IT WAS a case of one comeback too far for Leek Rugby Club as they narrowly missed out on Twickenham glory.
The Staffordshire Moorlands side gave their all, roared on by a vocal following from Leek, but despite a brave and spirited attempt they lost 22-19 to Trowbridge.
The game ended in frantic fashion, with Leek camped just inches from Trowbridge’s line, but after minutes of sustained pressure, the Wiltshire side managed to hold on.
The opening 15 minutes were scrappy, with neither side able to build up a head of steam.
Handling errors in the opposition 22 prevented any real try-scoring opportunities, but Leek were certainly the more aggressive of the sides.
However, they were nearly punished after surrendering possession with a loose line-out just inside their own half.
Only good covering by full-back Jack Hunt prevented Trowbridge winger James Davies from getting on the end of his own chip through.
But this brought to an end a Trowbridge advantage, and the referee brought play back for a penalty inside Leek’s 22.
Fly-half David Davies stepped up and slotted the ball through the post to give Trowbridge the advantage on 22 minutes.
Leek continued to look threatening, especially down their right-hand side, and only a forward pass by lively winger James Floyd brought an end to another promising attack.
But it wasn’t long before their next visit to the Trowbridge 22, and this time it led to the opening try.
A quick tap penalty by Ian Harris sent winger Jack Newton-Taylor away down the left. Despite the move being curtailed by good defending by James McFarlane, Trowbridge were penalised first for offside and then again for dissent. The penalty was marched forward 10 yards and a kick to the corner gave Leek a line-out five metres from the line.
After lineout ball was secured, it was offloaded to hooker Luke Granger, who powered his way over the line after 28 minutes. Skipper Gary McDermott missed the conversion to leave the score 5-3.
Unfortunately, Leek’s slender advantage was shortlived. Trowbridge went through the phases and after a dangerous run by Jackson Szabo was ended, the ball was switched to the opposite wing and it was required last ditch defending from Leek to keep them out.
But Trowbridge weren’t to be denied. On 30 minutes, they were to cross the line thanks to Karl Parry. But it was the work from all the Trowbridge forwards which helped him power over. Davies added the two to give Trowbridge a 10-5 lead.
Then came the most contentious moment of the half. After McDermott almost forced his way through, from the resulting maul, lock Thomas Sins looked to have brought Leek level after his outstretched arm appeared to have grounded the ball. However, after taking time to speak with the touch judge, the referee deemed Sins to have knocked the ball forward and calls for a try were waived away.
A slow start to the second half burst in to life on 50 minutes with a touch of brilliance by the outstanding Trowbridge full-back Jackson Szabo.
He picked the ball up in centre field from a loose pass and set off on a darting run past three men, and despite being tight to the touchline he danced past Newton-Taylor and held off Samuel Hunt to go over in the corner for an incredible try. Davies missed the conversion from out wide leaving Leek 10 points adrift.
But the Moorlanders came back fighting, and after several minutes in the Trowbridge half, skipper McDermott roared his side back in to life.
He picked the ball up around 10 metres out and danced his way under the posts, adding the extra two points for good measure.
Despite spending much of their time in Trowbridge territory, Leek were then indebted to centre Nicholas Palmer for a covering tackle on his opposite number which left him with a shoulder injury, and he had to leave the field for treatment.
Leek’s task was made even more difficult after being reduced to 14 men with around 20 minutes left when Edward Harrison saw yellow for a dangerous tackle.
After turning down a kickable penalty Trowbridge went for the kill and they made that extra man count through prop Sean Jones, who crossed over despite desperate attempts by Leek to keep him Trowbridge out. Davies added the extra two points to extend their lead to 10 again.
Then came probably Leek’s best chance to get back in the match. James Floyd collected a high ball and fed full-back Sam Hunt, who burst through the middle before finding McDermott on his outside, but the ball dipped on him at the final minute and he was unable to collect when just 10 metres out.
And they were denied again moments later when hooker Luke Granger was held up on the line.
But they did not have to wait long for their next try. After what seemed hours spent camped in the Trowbridge half, James Floyd picked up the ball on the right side and darted inside to go under the post s, leaving McDermott with an easy conversion to leave Leek three behind with around five minutes to go.
Leek then threw the kitchen sink at Trowbridge in search of a last-gasp winning try. As the seconds ticked by, Leek were awarded a scrum five metres out, but Trowbridge held firm in an incredible finish to walk away with the trophy.
Article source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/26536571
Rugby Union: Leek Rugby Club suffer narrow defeat to Trowbridge at Twickenham
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