Southam 3 - Pershore 23
JAN
Pershore produced a workmanlike, efficient performance, without reaching
the heights of a few weeks ago. The enforced layoff due to the weather,
had not helped Pershore. Again, a lot of the credit must go to the
forwards who took the game by the scruff of the neck, and starved
Southam of possession for the vast majority of the game. From the kick
off Pershore used theitr ball carriers to good effect, keeping the ball
in hand, forcing Southam onto the back foot. Marcus Whyte, and Martin
Hope , kept the Southam back row busy with their powerful running, and
when the first wave had been stopped, they then had to deal with Chris
Copson and Alex Peel running into the spaces that had been created for
them. The constant pressure soon turned into points on the board, when
Lewis Dolphin kicked a penalty. Again Pershores forwards swarmed
forward, putting together several phases of play, and when the ball was
spun wide, Adrian Hanson exploited a gap to crash over. The relatively
simple conversion was missed. The poor pitch conditions, did not help
playing an expansive game, but just before half time, Pershore, from a
line out, transferred the ball to the very dangerous, and lightning
quick, Steph Ellis, who exploited the space in front of him and
accelerated away from the covering defence, to score a lovely try in the
corner, the difficult conversion was missed. The second half was a
pretty dour affair, with Southam competing a little more up front, but
never quite getting the upper hand, and Pershore, allthough creating
chances, lacked a cutting edge, to keep the scoreboard ticking over. It
was not until the final quarter that Pershore finally turned the screw,
firstly Lewis Dolphin converted a penalty, from a scrum infringement,
and from a wonderful passage of play, where backs and forwards combined
, and the big ball carriers made the hard yards, Southams defence was in
tatters, and man of the match, Toby Grace, latched on to lovely pop pass
from Marcus Whyte, to touch down under the posts.Lewis Dolphin converted
to complete the scoring. Pershore welcome local rivals Upton to Piddle
Park next Saturday 30 January.
