Minety 1st XV v Swindon 2nd XV

Dorset & Wilts Division 1 North

Minety Block and Tackle

Minety 1st XV 22pts – Swindon 2nd XV 10pts

Minety put in their best performance of the season so far to gain an emphatic win over Swindon seconds.

The steep slope and heavy conditions meant that this fixture was always going to be, as the cliché would have it, “a game of two halves”.

The first try went to Gethin Roberts, stretching out for a try from a pile-up on the line.

Fullback Dale Langdown sped through next, eluding defenders with his pace and agility.

When a break by inside centre Dave Church once more broke Swindon’s defence, Duncan Simpson was on hand to take the pass and finish the move with a burst for the line. Playing in the unaccustomed role of outside centre, prop Martin Coe kicked the conversion.

Swindon expected their hosts to take a pop at goal from a penalty late in the half, but when instead they opted to tap and go, lock Matt Hooper was able to barge over for try number four.

And then the real game began. For a while, Minety were able to pin their opponents back into their own half, unable to score but frustrating the visitors’ attempts to get back on terms. When Swindon regained the initiative, the home team mounted a solid defensive line and tackled them to a standstill. Even though the visitors retained the ball, they found themselves losing ground as their opponents slowly forced them back up the slope.

Swindon stuck to their task but it wasn’t until the final minutes of the game that they were able to break through down the right touchline. A neat pass inside beat the final defender but a good try was followed by a failed conversion and all that remained after that was the referee’s whistle and a bonus-point win for Minety.