2nd Team

Waterloo 2 20 - Sandbach 29 Sat 8 September 2012 The mighty 2nds were on the road again visiting Waterloo under the guidance of Rustys Micra and the not so trusty Mase Mase directing in his passenger seat. With Angel struggling to negotiate roundabouts and Hickey losing track of time making the most of the beach, the warm up was slightly disjointed with a re-shuffle in the pack. The backs had a solid warm up applying the factor 50 and an ice lolly for muzzy. In glorious conditions Bach started with their heads seemingly in the beer garden. Under the cosh for the first 20 minutes and without much ball to build some phases, the boys were getting frustrated resorting to a sevens style of play looking for the miracle ball. However there was to be no water to wine magic from Butler at 10. 'Loos' first score was inevitable, stretched to the right Bach managed to turn the ball over only for an error to occur in the middle of the park allowing ‘Loos’ full back to stroll over on the left. No panic in the ranks though, with wise words from captain fantastic and the ever optimistic Lee Pickles who was making a long overdue return from his pilgrimage of south Cheshire and north Staffordshire clubs, he was always B4L and it was only a matter of time before he returned to his spiritual home where he’s been welcomed back to the brotherhood. Unfortunately from the re-start Butler fluffed his lines and Bach were back under the iron fist of 'Loos' big pack, with strong running and some weak tackling earning great field position and from 10 yards out the opposition’s fly half stepped through to score. In a desperate tackle Butlers swinging legs 'brushed' Ray Jones shin resulting in cries of "my leg is broken" which brought an immediate halt to the game. The bustling veteran rarely stays down, the heavyweight seemed to be out for the count and the worry was clear to see on ‘el capitans’ face. Miraculously a quick drink seemed to mould this compound fracture back in place and the big man hobbled off with young ankle biter Jack replacing him. Some bulldozing runs from bucking bronco Buckle, shaking defenders off left right and centre combined with excellent forward play working well off both Angel and Butler allowed the boys to get some much needed go forward and territory. On the opposition’s 10 metre line the hot property of James Beal burst through the enemy lines leaving dust in his tracts, the Bradwall flyer raced over to get Bach back in contention. From the restart excellent work from MOTM Tom at number 8 whose strong running and solid defence combined with; a bustling front row of Pipe, Twemlow and Preston, solid lines of running and link up play from Hickey and Cush aided Butler to build some phases together. This culminated in excellent centre play by Muzz allowed Rusty to penetrate the line, with his silky hips and angled back he managed to escape the capture of the defence and score. The try was awarded by the man in the middle resulting in an uproar from the boozy ‘Loo’ faithful. They believed he had knocked on however the ref dismissed this claim. Rusty the true gent he is (and the fact gingers can't lie) admitted to dropping the ball, but the 5 points stood and Bach were back in it. Half time shortly followed and some much needed input from the wise heads calmed the ranks. Fluid was taken on and extra factor 50 for muzzy. Bach made good use of the 8 interchanges throughout the game getting on fresh legs. A system Bach was far superior at using than their counterparts, rotating the big guns and old timers. From the restart the first 10 minutes was as frantic as feeding time at the zoo with both sides having great opportunities, displaying some exceptional skills, and desperate last ditch defending with neither side giving in. It was the poaching sly fox muzz who proved the difference. Like a shark sensing blood in the ocean he can sniff an interception from several phases before, he pounced on a loose miss pass and raced away to give Bach the upper hand and the greenies dared to dream. The frantic play resumed with both teams camping on each other’s lines without Making it count. However, with Tom at number 8 scurrying around like a hyena in both defence and attack, Cush being Cush inflicting pain on anyone he could find in a white jersey, the front row dominating the contact, Some much needed line out ball won and stolen by the 2nd rows and Pickles linking well with Butler offering an extra ball player in the midfield; Bach were on the rise.Some strong running by the pocket rocket Jack, only to be undone by the Chinese sniper hiding in the bushes denying him a well-deserved 5 points. Minutes later he redeemed himself by chasing down a ‘Loo’ player and clawing him to the ground like a leopard in the African plains! A huge effort and important try saving tackle which lifted the team. Now for the cherry on top. Our very own golden balls collected 30 metres out from loos line, chipped over the bamboozled defence, gathered, then negotiated round 2 tackles to seal the deal for the boys in green. Ric Flair's all round-a fitting celebration for an outrageous bit of skill from our Ginger Ninja. Pickles added the extras along with a penalty late on to add the final nail in the coffin.A fantastic win on the road which could have easily become a hammering after the performance in the first 20 minutes, to overcome that and win in the patient and structured manner which they did was applaud able. Some excellent performances in the pack, welcomed new faces and players putting in performances out shining their ages, text book back play and good service from Angel made this a solid team win. Their first home game of the season awaits them next weekend and the chance to make it 3 from 3. The game was overshadowed by ‘Loos’ captain suffering a serious knee injury and the Bach Players wish him a speedy recovery. Our own casualty Ray Jones managed a limp at the clubhouse and I think his cast will be off in time for Thursday's training and the fracture all healed and he should be raring to go next Saturday