Western Counties West
Okehampton 27
Torquay 24
PLAYING what should have been the first leg of a weekend cup and league double header, the Okes edged a tight match against their South Devon visitors. The rugby on show was not the usual free running fare normally served up by the Okes; however this didn't detract from the tension, as the game remained in the balance until the final play of the match.
The home side played up the slope in the first half and were soon on the offensive. They tried to run Torquay around early on in an effort to tire their large set of forwards. Ultimately though the Okes were to win the game thanks to their own smaller, but technically astute pack. Despite Okes' early territorial advantage, it was the visitors who struck first. After a succession of home errors, they gained possession in Okehampton's 22 and eventually created enough space for winger Duddlestone to come off his flank and cross for a score converted by the ever accurate boot of fly half Wood.
The Okes responded, and Kevin Dennis, playing at fly half in Carl Poynton's absence, took goal kicking responsibility and slotted two penalties confidently.
A pattern began to emerge as Torquay tried to batter around the fringes through their huge pack, offloading in the tackle but rarely attempting to unleash any kind of back play. The Okes began to gain an advantage at scrum time though, and it was this set piece that brought their first try. On the retreat in a set scrum Torquay infringed in an effort to prevent a certain pushover, and the referee had no hesitation in awarding a penalty try, successfully converted by Dennis.
Having had a man in the bin in the first period, Torquay knew they needed to strike back before the interval after having the benefit of the slope. This they duly did, as once more the Okes conceded right on the interval. This time it was fly half Wood who was once again the thorn in the home side, as he crossed in the bottom right corner for a self converted score. Torquay had edged the first half 17-13.
The Okes started the second period slowly and were surprisingly looking lacklustre. They were not creating many clear cut opportunities and their scrum looked their best form of attack. Changes were made and Oke managed to kick and chase towards the bottom left corner. A series of set scrums and penalties ensued as Torquay struggled to hold the home eight. Then with the scrum moving forward at a rate of knots, number eight Steve Alford showed footballing skills to control the ball and ground it for the next try. Fly half Dennis converted and Oke were ahead again in this ding dong encounter.
Then, as so often is the case, Oke failed to consolidate. They committed the cardinal sin of failing to clear their lines despite several opportunities after the restart. This resulted in them being stuck, defending stoutly on their own line. Manfully they held up several Torquay efforts until finally fly half Wood crossed for his second score of the match; he duly converted and the Okes trailed again entering the last quarter.
The pattern of play continued as Oke once more entered Torquay's 22 and forced a five metre scrum. The Okes showed their superior scrummaging technique again and Steve Alford controlled things superbly to pouch his second try. Dennis converted and Oke just had to hold on for the final minutes.
It went right to the whistle with the referee awarding the visitors a penalty; they took a quick tap instead and their captain and prolific try scoring prop Morris charged for the line but Oke's brave rearguard held him up to give the Okes victory.