BOURNVILLE SHOW THEY CAN CUT IT WITH THE BEST!

BOURNVILLE 18 - 25 BROMSGROVE

 In the club’s first appearance in the North Midlands Cup Final in its history, Bournville were unable to overcome their National League opponents in front of a healthy crowd at Stourbridge RFC’s Stourton Park. In the run up to the game, Director of Rugby Rob Sigley was faced with some key selection decisions. Carl Colvin and Adam Coniff passed late fitness tests to make the starting line-up whilst Ian Coles overcame a broken nose to play.

In good conditions for running rugby, Bournville were forced into their own half for much of the open exchanges. The athletic Bromsgrove pack continually threatened to puncture the Bournville defensive line. After 10 minutes, the pressure finally told with Bromsgrove open-side flanker Nigel Burrows driving over despite the attentions of the excellent Rhydian Smith.

Bournville were rewarded when Faamu fed winger Iestyn Pratt who beat his opposite number to cross in the corner and give Bournville the lead. Warner was unsuccessful with the conversion but Bournville were now showing the kind of confidence which saw them beat National League opposition twice in the previous rounds. However, just before half-time, Bromsgrove retook the lead when fullback Jon Critchlow sliced through to score. The conversion put Bromsgrove 8-12 ahead, a lead which they took into half-time.

After firm words from Rob Sigley at half-time, Bournville started the second-half with renewed energy. From the restart, a shuddering tackle from second-row Rob Griffin forced an error by Bromsgrove. From the resulting set piece, Bournville centre Matty Mountford ran a fantastic line to score under the posts. Warner’s conversion put Bournville ahead again, 15-12.

With the match perfectly poised, both sides knew that the next score would be crucial. Unfortunately for Bournville, it was Bromsgrove who got the vital score, Critchlow once again scoring following some good handling. The conversion made the score 15-19.

As the pace of the game began to tell, Bournville were forced into several changes and the errors began to creep in. Warner exchanged penalties with his opposite man but Bournville were unable to find the crucial try to retake the lead, with the Bromsgrove defence tackling ferociously. Another Bromsgrove penalty put the National League side 18-25 ahead and eventually gave them the victory despite Bournville’s best endeavours.

After the match, Bournville Director of Rugby Rob Sigley commented, “It was a topsy-turvy game but an entertaining one and a good advert for North Midlands rugby. I felt that we gave an excellent account of ourselves against a well-drilled Bromsgrove side and can’t praise the lads highly enough for their commitment. It would have been nice to finish our Centenary season with some silverware but it just wasn’t to be.”

Bournville finished the season having won 26 and lost 5 games in all competitions. Next week, the club will take part in the Greater Birmingham Sevens Competition at Moseley RFC on Saturday 15th May, followed by the club’s annual Awards Dinner.

Match photos courtesy of Lee Sullivan - click here

Bournville line up: 1. Ian Coles, 2. Dean Bick, 3. Rhydian Smith, 4. Steve Smith, 5. Rob Griffin, 6. Adam Cristol, 7. Tom McIntosh (c), 8. Nick Southern, 9. Robbie Harlow, 10. Alex Warner, 11. Iestyn Pratt, 12. Carl Colvin, 13. Matty Mountford, 14. Adam Coniff, 15. Chris Humphrey, 16. Rob Sigley, 17. Patrick Faamu, 18. Jason Allen, 19. Alex McCall, 20. Craig Lee, 21. Alex Ward, 22. Mike Holmes. Stand-out player: Rhydian Smith