Manchester 3rds Work Hard for First Victory in 2013

A Saturday made for rugby saw Manchester returning to league action following a festive break which saw one major highlight as Big Phil devoured a record ‘100 Turkeys’, ‘1000 mince pies’ and ‘50 gallons of the finest mead’ in a new time of 1 hour 50mins; smashing his existing two year old world record for the same event.

In a further example of the 3rds rebuilding programme following a multi-billion dollar injection of cash from an unnamed source, the team sheet consisted of 13 new signings against a youthful looking Didsbury TOC H side.

Up front, Rick ‘the beast’ Carr and Adge Smith (known as Angie outside of rugby; hmm!) started at loose and tight with new signing ‘Spock Hiley’ at hooker. The 2nd row combination saw ‘Steak Pie’ and ‘Jon the ribs Davis’ in the engine room with the extremely handsome trio of Tim H, Jeff U and the youthful Ian Richardson forming a ‘housewives favourite’ dream team as the back row.

Malc Barratt and Titch Chigdey started as the ugliest half back combination ever with debutant Paul Howarth and Bambi making up the centre partnership. Skipper Dobbo, Stealth Jake and new signing Aaron Woodward formed a strong trio as the starting three quarters line up.

From the kick off Manchester immediately took the game to the opposition but a lack of composure stopped the Grove Park outfit from settling into their game early on. In turn, the younger Didsbury pack competed well and frustrated Manchester at the breakdowns through some skilful turnovers and defensive work at the ruck.

However, with Manchester dominating at scrum time through their bigger pack and some good line out throwing by Spock, the home team began to assert pressure up front. However, with the official’s whistle working overtime in the first 30 minutes against Manchester for alleged skulduggery, Didsbury eventually took the lead through a converted penalty.

Didsbury’s strategy was to undoubtedly play the offloading game in an attempt to wear down the older Manchester front 8 but some excellent defensive work from Paul Howarth and Bambi and some aggressive counter attacking by Dobbo, Stealth and Aaron meant that Didsbury found the Manchester back line a more than even force. Consequently, Didsbury were contained whenever they tried to run the ball wide and with Manchester’s back row competing well at the breakdown, the opposition were unable to build any momentum.

With 30 minutes gone, the Manchester forwards began to function as a unit as the official’s whistle took a tea break and a driving maul from a lineout saw the rotund Barratt drive over from 3 yards out to score the reds first try in 2013. The footballer type celebration from the ageing scrum half was uncalled for…….! Titch converted. With Manchester converting a penalty 5 minutes later, the home team went into the half time break looking the stronger team.

Half Time – Manchester 11 v 3 Didsbury

The second 40 saw Manchester starting unchanged and with their dominance in the scrum and the line out continuing, the Grove park outfit started where they had left off. The narrow pitch once again played to Manchester’s advantage as the forwards kept the ball tight and when Didsbury tried to play the offloading game, the Manchester defence was equal.

With Manchester on the front foot, second half tries followed from a solo effort from bambi, Paul Howarth after some good work in the backs and another forwards try from number 8 Jeff Upton. Matt Davis replaced Aaron Woodward for his debut, Steve Parker replaced Spock and super sub Seb Cole replaced Jon Davis who gave a good performance in the 2nd row engine room with Big Phil. Further tries should have followed but for white line fever from a number of players. Didsbury continued to battle and were eventually awarded with a try after Manchester put themselves under pressure after switching off on the presumption that the game was won. The instructions were clear from the kick off and Manchester saw out the game for a well needed win in the league.

Some noticeable performances came from a number of players including Paul Howarth, Bambi and Jake Stealth in the backs and Ange (Adge), Spock and Rick Carr as the front row. Up front, the forwards are starting to look like a unit that can compete with the best in the league and will undoubtedly continue to improve with game time. The match was played in good spirits despite a red and yellow card being issued for an off the ball incident and credit must be given to Didsbury for the way the young opposition continued to battle throughout the game against a far more rotund and experienced pack.
Overall it was an improving performance from Manchester 3rds and with the new players starting to settle and blend with the existing squad, Manchester will potentially be looking at a possible strong run towards the end of the season. With a number of key and experienced players on their way back from the physio room , the future is looking increasingly brighter by the week for Manchester 3rds.

Next Game : Congleton 2nds away

Most improved moment of the season: The absence of Steve Parkers builders bum after Jon Davis issued him with some new shorts that actually fit!

Most suicidal comment to an official: On learning that the Ref was a Sandbach player/ref – ‘Yes Sir, we beat you 98 v 0 earlier this season’ – a rather untimely reminder from Dobbo!

Best hotpants look: Will Inglis in his 1980’s retro-fitted white rugby shorts which have obviously been handed down by Seb Cole! William, please see Jon Davis for some new shorts; preferably in this season’s colours!