.

MATCH REPORT V JERSEY

After mounting a monumental second half revival of their own last week, Bedford Blues then found themselves having to hold off one from a spirited Jersey side in St. Peter yesterday. They still managed to take a bonus point win from their first ever match against the side, but had to do it after finishing the game with 13 men on the field.

 

Tries from the recalled Paul Tupai, Mark Atkinson, Sacha Harding and a penalty try inside the first 50 minutes looked to have set Bedford on course for a comfortable win. But Jersey showed that they are getting to grips with Championship rugby following promotion last year after running in three tries during the final half an hour, while the Blues had Ricky Reeves red carded and Ben Cooper sin binned in the second half.

 

With a history of the sport on the island stretching back to 1879, Jersey has always been something of a hotbed of rugby union. Indeed, the annual Siam Cup played between them and fellow Channel Islanders Guernsey is only preceded by the Calcutta Cup as the oldest honour contested in the sport.

 

It was also a popular destination for tours during the amateur era, as well as more recently providing a venue for clubs to hold pre-season training camps. But it is only in the last five years that Jersey’s own side has started to make their mark on the game following four promotions in that time.

 

The 37-13 win at Coventry last season ensured their promotion to the second tier of English rugby for the first time in their history after being crowned National League One champions. It has not been an easy start to life in the Championship for Ben Harvey’s men though, and going into this match they had yet to register a win.

 

Despite suffering a 54-31 defeat at Rotherham Titans last week, they proved that they are a side to be wary of though after scoring four tries to pick up the bonus point. Bedford boss Mike Rayer was also under no illusions that this would be a stroll in the park, particularly after their close-run win over Nottingham the week before.

 

The early signs were that Jersey would belie their position at the foot of the table as they enjoyed the majority of the possession and territory. However, while the Blues were guilty of some handling errors and lapses in discipline, the home side had several early penalties and a free kick go against them at the scrum.

 

Michael Le Bourgeois then spurned an opportunity to kick Jersey ahead on seven minutes, putting a penalty effort wide. Pritchard did not make the same mistake for Bedford on the quarter hour though, slotting over the first points following a deliberate knock on after Ransom’s penetrating run had taken the visitors deep into home territory for the first time.

 

Within three minutes, the Blues had their first try. Pritchard set up the counter attack after fielding a clearance kick, with sprightly Josh Bassett spotting the gap in the line and charging forward before passing to Tupai – back in the starting XV – and sending him over to score a try that the skipper converted.

 

Jersey rallied and surged back forward, but their good work again went unrewarded. Bedford were then able to exploit holes in their defence on the half hour, with Atkinson breaking the line before racing in from over 30 metres out and dotting down behind the sticks to give Pritchard a simple conversion.

 

To add insult to injury, Le Bourgeois put the ball out on the full from the restart, while on the stroke of half time Harding went over out wide for the Blues’ third try after Pritchard had passed back inside to him. The Canadian international was unable to convert though, with the away side leading by 22 points at the interval.

 

Things did not get better for the hosts immediately after the break and on 48 minutes they found themselves temporarily down to 14 men after hooker Steve Bowden was sin binned. With eight against seven up front and just ten metres out, the Blues unsurprisingly opted for the scrum. That resulted in a penalty try, bringing up the bonus point in the process, with Pritchard adding the extras.

 

Despite being a man down, Jersey did manage to register a score in the 57th minute when replacement Glenn Bryce finished off a fine attacking move. Le Bourgeois also added the extras.

Jersey were now in the ascendancy and when captain Nathan Hannay went over from close range with 15 minutes to go it gave them at least a sniff of a bonus point.

 

Bedford’s task was then made harder when prop Reeves was sent off by referee Martin Fox after a dangerous tackle on Hannay. That was clinically exploited by the hosts who incredibly managed to score what at one time looked an unlikely third after Edward Dawson burst clear down the left wing from just inside his own half and scored in the corner for an unconverted try.

 

Unbelievably, Bedford would end the game down by two men after replacement Cooper was yellow carded for persistent team infringements. However, that was virtually the last action of the match and they return home with five valuable points.

 

 

Bedford Blues line-up - Ransom; Bassett, Burke, Staff (Seal 77), Pritchard (captain); Atkinson, Baldwin; Reeves, Cochrane, Boulton (Cooper 62), Howard, Gulliver, Gillanders, Harding (Rae 62), Tupai (Fox 62)

Replacements Not Used - Veenendaal, Vass, Kohler

MATCH REPORT V NOTTINGHAM

Ben Ransom’s last gasp try gave Bedford Blues a dramatic 27-25 win against Nottingham at Goldington Road on Saturday afternoon.

 

Bedford struggled to get to grips with their opponents in the first half and conceded three tries in the opening 40 minutes.

 

Nottingham captain Brent Wilson was the first man to go over for the Green and Whites, while Nic Rouse and Rhys Crane also got on the score sheet.

James Pritchard did score a penalty for the Blues, but they trailed 22-3 at half time.

 

Bedford rallied after the break and scored two tries of their own, but they looked to be heading for their first defeat of the season, until the twelfth minute of injury time when Ransom came up with a winner.

Bedford made four changes to the side that beat London Scottish last time out. Loosehead prop, Darren Fearn, made his debut while Ian Vass came in for his first start of the season at fly-half. Josh Bassett and Paul Tupai also started in place of the injured James Stephenson and Ben Gulliver.

 

Nottingham started the match brightly and after a good spell of early pressure took the lead when James Arlidge converted a penalty deep in the Blues’ half.

 

The Green and Whites were looking like a force to be reckoned with and they extended their lead just minutes later when captain Wilson touched down in the corner. Arlidge converted and the Blues were now 0-10 down.

 

Bedford needed to find a response from somewhere but they were struggling to grasp the nettle as they kept giving away possession through basic errors.

 

However, they did manage to get their first points on the board when they won a penalty that captain Pritchard converted.

 

But any chance of a first half comeback was dampened as Nottingham scored their second try of the match, Rouse the man bundling the ball over the line.

And the Green and Whites continued their dominance when they scored their third try of the half. Winger Crane intercepted a Blues pass and, although the home side appealed for an offside, Crane flew clear to put the ball underneath the posts. Arlidge converted and Bedford went into the break 22-3 down, leaving them with a mountain to climb.

 

The Blues got the start to the second half they needed when scrum-half Darryl Veenendaal dived over. Bedford had enjoyed a good spell of pressure in the opposition half and Veenendaal made a charge for the line, scoring the Blues’ first try of the match.

 

Pritchard converted, but Nottingham replied instantly as Arlidge sent a drop-goal through the posts.

Green and Whites prop, Michael Holford, was then sent to the sin bin and Bedford made the most of the extra man when they were awarded a penalty try after Nottingham repeatedly infringed on their own try line.

 

Nottingham then had a chance to give themselves some breathing space when they won a penalty, but Arlidge missed it and Pritchard made them pay when he converted one of his own moments later.

 

With the clock ticking down and the Blues needing a try, the lively Ransom had a good opportunity to score when he cut through the Nottingham defence with a mazy run, exchanging passes with Pritchard in the process. But when the ball came back to him he knocked it forward and the chance looked to have gone.

However, referee Darren Gamage continued to let the game carry on past 90 minutes and Ransom redeemed himself as he powered through the Nottingham defence to score.

 

Goldington Road erupted as Pritchard converted, giving the Blues the victory out of the clutches of defeat.

 

Blues: Darren Fearn (Phil Boulton 49), Neil Cochrane, Ricky Reeves (Dan Seal 78), Paul Tupai, Mike Howard, Alex Rae, Darren Fox (Sacha Harding 54),Tom Armes (Gregor Gillanders 49), Darryl Veenendaal (Luke Baldwin 53), Ian Vass (Jake Sharp 53), Josh Bassett, Mark Atkinson, Ben Ransom, Ollie Dodge (Brendan Burke 62), James Pritchard (C).

 

T: Veenendaal, Penalty Try, Ransom. C: Pritchard 3. P: Pritchard 2.

 

Notts: Matthew Parr (Ryan Bower 78), Joseph Duffey, Michael Holford, Daniel Montagu, Nicholas Rouse, Rupert Cooper, Brent Wilson (C) (Thomas Calladine 74), Alexander Shaw, Sean Romans, James Arlidge, Rhys Crane, Joe Munro (Joe Cobden 78), Timothy Streather, David Jackson, Andrew Savage. Replacements not used: Scott Wright, Joseph Quinn, Finlay Barnham, Rory Lynn.

 

T: Wilson, Rouse, Crane. C: Arlidge 2. P: Arlidge. DG: Arlidge.

 

Referee: Darren Gamage.

 

Touch Judges: Nicholas Cockburn, Simon McConnell.

 

Attendance: 2,298.

MATCH REPORT V LON SCOTTISH

James Stephenson now has another bunch of clips to go on his YouTube highlight reel after running in a hat-trick of tries to help Bedford Blues to what was, in the end, a comfortable bonus point victory over London Scottish at Goldington Road.

 

The winger made the most of his recall to the side after missing last week’s draw at Rotherham Titans, showing exactly why he ended last season as National League One’s top try scorer.

He was one of nine changes that director of rugby Mike Rayer had made to the side – partly because of rotation, partly because of being unhappy with the first half performance at Clifton Lane – and those that were given their chance certainly made the most of it, despite a scrappy first 40 minutes.

 

Bedford had been the dominant side in the early stages and were rewarded when Jake Sharp spotted a gap in the Exiles defence, putting through a clever grubber kick before picking up the ball and offloading to support runner Mark Atkinson. The former Esher man then sprinted in from around 25 metres out for an unconverted try on his debut for the club.

 

Scottish responded with their pack drawing a penalty from a scrum deep in Blues territory two minutes later, but goal kicking winger James Love was unable to add the three points.

 

The visiting forwards were very much on top at the set piece though and after a series of penalties and reset scrums five metres from the line, they eventually breached the defence on 18 minutes when Chevvy Pennycook got the ball down from close range.

 

Love converted to edge his side in front, but Bedford quickly regained their composure and were unfortunate to see Scott Spurling knock on while diving for the line after Sharp’s break had set up the attack. It was now turning into an attritional battle between the two opposing packs, and as the half wore on the Blues front eight started to regain some ground.

Indeed, they were the ones that helped set up Stephenson’s try three minutes before the interval.

 

A powerful driving maul carried them to within striking distance and after the hosts were awarded a penalty that was tapped, the Exiles defence were caught off guard to allow the ex-Blackheath wing his first try in Bedford colours.

 

James Pritchard added the extras before Love booted a 38th minute penalty to keep the away side within touching distance.

 

Pritchard closed the half with a penalty of his own though to give the Blues a lead of five. And it took just fourminutes of the second period for themtomove further in front, with Atkinson going from scorer to provider after breaking the line and putting through centre partner Ben Ransom for the try.

 

Full back Pritchard missed the conversion, but just five minutes later the hosts were in again for the bonus point try.

 

Once again, a trademark Sharp kick left the Exiles defence at sixes and sevens, with Stephenson capitalising on the confusion to pick up the ball, shrug off a tackle attempt and go over for his second. This time Pritchard converted.

 

The fleet-footed wide man completed his hat-trick on 54 minutes. Play looked to have broken down after Atkinson had been held up close to the line, only for Stephenson to recover the ball and dance his way through the defence before dotting down behind the sticks to give Pritchard a simple conversion.

 

Scottish tried to hit back and on the hour they temporarily held a numerical advantage after Alex Rae was sin-binned for an offence on the Bedford line. Yet it was the Blues that scored next, with Sharp’s last action of the game seeing him chase down his own kick for their sixth try of the afternoon.

 

Skipper Mark Bright did manage to get a second for the Londoners ten minutes from time and after Ransom had got his second – converted by replacement Ian Vass – for Bedford, Pennycook went over for his second. But there was still time for substitute Luke Baldwin to grab an eighth and take the Blues past the half century mark for the second time in as many home games.

 

BEDFORD - Pritchard (captain) (Burke 71); Stephenson, Ransom, Atkinson, Dodge; Sharp (Vass 67), Veenendaal (Baldwin 63); Reeves (Seal 66), Spurling (Cochrane 60), Cooper, Howard, Gulliver (Tupai 33), Rae, Fox, Armes (Gillanders 71)

 

Attendance - 2,277

MATCH REPORT V ROTHERHAM

An enthralling first half saw James Pritchard’s penalty put Bedford in front with less than a minute on the clock, before the Titans responded with tries from Mike Whitehead and Alex Rieder, while Neil Cochrane pulled one back for the Blues.

Bedford started the second half in a more positive manner, scoring three tries - including two from winger Josh Bassett, but they were to be denied a bonus point victory when they conceded a penalty try in the dying seconds of the match.

The Blues made three changes to the side that beat Moseley with Ollie Dodge, Mike Howard and Ricky Reeves coming in for James Stephenson, Alex Rae and Dan Seal.

It took the Blues just 40 seconds to go ahead when Pritchard converted a penalty, only for their lead to be short-lived as the Titans scored the first try of the match less than a minute later. Neale Patrick’s surging run left the Blues defence out of position and the ball was switched wide for full-back Mike Whitehead to go over.

The conversion was missed but Rotherham had another chance to get points on the board when they won a penalty. McKinney converted and Bedford were now 8-3 down.

It was end-to-end stuff and the away side got the response they needed when hooker Neil Cochrane crossed the line.

Bedford won a line-out on the Rotherham five metre line and in a similar move to last week against Moseley, the Blues forwards showed their strength to enable Cochrane to score, Pritchard added the extras and the visitors were back in front.

The home side came back strongly once again and after enjoying heavy pressure deep in the Blues half, the lively Alex Rieder scored from a scrum – giving McKinney an easy conversion.

The game then saw an exchange of penalties. McKinney was the first man to send one through the posts but Pritchard followed shortly after with his second of the match.

Rotherham fly-half, McKinney, then missed a penalty late in the first half but the Titans went into the break with an 18-13 lead.

Bedford came out all guns blazing at the start of the second period and scored a much-needed try when Jake Sharp offloaded to Bassett who put the ball down underneath the posts. Pritchard converted and the score now stood at 20-18.

However Bedford were conceding penalties at regular intervals and McKinney scored two in quick succession to put Rotherham back in front.

Not to be outdone the Blues responded magnificently as they grabbed two tries in as many minutes.

Don Barrell was the first to go over as he made the most of some poor Rotherham defending and scrum-half Luke Baldwin was instrumental in the next one as he made two breaks through the Rotherham backline, before getting the ball out wide to Bassett who went over for his second.

Pritchard converted and the Blues skipper strengthened his side’s position moments later when he kicked another penalty.

The Titans needed to bounce back quickly and when Lee Blackett bundled the ball over the line, they were back in the match.

Pritchard then scored his fourth penalty, giving the Blues a seven-point lead as the hosts now needed a try to salvage anything from the match.

With the game entering the final five minutes, the Titans began to apply some heavy pressure. They won a scrum on the Blues five metre line and Scott Spurling was sent to the sin bin for repeated infringements.

The Blues were living dangerously and when they committed another violation in the scrum it gave referee, Geraint Roberts, no choice but to award Rotherham the penalty try.

McKinney, who had looked good with the boot all day, kept his cool to convert and even the match at 38-38 with what proved the final kick of the match.

Rotherham: Jamie Kilbane (Marshall Gadd 55), Dan Baines, Ross Davies (Simon Gardiner 55), Neale Patrick (Latu Makaafi 65), Dan Sanderson, Barney Maddison, Carl Kirwan, Alex Rieder (Rory Piutman 47), James Williams (Joel Gill 59), James McKinney, Peter Homan, Palepoi Nonu (Garry Law 65), Lee Blackett (C), Eamonn Sheridan, Michael Whitehead.

Replacements: Edward Stagg.

T: Whitehead, Rieder, Blackett, Penalty Try. C: McKinney (3). P:McKinney (4).

Blues: Ricky Reeves (Dan Seal 54), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 65), Phil Boulton (Ben Cooper 57) Mike Howard (Paul Tupai 47), Ben Gulliver, Gregor Gillanders, Sacha Harding, (Darren Fox 65) Don Barrell, Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 65), Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Henry Staff, Brendan Burke (Ian Vass 60), Ollie Dodge, James Pritchard (C).

T: Cochrane, Bassett (2), Barrell. C: Pritchard (2). P: Pritchard (4).

Attendance: 1,198.

MATCH REPORT V MOSELEY

Bedford Blues got their Championship campaign off to a winning start after defeating Moseley 50-6 at Goldington Road this afternoon, writes Michael Hann.

 

On a perfect afternoon for rugby, the Blues ran in three first half tries including two from Neil Cochrane that helped them on their way.

 

Bedford continued their dominance after half time as Gregor Gillanders, Luke Baldwin and a Ben Ransom double secured a convincing win.

 

The Blues included new signings James Stephenson and Ben Gulliver in their starting line-up while Joe Vandermolen took his place on the bench.

 

Having not beaten Bedford in the Championship since 2006 it was the away side who enjoyed good early pressure.

 

Moseley had the Blues on the back foot in the opening 10 minutes and Charlie Hayter was guilty of missing an easy chance as he cut through the Blues defence only to knock the ball forward on the line.

 

The visitors had another chance to get the first points of the game when Anders Mogenson was one-on-one with Stephenson, but the Blues winger made an excellent last ditch tackle to keep the scores level.

 

Bedford made them pay moments later when they won a penalty just under the Moseley posts that James Pritchard converted to put the home side in front.

 

It was now the Blues that were enjoying most of the possession and Josh Bassett was unlucky not to finish off Pritchard’s break when he was denied by Simon Hunt just metres before the line.

 

Bedford did not have to wait too much longer for their try. A lineout on the Moseley five metre line resulted in a powerful Blues maul and Cochrane touched down.

 

The Blues had stepped things up a gear and Josh Bassett was the next man to score as he capitalised on a good passing move and raced down the wing, away from the oncoming Hunt who this time could not catch him.

 

Pritchard converted and the Blues had given themselves a healthy lead.

 

Moseley did register their first points of the match when they won a penalty that Ollie Thomas duly converted.

 

The home side were not going to let Moseley back into the match and extended their lead when Cochrane scored his second of the game.

 

In a similar move to his first, the Blues forwards were imperious at the lineout and that enabled Cochrane to take the ball over the line in the maul.

 

Moseley did add the final points of the first half when Thomas scored his second penalty but the Blues went into the half time break with a 22-6 lead.

 

The home side could not have asked for a better start to the second half when they scored their fourth try of the match just after the restart.

 

A fumble from Jake Sharp’s kick saw Gregor Gillanders quickest to the loose ball and he took it over the line.

 

Scrum half Baldwin was the next man to get on the scoresheet as the Blues won a Moseley line out and hit them with a quick break that Baldwin made the most of.

 

The hosts hould have extended their lead further when Pritchard and Stephenson combined to break clear but the Moseley defence managed to turn the ball over, while Pritchard was sent to the sin bin after stopping a quick tap and go penalty.

 

Moseley could not take advantage of the extra man and they conceded another try after Sacha Harding chipped the ball over the their backline for substitute Ransom to latch on to.

 

Pritchard, now back on the field, converted the difficult kick from the touchline.

 

Ransom got his second of the game as the clocked ticked down. The Blues were working the ball well in the centre of the field before switching it wide to Ransom who went over.

 

Pritchard got his sixth conversion of the match and rounded off an excellent Blues display.

 

Blues: Dan Seal (Ben Cooper 40), Neil Cochrane (Scott Spurling 54), Phil Boulton, Ben Gulliver, Alex Rae (Mike Howard 40), Gregor Gillanders, Sacha Harding, Don Barrell Joe Vandermolen (67), Luke Baldwin (Darryl Veenendaal 60), Jake Sharp (Ian Vass 67), Josh Bassett, Henry Staff, Brendan Burke (Ben Ransom 54), James Stephenson, James Pritchard (C).

 

T: Cochrane (2), Bassett, Gillanders, Baldwin, Ransom (2).

 

C: Pritchard (6).

 

P: Pritchard.

 

Moseley: Ethan Waller, Adam Caves (Sam Wilkes 54), Craig Voisey (Charles Meddick 74), Addison Lockley, (Oliver Robinson 47), Liam Mather, Neil Mason, Ben Pienaar (C), Ben Pons, Sam Brown (Alex Day 55), Glyn Hughes Brad Davies 77), Anders Morgenson, Charlie Hayter, Anthony Carter, Simon Hunt, Ollie Thomas (Caolan Ryan 77).

 

Replacements not used: Matt Lowcock.

 

P: Thomas (2)

 

Referee: John Meredith

 

Touch Judges: Marcus Caton, Roger Baileff

 

Attendance: 2,104.

MATCH REPORT V CAMBRIDGE

Bedford Blues rounded off their pre-season campaign with a dominant 77-5 win over Cambridge at Volac Park on Friday night.

Labelled as a training match, the game was split into four 20 minute quarters and the Blues crushed their lower league opponents.

 

Winger James Stephenson got himself a hat-trick in the first 40 minutes of the game and the away side racked up another eight tries on their way to victory.

The Blues took the lead as early as the fourth minute when Josh Bassett danced his way through the Cambridge before off-loading to Gregor Gillanders who touched down under the posts and Jake Sharp converted as the Blues made a lively start.

 

Sharp was involved again moments later when he sold the oncoming Cambridge defender a dummy before off-loading to Don Barrell who bagged himself a try. Sharp added the extras and by this stage Bedford were well in control.

 

Stephenson grabbed his first try of the game when he finished off full-back Ben Ransom’s powerful run through the Cambridge defence. Sharp could not convert from wide but the Blues were 19 points up in the first 20 minutes.

 

The Blues forwards then showed their strength in a maul as Neil Cochrane got the ball over the line after the Blues had won a Cambridge lineout, although Sharp missed the extras from a tight angle.

 

There was to be some relief for the home side as Jarrod Taylor intercepted a Sharp pass and surged towards the line before off-loading to fly-half Adam White who scored - but missed the following conversion.

 

Despite getting their first points on the board Cambridge found themselves even further behind when Stephenson rounded off a good passing move.

 

And the Blues winger grabbed himself a first half hat-trick when he wriggled his way through the

Cambridge backline and touched down in the corner.

 

Sharp missed his kick but the Blues went into the break with the score 34-5 in their favour.

The Blues made a host of changes at the start of the third quarter and scum half Luke Baldwin made the home side pay when he took a quick penalty and burst through for a try.

 

Sharp converted this time and by this stage the Blues were cruising to victory.

 

There was a sour moment for the Blues as hooker Chris Locke went off with a knee injury, but his replacement, Scott Spurling, was the next man over as he showed a clean pair of heels - leaving Sharp with an easy conversion in the process.

 

Mark Kohler got Blues’ ninth try of the game when he sprinted down the right wing leaving the Cambridge defence trailing in his wake.

 

Trialist Joe Vandermolen grabbed his second try in as many matches when he crossed over after the Blues had a scrum on the hosts’ five-metre line although, Ian Vass who was now on kicking duties, he could not convert.

 

Flanker Sacha Harding was the next man to put points on the board as he touched down after being played in by Heath Stevens.

 

The darkness was now beginning to descend on Volac Park, but there was still time for Stephenson to run in his fourth try of the match.

 

The tricky winger fought of off three challenges and showed great strength and determination as he crossed over, only for Vass’ kick to cannon back off the post.

 

The rout was completed when Ali Price spread the ball out wide to Kohler who in turn played in Bassett for the Blues final try of the match.

 

Vass sent the ball through the posts and that proved to be the last piece of action in an impressive Blues display.

 

Blues: Dan Seal, Neil Cochrane, Phil Boulton, Alex Rae, Ben Gulliver, Gregor Gillanders, Darren Fox, Don Barrell, Darryl Veenendaal, Jake Sharp, Josh Bassett, Heath Stevens, Brendan Burke, James Stephenson, Ben Ransom. 

 

Replacements: Darren Fearn, Scott Spurling, Chris Locke, Ben Cooper, Mike Howard, Sacha Harding, Joe Vandermolen, Luke Baldwin, Ali Price, Ian Vass, Ollie Dodge, Mark Kohler. 

 

T: Gillanders, Barrell, Stephenson 4, Cochrane, Baldwin, Spurling, Vandermolen, Kohler, Harding, Bassett. C: Sharp 4, Vass 2.

 

Cambridge: First 20: Tom Fidler, Ben Hunter, Chris Cutts, Ollie Marriott, Gareth Baxter, Gareth McComb, Ollie Watson, Steve Hipwell, Danny Hunter, Elliot Bale, James Ayrton, Will Carrington, Will Lawson, Albert Portsmouth, Mike Ayrton. 

Second 20: Tom Fidler, Jarrod Taylor, Chris Cutts, Ollie Marriott, Matt Dunn, Gareth McComb, Ollie Watson, Steve Hipwell, Danny Hunter, Adam White, James Ayrton, Will Carrington, Will Lawson, John Hale, Mike Ayrton. 

Third 20: Ben Cooper, James Palmer, Levan Stapelton, Matt Dunn, Gareth Baxter, Harry Robbins, Jarrod Taylor, Steve Hipwell, Ross Kevan, Elliot Bale, Reece Harry, Greg White, John Hale, Jordan Burgess, Johnny Sykes. 

Fourth 20: Joe Winter, Ben Hunter, Jack Elbourne, Gareth Baxter, Ollie Marriot, Gareth McComb. George Elliot, Ollie Watson, Tom Dougherty, Adam White, Will Hague-Blundy, Andrew Jones, Albert Portsmouth, Chris Lord, Alex Kelsall.

T: White.

 

MATCH REPORT V CARDIFF RFC

Little can be read into the results of pre-season encounters, but if Bedford Blues play anything like this when the Championship kicks off in two weeks’ time then there will be few teams that can match them after a clinical second half display saw them dispatch a youthful Cardiff side in a twelve try rout.

 

Yet at the interval this looked like being a much more even contest. True, the Blues held a four-point lead, but the side once revered as amongst the best club teams in the world during the amateur era were proving more than a match for the hosts. However, the away side – who, in fairness, were missing 19 players - suffered a dramatic implosion when play resumed, shipping ten tries.

 

Blues director of rugby Mike Rayer, who played over 300 times for Cardiff in two spells during his playing career, will have been delighted with the performance of his team. He may also have been heartened by the showing of the two trialists – Heath Stevens and Joe Vandermolen – who were both given starts and managed to make an impression on the game.

 

It was a bright start from the hosts and they were able to make early inroads with some of their trademark running rugby. An early penalty for offside was then kicked for touch, and although the line-out was not the cleanest, Bedford recovered the ball and moved it across the field for Stevens to send over Stephenson in the corner in the fourth minute. Brendan Burke stroked over the conversion, and the Blues were seven points ahead.

 

Cardiff were also committed to play some expansive running themselves, with centre Adam Thomas made some vital yards with the old show-and-go that opened up a gap for him. Although that move came to nothing, the Welsh side continued to enjoy a spell of possession in the Bedford half and got on the board through a Joe Griffin penalty on 14 minutes.

 

The see-saw nature of the contest continued after that score, with Bedford nearly made to pay after Will Thomas intercepted a wayward pass inside the away side’s 22. The full back streaked clear and it took a last-gasp tackle from Stevens to prevent him from going all the way. The Blues then forced the turnover and threatened to score themselves, only for Ben Cooper to knock on close to the line.

 

Cardiff were next to score though in the 23rd minute and it was a fine individual score from Richard Smith. The Welsh sevens international picked off a loose pass from Josh Bassett and raced in from 45 metres to score behind the posts, giving Griffin a simple conversion.

 

The lead lasted just three minutes. A quickly taken tap penalty saw the Blues word the ball out wide, with Burke providing the final pass that sent club stalwart Sacha Harding crashing over for a try. Burke then nailed the conversion from out wide again to restore the Bedford lead.

 

It remained the same at half time, but the home side moved further ahead within four minutes of the restart. Bassett made the break before passing inside to Burke, and although he was held up just short of the line the ball was recycled back out to Cooper with the prop diving over from close range for a converted score.

 

Bedford’s forwards then showed their power in the 48th minute. Cardiff had conceded a five metre scrum and they found themselves driven back before No.8 Vandermolen dived on the ball at the base of the scrum for an unconverted score. The raft of replacements then followed, but that did not blunt the Blues as an attacking force.

 

They were over again in the 51st minute, with replacement Jake Sharp making one of his familiar line breaks before passing to Alex Rae, who in turn fed sub Don Barrell for their fifth try of the night which Sharp converted. Barrell was then on hand to finish off another fine move that tore the Cardiff defence apart.

 

It was now a question of how many more the Blues would get and they were over again on the hour. Sharp pulled off an outrageous one-handed pass to Henry Staff and the centre sped over from 30 metres out for another converted try. Bedford passed the half century mark eight minutes later after referee Steve Lee had awarded a penalty try against the visitors for pulling down a maul.

 

There was still more to come and a scrum on halfway saw the ever-alert scrum half Darryl Veenendaal sprint clear after picking up the ball before releasing fellow replacement James Pritchard to score under the sticks, with Sharp again adding the extras. The Canadian international full back then grabbed his second try out wide on the right inside the final five minutes, and completed his hat-trick in the closing stages after taking a quick tap from a penalty for a high tackle.

 

There was still time for Ransom to add insult to injury by scoring a try right on the stroke of full time, with Sharp converting to bring an entertaining game to a close.

 

Bedford Blues line-up – Ransom; Stephenson, Burke, Stevens, Bassett; Vass, Baldwin; Seal, Spurling, Cooper, Howard, Gulliver, Rae (captain), Harding, Vandermolen

Replacements – Cochrane, Fearn, Boulton, Gillanders, Fox, Barrell, Veenendaal, Sharp, Staff, Kohler, Pritchard

 

MATCH REPORT V SARACENS

Bedford Blues’ first pre-season run out ended in a 12 point defeat to Aviva Premiership side Saracens at Goldington Road on Friday evening, with the home side taking some time to shake off a bit of rustiness before producing a fine second half performance.

 

The visitors showed their class in the first 40 minutes, with England international Charlie Hodgson controlling proceedings to put them 17 points ahead at half time. However, after conceding an early try in the second period, Bedford started to claw their way back into proceedings with scores from replacements Josh Bassett and Ali Price seeing them emerge with a plenty of credit from the encounter.

 

Four of Bedford’s summer signings were included in the starting XV, with Mark Atkinson, James Stephenson, Darren Fearn and Ben Gulliver all making their bows at Goldington Road. Tom Armes was also amongst the replacements, as was dual registered hooker Scott Spurling.

 

Five of the other players that will be available to the Blues via dual registration with Saracens were in action as well, although they were lining up for the visitors. Duncan Taylor, Mako Vunipola, Jackson Wray and Fraser all started, while Ben Ransom was named amongst the replacements.

 

The early stages of the game were fairly even, but three penalties against Sarries in quick succession saw James Pritchard kick to touch on each occasion and give the hosts possession deep inside the opposition half. However, they were unable to break down some stubborn defence despite putting together some good moves.

 

Eventually they lost possession after a knock on and were then fortunate that nothing more came after former Blues star Taylor intercepted a wayward pass after the away side coughed up possession themselves. However, Saracens opened the scoring on 14 minutes when the ever-alert Hodgson charged down Ian Vass’ clearance and raced away to score under the posts, duly converting his own try.

 

The veteran fly half then kicked a penalty three minutes later and he was starting to pull the strings as his side began to take control of proceedings. A knock on close to the Bedford line gave them a brief respite, but the Blues pack were driven back at their own scrum before it collapsed, leading to the referee awarding a 25thminute penalty try that Hodgson again converted.

 

Bedford did get the chance to attack the Sarries line again after a high tackle by Eoin Sherriff on Darryl Veenendaal, but that to come to naught. Then five minutes before the interval, new boy Stephenson showed why he was picked up from National Division One side Blackheath with a clever chip and chase that saw him speed down the wing, only to be denied a try after visiting full back Chris Wyles was able to touch down in his own in goal just before the Blues winger could get there.

 

It remained that way at half time and it was a tit-for-tat affair when play resumed. However, Saracens were next to score in the 53rd minute and this time it was two of the dual-registered players that were involved.

 

Blues fans will be hoping that prop forward Vunipola shows more of the running ability that he did when he burst nearly 30 metres deep into home territory before the ball was then moved across the park for Fraser to score out wide, with replacement Nils Mordt converting.

 

Bedford did get on the score sheet six minutes later and it was certainly a try worth waiting for. Replacement fly half Jake Sharp picked out fellow half-time sub Bassett with a perfectly-weighted cross field kick and the winger then streaked away, racing in from over 45 metres out and leaving the defence trailing in his wake. Pritchard then converted from in front of the posts.

 

The Blues were not done there though and with ten minutes remaining, Academy graduate Price broke the line and scampered over for an unconverted try from 20 metres out. They then held off a late onslaught from Saracens to prevent any further scores.

 

Bedford Blues line-up – Pritchard (captain); Kohler, Staff, Atkinson, Stephenson; Vass, Veenendaal; Fearn, Locke, Cooper, Gulliver, Rae, Gillanders, Fox, Barrell

Replacements – Seal, Spurling, Cochrane, Boulton, Howard, Van der Molen, Harding, Armes, Price, Sharp, Stevens, Bassett

RAYER SET FOR EIGHTH CAMPAIGN

It may only seem like yesterday that we won the battle but lost the war against London Welsh at Old Deer Park, but the new season is upon us and the Blues are in fantastic shape as they prepare for the visit of Saracens on Friday night.

 

The game will be Bedford’s second of a busy pre-season build up which started last Friday as the Blues crossed the English Channel and headed to the south of France to face Pro 2 side Pau. Although the scoreboard showed a narrow 22-19 defeat, director of Rugby Mike Rayer was pleased with what he saw over the 4 x 20 minute periods and the ‘culture’ that was taken in afterwards.

 

“France was a really good experience,” he said. “We got out of it exactly what we wanted and the game gave us a good, physical test and from a coaching point of view we saw some really good aspects as well as a few things that we need to work on. Our lineout functioned really well but our scrum came under a lot of pressure and that’s probably what we expected when you face a French side with a €7million playing budget. We were three tries down at the break but the lads responded in their usual fashion in the second half, outplaying Pau for large periods and managing to score three tries of our own.

 

“All-in-all, the game was worth three or four training sessions to us and the lads also had the chance to enjoy themselves and experience something a little different. We’ve had a great relationship with the town of Salles for some 35 years now and we were treated fantastically by the locals who took us to heart and even lent us a kit when Pau turned up wearing black which clashed with our own jerseys. It was different to some other pre-seasons we’ve had but I think it’s good to mix things up a little.”

 

Bedford will head into Friday’s game against Saracens without Paul Tupai, who had a minor operation on Tuesday and will be out of action for four weeks, but the will be supported by a number of trialists who are looking to impress Rayer before the season begins.

 

“The lads on trial are showing up well and we will continue to have a good look at them over the next few weeks. Likewise we’ve seen what the new signings can do and Vassy stepped up at ten last Friday and was a real success. We are without a couple of lads for the Saracens game due to little niggles but it’s nothing too serious and we just need to manage everyone.

 

“We’ve got a long season ahead and we know that we have to work extra hard if we are going to make it into the top four. We’ve had a tough three weeks of training followed by a week off and then the trip to France. Now we are focussing on Saracens this Friday and the visit of Cardiff next weekend.

 

“Saracens are a great club and we are all looking forward to the game. They’ve got some fantastic players and it is a privilege to have them here. We’ve had some really competitive games against them in the past and I’m sure that Friday will provide us with a real yard stick.

 

“Cardiff are a bit more of an unknown entity. I’m obviously excited about welcoming my home club to Goldington Road and catching up with some old faces, but it will also give us the chance to test ourselves against a different style of rugby. Cardiff RFC are a feeder club to the Cardiff Blues and they have a number of the Blues youngsters on the books who will be looking to impress. Last season when we played in Cardiff they had Alex Cuthbert and Harry Robinson who both went on to play for Wales later that season.

“The game against Pau last week, the two games against Saracens and Cardiff and then the training match we have against Cambridge on August 24 give us a great starting block on which to hit the Championship season when Moseley visit in September. The hard work will continue and the lads are excited about the challenges ahead.”

Pictures courtesy of Union Sportive De Salles ©