Sat 4 Jan 2025
To kick off the New Year Stratford welcomed Moseley Oak (MOAK) to Pearcecroft, with the guests sitting near the top of the table it was sure to be a tough test. With notable player absences the Stratford 18 included five teenagers and two 20-year-olds, with the entire bench still home from university for the festive period.
Stratford got the game under way and soaked up some early pressure, with only a slight disorganisation in defence giving MOAK any real inroads. Both teams went through multiple phases and were presented with chances to move their way up the field due to infringements from their opponents holding on, not rolling away or getting the jackal wrong. The only notable difference was that MOAKs lineout seemed to be functioning a little better. It wasn’t until around 10 minutes into the game that MOAK opened the scoring following a break in midfield off the top of a lineout that allowed them to build some momentum and eventually score in the far corner, 0-5.
Stratford got straight back in the game after the kick-off, despite having knocked on and given MOAK a scrum, they won a penalty at it and vice-captain Dan Whitby slotted the ball between the sticks, from centerfield on the MOAK 10 m line, to bring it back to 3-5. Stratford then went on to concede another three tries by half-time, though these were bunched towards the end of the half and also coincided with the loss of fly half Gwil Davis who succumbed a broken thumb, going to A&E having tried to play through the pain for 20 minutes. This meant that full-back Jo Cook moved into the 10 role and Jacob Kinnaird came on in his place.
The three tries were well worked but weren’t really a reflection of how Stratford were playing as a whole, just in some crucial moments, tackles were missed and MOAKs physicality in certain positions were overpowering them. Stratford did however end the half positively with notable attacks including Charlie Powell bouncing his opposite man on the Stratford 10 m line and making it all the way to the MOAK 22 before they could track him down, in what was his first start since injuring his leg against the same opponents back in October. This put Stratford in great position but there were fears the momentum would have been ruined, due to a disagreement between two players causing the referee to halt play.
Having had a good number of phases and continuing this attack, with big ball carries by Zak Amond, captain Tom Stanley plus the much-needed return of James Walton, Stratford kept the pressure on. With Whitby having kicked the penalty following the scuffle into touch on the 5 m line, Ben Cole got his throw spot-on, a timely uptick in accuracy, then joining the back of a driving maul that had been formed from it. With everybody in prime position, the Stratford pack kept low and drove over the MOAK try line allowing Cole to get the try in typical hooker fashion. This brought the score back to 8-26 with only a few minutes left before the half, sadly Whitby was not able to add the extra points.
MOAK got the second half underway, and enjoyed the majority of possession, though they didn’t manage to break through the Stratford defence too often. Penalties and clearances not making it into touch stunted any Stratford progress and they weren’t able to build any sustained pressure or escape their own half on many occasions. Five minutes into the half, a MOAK forward managed to dive through a gap from a ruck on the Stratford try line, following an attacking scrum on the 5 m line, noticing a mismatch in size, and increasing the score to 8-33 with the conversion.
At this point Ollie Pearson and Aidan Blann were introduced, with it being a first-team debut for the latter (Pearson had represented Stratford in a cup match at the end of last season.) The two of them together did help secure Stratford’s rucks and brought a lot of energy to what was a tiring defence. Unfortunately, MOAK did go further ahead with their second score of the half, though it was not until about 25 minutes in that they were able to make this next breakthrough, testament to those involved in the defence. The try was almost gift-wrapped for them though, as they were able to steal the ball inside the Stratford 22 and make use of an overlap in the corner due to Stratford’s attacking set up whilst trying to escape the red zone. With the conversion, the score stood at 8-38.
Following this Stratford did have some more possession in the latter part of the game with lots of dynamic carries from Pearson, managing to wrongfoot his opposite man on many occasions and making yards, giving the Stratford fans a glimpse of what could be a promising future. In all honesty though, all those on the team sheet put 100% effort in and given more time together would surely have put on a better display. With fly half Davis off the pitch, as you might expect, things were not flowing particularly well but the boys made the most of a trying situation.
With about five minutes left of the game to go, there were three bright attacks for Stratford the first with winger George Fox skinning his opposite man and making his way from near the Stratford try line, having raced back to collect the ball, all the way to the halfway line with a bit more evasive footwork. Following this, prop Michael Dawes took the ball on the Stratford 10 m line and stepped his man, making it all the way to the MOAK 22 before being brought down. A cynical offside at the ruck that followed probably called for a yellow card, but the referee chose to keep it in his pocket.
Stratford took the penalty as a tap and moved into the MOAK 22 proper, though four phases later the ball was stolen, and toe poked back all the way to the Stratford 22. This set into motion something that is very hard to practice in training and showed the potential of the Stratford players on the pitch to adapt and make the most of an open field. Fox collected the ball back as he had many times before and although possibly aiming further down the pitch, his kick took a fortunate bounce and Stratford 14 Kinnaird collected. Kinnaird stepped inside his man with ease before drawing the final MOAK defender and setting Andy Oliver away down the right touchline with 40 m to the try line his only obstacle. Whitby added the extra two and the referee blew the final whistle with the scoreboard finishing 15-38.
Stratford 1st XV v Moseley Oak 04.01.25 - photos by owebphotography.co.uk
Stratford: 1. Michael Dawes* 2. Ben Cole* 3. Tom Stanley* 4. Zak Amond* 5. James Walton 6. Rory Spencer* 7. Zak Hamersley 8. Jamie Jones* 9. Jake Lowe 10. Gwilym Davis* 11. Andy Oliver 12. Dan Whitby 13. Charlie Powell* 14. George Fox* 15. Jo Cook* Subs: 16. Ollie Pearson* 17. Aidan Blann* 18. Jacob Kinnaird*
*Denotes a product of Stratford minis and juniors
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