Moderns Away 10/12/23

Difficult conditions had scuppered a number of recent training sessions, and flooding following heavy rain moved this meeting with the Moderns to a nearby school ground. However, match day brought milder weather and the prospect of getting back on the pitch for the first time in a while.

Once again the mantra was to win the hit and move the ball. Using the full width of what – to the casual observer – appeared to be a particularly wide pitch would be crucial, and in the end a leaky defence was the Casuals’ undoing in a tough contest where they showed a lot of heart and continued to improve.

The game got underway to a promising start with a long stretch of multiple phases on both sides of the ball. The Casuals were able to gain ground and threaten in Moderns territory, but in the end it was the home team who were able to exploit the width, wrapping around to break the deadlock.

But the Casuals were not about to roll over, and some excellent running in space from Archie got him over the line to tie the game.

It would prove to be a match which demanded a lot of stamina from both sides, and unfortunately as the game continued the Casuals’ defensive discipline began to waver. Despite some great play with the ball in hand, they weren’t able to stop the wide and breakaway runners, and the Moderns would score 6 unanswered tries.

Showing great heart, the Casuals steeled themselves and tightened things up. They began to put together some structured attack, building up to a great score by Edwyn. Despite conceding another, they kept themselves in the game and once again moved the ball to Edwyn for his second. Keeping the pressure on, George was able to pick the ball and use his pace to loop around the Moderns defence for another score.

The Casuals’ focus let them down a little on the next restart and they let in another directly from the kick-off. Determined to remain in the fight, they responded with more positive play with the ball in hand. A long and spirited drive from Felix got them close to the line, and Rupert was able to finish the move for another try.

As the game wore on, it was clear that fatigue was going to be a factor, especially in defending a big space. With the Casuals missing too many tackles, the Moderns began to open up the gap in scoring. To their credit, the Casuals fought to the very end, with Mikey able to drive over the line for a late try, but unfortunately it was not enough to prevent the Moderns eventually building a 9-try lead.

Credit should go to the Moderns for a really solid performance, making use of the space on attack, and demonstrating some great tackling throughout the game.

Final score: Casuals 6 - 15 Moderns.

Suitably caked in mud as they gathered in the clubhouse post-match, Player of the Week went to a very deserving Felix for his outstanding work rate on both sides of the ball. The Casuals move on with some things to work on, but no shortage of things to be very proud of.