Saturday 6 February 2010 Dorset & Wilts Division 2 North
Lacklustre
Minety 2nd XV 5 pts – Chippenham 3rd XV 20 pts
Minety seconds came off second best in this tetchy and lacklustre fixture against Chippenham thirds.
The game started well enough. Playing down the hill, the visitors ran in and then converted an early try from a scrum won on their opponents’ 22.
Given a penalty deep in Chippenham’s 22, Minety opted to tap and go and flyhalf Andy Edwards slipped in at the corner for a try.
Having won turn-over ball in their own half, the visitors stormed down the left touchline, deftly exploiting a three on two overlap to score the try which gave them a 5-12 first-half lead.
Like Minety, things started to go downhill in the second half. A Chippenham player was yellow carded for repeated swearing and back-chat but his team mates carried on without him and ran in a well-worked try. Held up when they attacked on the left, they recycled and smoothly moved the ball right for a score on the opposite flank.
The conversion kick missed but a subsequent penalty goal attempt flew true, taking Chippenham’s total to 20 points.
The final half hour saw Minety camped in Chippenham’s 22 but unable to score, despite a glut of possession and crossing their opponents’ try line several times. The home pack played well, but the backs seemed disorganised and at times inept. Tempers frayed and a Chippenham player was red carded for kicking a fallen opponent in the head. Although reduced to 14 men, his team eventually broke the siege to end the game in Minety’s half.
This Saturday, Minety seconds play away against league leaders Pewsey Vale.