First team gain third successive win in eight try thriller

Weston served up another “nail-biter” for their supporters against their winless visitors but Cheltenham certainly don’t look like relegation candidates and the outcome merely serves to emphasise how competitive the League is this season, and that there are no “easy” matches.
The home side got off to a flying start.. They kicked off. Cheltenham ran it back. Russell relieved an opponent of the ball, the forwards rumbled some twenty yards and visiting full back Glynn (who went on to have a good match) made a horrible mess of Fotheringhams chip ahead leaving flanker Wright the simple task of touching down for a soft score.
The score was doubled five minutes later. Another twenty yard rolling maul created the opportunity for Middlemiss to touch down. Fotheringhgam inexplicably sliced the simple conversion but at 10-0 after six minutes, it didn’t seem to matter.
These two early scores caused Weston to get overexcited. They abandoned their solid game, based on forward superiority and started to try to play Sevens type rugby which whilst exciting to watch, is a high risk strategy, particularly in this case as the Cheltenham backs were extremely lively and regularly made ground when gifted possession that they really shouldn’t have had.
The visitors replied with a short range penalty which Fotheringham cancelled out after 22 minutes. Glen caught the restart inside his own 22, ran across the field and fed winger Sprague who lost possession. Cheltenham, with their first piece of possession inside the Weston 22, inched towards the line and silenced the crowd with an unexpected touchdown from prop forward Moore which was converted to close to 13-10. The ball shouldn’t have been anywhere near Westons’ line in the first place!!
Things got worse ten minute later. The visiting backs, who had been finding too many gaps in the Weston defence, with the home side indebted to full back Waterman for several last ditch tackles, merely whipped the ball across the line to put winger Ruddle in for a corner try, and a 15-13 lead which had the Cheltenham coaches pinching themselves.
Normal service was resumed when second row Russell drove through a sea of bodies as the forwards once again attacked the visitors line. Fotheringham converted, but on the stroke of half time, Cheltenham responded with a similar score from lock forward Comber which was converted for a surprise 22-20 half time lead.
Weston re-took the lead after 50 minutes. Sparks made ground from his own 22. Wright
beat three defenders in a fine touchline run to feed Sprague who sped the last 25 metres unopposed

With twenty minutes to go, prop Swann was replaced by David Price who in doing so reached the milestone 65th. first team appearance.
Incredibly the visitors responded and wing forward Lait got over in the corner following yet more enterprising back play. The try went unconverted and at 27 apiece, an interesting final quarter beckoned.
Westons’ resilience then came to the fore. Second row Richards was yellow carded. Cheltenham camped on the Weston line but were unable to push a seven man pack after repeated scrummages for the winning try. Strange tactics…their backs has been making ground all day. It’s highly likely that they could have crossed from ten metres!!

All attacks having been repelled, Weston drove back up the field to Cheltenham territory to win a vital penalty which Fotheringham converted for a narrow three point win, gained whilst they were down to 14 men.

WSM team…Waterman, Thompson, O’Connor, Middlemiss,(Young), Sprague, Fotheringham, Conway, Swann (Price), Burge, Williams, Richards, Russell (Simpson),
Glen, Wright, Sparks.

Match report by Tony Russell, photos courtesy of Andrew Collins.