Berry Hill 20 Monmouth 14

With only 12 showing up for duty and the body language of the players as they warmed up anyone would have been forgiven for thinking this was not going to be a good day for Hill. But looks can be deceiving though with the cards stacked against them Hill dug deep and turned in their best performance of the season. Captain Conor Evans playing for the first time at second row led the front 5 in a series of pick a go drives to pressure Monmouth deep in their Half. The execution was this time controlled with Hill securing the ball every time and Harry Brown taking on the scum half position like a duck to water orchestrating the backs and the forwards as they moved the ball quickly eventually finding No 8 William Tyler who went over for the 1st Try. With the amount of energy being spent there was a fear that with such a small squad the team would tire but not today as Hill again pressurized to score again with full back Craig Harris touching down in the corner. If Hill did have a weakness then they lacked some pace in certain areas, this allowed Monmouth to break the line and sprint half of the pitch to score. After the break it was Harris again who found himself clear for the line and with chasing Monmouth players he had just enough speed to put the ball down between the posts. Monmouth then raised their game and came back with a try to keep the pressure on but Hill were not going to let this game slip through their fingers and held their discipline and defensive lines. As the clock ebbed away the time to the final whistle Hill again used their forwards to move the ball up the field putting Monmouth under pressure and forcing them to make mistakes . It was then left to Ryan Dawson who was showing signs of regaining his form to slot home a penalty and seal the win. A great performance from which their confidence should grow.




Team

Kyle Bundy, Conor Evans, Louie Vaughan, William Tyler, Ryan Dawson, Will Jones, Oliver Morgan , Harry Brown, Craig Harris , Billy Roberts , Tom Burford, Ashley Macey.

Old Richians 20 Berry Hill 0

With 8  players still out  with injury  and sickness Hill were forced to borrow a player from Old Richians to complete their team. Another weekend of  rain and  wind  played it’s part on the match  with Old Richians  winning the toss and electing to place against the elements. As the game started to settle Hill  had an opportunity to take the  lead with a well positioned penalty  but the ball  sailed wide of post. Although the referee  did his best to keep the game  flowing  Knock-ons were the order of the day as muddy wet ball slipped from hands. Richians were the stronger up front with some well executed rucking  allowing them retain  the ball  better  finally resulting in a try in the corner. A penalty  as the last play for the first half saw them 8 points ahead.  Now  with  the slope and the elements  in their favour Richians  poured on the pressure  and Hill had to  defend strongly but missed tackles saw them over the line 2 more times.  For  the last 15 minutes Hill finally  woke up and put the home team under pressure but their efforts were halted several times as they rushed and were turned over. Although a disappointing score line Hill  now expecting the return of a large part of their squad should start to build in confidence ready for their next match.

Team

Kyle Bundy, William Lewis, Matthew Office, Conor Evans, Louie Vaughan, Ryan Dawson, Will Jones, Oliver Morgan , Harry Brown, Craig Harris , Cobi Robinson , Billy Roberts , Tom Burford, Ben Robbins.

Berry Hill 3 Abergavenny 17

With the wind blowing a gale and driving rain Berry Hill had to battle the elements in their home game against Abergavenny. With a squad of only 15 due to injury and sickness Hill started with the wind behind them and down the slope of the pitch. They needed to get points on the board but the game took time to settle down and this put them under pressure, there were chances but at the half time whistle Hill were only 3 points ahead due to a penalty from Ryan Dawson. Shortly after the break Hill were reduced to 14 after prop Will Jones came off with an injured ankle. Sportingly Abergavenny reduced their squad but with no substitutes the scrums went uncontested. The try deadlock was finally broken when the visitors moved the ball wide and touched down in the corner. Hill then spent a long period defending in their 22 and they did have a couple more chances but the momentum was now against them resulting in a second try from a long kick which bounced over the try line with Abergavenny winning the race for the touchdown. The final try came with both team now fielding 13 players due to another Hill injury just before the end of the game with the forwards keeping the ball secure and taking it through several phases to push over. A good physical game but Hill will need to put some things right before the return match in 3 weeks time.


Team

Kyle Bundy, William Lewis, Callum Wyman, Conor Evans, Louie Vaughan, William Tyler, Ryan Dawson, Will Jones, Oliver Morgan , Harry Brown, Craig Harris, Billy Roberts , Tom Burford, Ashley Macey, Ricky Davies,.