Bournemouth Lions sponsored by
Wood of Bournemout
Bournemouth 22 v 19 Cleve (2G, 1T).
Match sponsored by Simon Eveleigh of iimia Wealth Management
The weather was fine and sunny but with a stiff Westerly breeze blowing straight down the
pitch. Underfoot the pitch was well grassed and firm.
Bournemouth chose to defend the Westerly end and play with the wind. Cleve, therefore,
kicked-off from right to left as viewed from the stand and thus into the wind.
Bournemouth were quickly on the offensive and in the first scrummage disrupted the Cleve
scrum but weren’t able to capitalize on the advantage. With a tactic they were to use in much
of the first half, Cleve attempted to run the ball out of danger through the dangerous trio of
Ajuwa brothers who were to prove a threat throughout to the Bournemouth defensive line.
Hooker Chris Ulu showed very early his power when carrying the ball with a surge up the
middle and Cleve were pleased to get the ball into touch for a Bournemouth throw-in inside
their own 22-metre down the Bournemouth left. Bournemouth drove for the line and when
they were checked the ball was moved right but a chip into the Cleve ‘dead-ball’ area where
a Cleve defender was able to touch the ball down for a 22-metre drop-out. Despite advancing
to the half-way line, fly-half Scott Chisslett sent them back with a well-judged kick to the
right-hand touch on the Cleve 5-metre line. Again Cleve tried to run it out but, when they did
eventually kick the ball, left wing James Flynn fielded the ball and made his way right where
he linked with full back Domenick Davies for outside centre Tim Gray to make an exciting
break on the outside tight on the right-hand touchline. He got the ball back inside where Tim
Seward was up in support for the athletic lock to gallop 25 metres to score just right of the
posts. Flynn kicked a fairly straightforward goal to put the home side 7-nil up after seven
minutes. An exciting score in what was to prove an exciting match. Despite their ambitions
Bournemouth were frustrated by any number of knock-ons but they kept Cleve pressed in
their own half. It was another drive by Ulu who made much ground before he was stopped
that spearheaded another Bournemouth attack and Cleve did well to stop them just short of
the line down the left. However in their attempts to stop the score they were penalized and
scrum-half Sam Hardcastle, always alert to these opportunities, took a quick penalty from
just a few metres out and squirmed his way over to score. Again Flynn kicked the goal for
Bournemouth to lead 14-nil eighteen minutes.
Bournemouth were quickly disabused of any
notion that this was going to be easy against the third-placed side when, after an excellent
initial drive from the kick-off receipt, they lost the ball and Cleve quickly countered to almost
score wide-out on the right. A scrambled Bournemouth defence did well to win a scrum on
their own 5-metre line and a long clearance kick by Chislett relieved the immediate danger.
Again it was the willingness of the Cleve backs, especially through the aforesaid Ajuwa
brothers, to run the ball out of their own territory saw Bournemouth having to work hard to
prevent them making that decisive break. However the pressure did tell when they forced
Bournemouth to infringe and a kick right to the Bournemouth 22-metre line set-up an
attacking line-out. Bournemouth did well to stem the drive by the visitors’ forwards who were
forced to move the ball left. Clearly Cleve sniffed a score as every player made every effort to
capitalize on their advantage. Sure enough when Bournemouth managed to stop that move
left, Cleve retaining possession went right and eventually openside flanker Andy Edwards
scored wide-out on the right. Into the wind, the kick crept over the cross bar and Cleve were
just 7-14 down after twenty-three minutes. Bournemouth didn’t help their cause when, after
referee Simon Lane spoke to the two captains, a penalty was given against them for ‘chatting’ to the referee and Cleve were able to kick for touch. Bournemouth managed to
redeem themselves when blindside flanker Dan Cawley nicked the ball off the back of the
Cleve line-out and a long kick into the Cleve 22-metre was chased down by James Payne who
was very unlucky not to be able to hang on to an attempted clearance kick. With Cleve
apparently desperate to get the ball wide they threw an over ambitious pass which tighthead
prop Alan Manning typically did well to intercept. He almost made it to the line but his
acrobatic attempt to get the ball away to the supporting Hardcastle didn’t go to hand and
Cleve won a scrum instead. Again, even from this deep inside their own 22-metre, Cleve
looked for the elusive running skills of right wing Shack Ajuwa to get themselves up field.
However, he was well marshaled and Bournemouth and they maintained the attacking
presence. They maintained the pressure by disrupting the Cleve scrum and won the put-in on
the reset. However, Cawley was again spoken to by the referee and he awarded a penalty to
Cleve instead. This enabled Cleve to relieve a dangerous situation for themselves with a kick
to right-hand touch. After driving off the line-out, Cleve moved the ball left where
Bournemouth were penalized. The ball carrier of the quickly taken penalty was tackled within
the prescribed ten metres and Cawley was asked to take a ten-minute breather. Makeshift
fly-half Hentie Martens found a good touch on the Bournemouth 5-metre line. Bournemouth
initially resisted the inevitable drive for the line but Cleve won the put-in at a 5-metre scrum.
No 8 Gareth May didn’t need any greater encouragement and he forced his way over to be
greet what can only be described as palpable disappointment from the Bournemouth
supporters. The conversion didn’t help the mood. If it had been Bournemouth’s strategy to
force their opponents to play ‘catch-up’ rugby in the second half after building a significant
lead using the wind then it clearly hadn’t worked. Flynn, almost immediately after the restart
when No 8 Matt Kiely had driven deep into the Cleve defence, had the chance to regain the
lead with a long-range penalty but pulled his attempt left of the posts
With Bournemouth now facing the wind and having given away a 14-point advantage quickly
found themselves with an even bigger mountain to climb. Cleve winning a scrum drove off
the back and almost got to the line. However they won a 5-metre scrum and they drove over
for substitute No 8 Sam Roach to emulate the man from whom he took over to score wideout
on the left. It helped that the kick didn’t go over but I leave it to your imagination to
gauge the mood of the Bournemouth supporters after this latest set back. The mood was
further deepened by the loss of Ulu at this point as he had taken a knock and was forced to
retire from the fray. Fortunately the versatile Cawley was restored at this point to take over
the hooker’s role and Callum Forrest came on as replacement but at lock instead of Jayson
Kenny who, in turn, took over at blindside flanker. Who was playing ‘catch-up’ rugby now?
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However, such thoughts were just for your correspondent and, to their credit, Bournemouth
immediately set about their task with familiar skill and determination. Straight from the kickoff,
their fierce pressure on the ball-carrier forced Cleve to ‘hold-on’ and Flynn found an
excellent touch just inside the Cleve 22-metre line down the left. Forrest immediately had the
opportunity to demonstrate his innate catching skills and he set up a testing probing drive for
the line. With a determination that revived the crowd’s flagging hopes, Bournemouth were
throwing everything at Cleve. When the ball was moved wide to the right, centre James
Payne almost got through but retaining possession the forwards kept driving for the line
where Manning, in turn, almost managed to get to the line. Cleve were equally determined
not to give up their hard-won advantage and resisted with great fortitude and they even
turned over a Bournemouth 5-metre scrum. They were clearly on the back foot and Cleve
were kept there as Bournemouth strove to regain that lead; Cawley notably snaffling a Cleve
player before he could clear when the tackler seemed to have no right to get to him in the
first place which typified the now frenetic pace of the game. A further sign of the pressure
Bournemouth were exerting was a charge down of a Cleve three-quarter’s attempt to kick
and then winning a penalty when Cleve were offside at the breakdown. This gave an
opportunity for Flynn to reduce the arrears and he didn’t disappoint with an excellent kick
into the wind from fifteen metres.
17-19 eleven minutes into the half; it could hardly be
closer! Bournemouth continued to batter the Cleve defence with Gray doing his utmost to
breach the line with his Duckhamnesque locks flowing as he stepped first this way and then
that looking for the way through. Cleve held firm and even won a Bournemouth throw-in but
Hardcastle countered when he broke out from deep inside his own half in characteristic
fashion but he might have done better by looking outside for support after a thrilling 50-
metre run and was, to the enormous disappointment of the crowd, ‘pinged’ for holding on
when he failed to beat the last-man defence. Cleve promptly belted the ball down field for
Bournemouth to have a 22-drop-out. It was that man Gray again, who seemed on a personal
mission to save the situation, almost broke through but he gained valuable territory. Under
this almost continuous pressure, the Cleve fly-half Martens transgressed and referee
dismissed him to the sin bin for ten minutes. A crucial loss, with fifteen minutes to go, of an
experienced and talented player. Bournemouth as a result now had a 5-metre line-out and,
as signified by the crowd’s growing excitement, another chance to regain that all-important
lead. The throw-in was secured but as the forwards worked it down the tightside they
knocked the ball on for a Cleve scrum from which they were able to clear their lines. The
minutes were ticking by and the tension started to mount. Bournemouth nonetheless
managed to retain possession and hopes were raised when Flynn made a great break down
his touch beating players for pace but his pass back inside, under considerable pressure from
the defence, was not accurate enough and the remarkable support play of Cawley
unfortunately was rewarded with a knock-on just five metres from the line resulting in a
Cleve scrum. To try and beat the defence, increasingly speculative wide passes were thrown
which risked an interception and resulted in any case on an uncomfortable number of
occasions the receiver being nailed by he was ‘lined up’ by an opponent. It was that man
Gray, who seemed to be on a mission, who caught the eye again and again in this last
desperate but nonetheless exciting minutes with his strength and acceleration as he tested
Cleve’s resolve which refused to yield. Bournemouth did well to retain possession despite the
attentions of Cleve but they did give the ball up and Cleve seemed to have the opportunity to
run the time down by a series of driving mauls. However, a miracle was on hand and we
managed to get the ball back, by now deep into stoppage time, to resume the siege of the
Cleve line. When the forwards were stopped for the umpteenth time at the gate, the ball was
thrown wide and there was right wing Joe Frost in enough space to get to the line and record
that longed-for winning score. With the crowd expecting referee Lane to blow for no-side
after Flynn’s failure to convert the try there was still enough time for Cleve to restart.
Enough
time for everyone to be put through the mill again but one advantage of the ball being kicked
to you from the restart you normally get that vital possession of the ball and, sure enough,
Bournemouth got it and were not about to give it up either. The tension was almost
unbearable as everyone waited for the final whistle and a few moments later there it was. A
memorable victory and a vital two league points helping to secure, but not confirm, a second
term in this higher division.
In this match Bournemouth demonstrated many of the virtues the coaching staff have been
instilling in the players and they have responded. A belief in their own abilities; a mental
toughness to get themselves through the difficult times; fitness and the necessary technical
skills to enable then to compete. It was an exciting match but Bournemouth held their nerve
as those precious minutes leaked away showing no little skill on retaining the ball as they
probed and probed gain for that chink in the Cleve armour. Great credit to them. It must also
be remembered the quality of the contribution Cleve made in the match; to first come back
after those early scores and their own determination in refusing to give way in that cauldron
of a memorable second half. It is our first victory over them in the league.
Attendance – 300 approximately.
Referee – Simon Lane, Devon. Referee’s Assessor – Dave Smith, Somerset. Touch
Judges – Steve Buffery, Bournemouth. Jon Pritchard, Cleve.
Bournemouth Team - 15:Domenick Davies; 14: Joe Frost (1T); 13: Tim Gray; 12: James
Payne (Robert Bruce 70); 11: James Flynn (2C, 1P); 10: Scott Chislett; 9: Sam Hardcastle
(1T); 1: Tim Wareham (Jo Burns 50); 2: Chris Ulu (Callum Forrest 43); 3: Alan Manning; 4:
Jayson Kenny; 5: Tim Seward (1T); 6: Dan Cawley (c); 7: Iain Crombie; 8: Matt Kiely.
Scorers – Tries (3): Frost, Hardcastle, Seward. Con (2): Flynn 2. Pen (1): Flynn.
Yellow Card – Dan Cawley 33-43m.
iimia Man of the Match – Tim Gray.
Milestones – Alan Manning plays for the 50th time in all matches for the 1st XV. James
Flynn passes 300 (302) points in all matches.
Cleve Team - 15: Luke Fletcher; Shack Ajuwa; 13: Joe Ajuwa; 12: Dan Ajuwa; 11: Nathan
Huntley; 10: Hentie Martens; 9: Lee Dickinson; 1: Andy O’Donnell; 2: Matt Parfitt; 3: Ollie
Coloe; 4: Dave Partington; 5: Steve Hunt (c); 6: Ian Thomas; 7 Andy Edwards (1T); 8:
Gareth May (1T). Substitutes: Lewis Hillier, Dave Roach, Sam Roach (1T).
Scoring sequence – 7m: Seward try, Flynn con 7-0; 18m: Hardcastle try, Flynn con 14-0;
23m: Cleve goal (Edwards try) 14-7; 36m: Cleve goal (May try) 14-14; 40m: Half-time 14-14;
43m: Cleve try (Sam Roach); 51m: Flynn pen 17-19; 78m: Frost try 22-19; 80m: Full Time
22-19.
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