Last gasp victory for Weston

A seventh win in eight League matches since Christmas has dispelled fears of relegation but this was a remarkably tight, competitive and entertaining match between two evenly matched teams which the home side stole with the very last kick.

Neither side has ever won at their opponents ground but the Reading team came very close to breaking this deadlock.

Weston took the lead after ten minutes with a Glen Dickson penalty from 45 metres…there was better to come!

The visitors responded with a fine try after twenty minutes. Weston turned over possession on the Reds 22 metre line, Stapley and Flynn broke down the blind side for fly half Hopkins to dive over in the corner. The conversion was beyond Freeth, who had also earlier missed a couple of very kickable penalties, but he found his range from the other touchline, converting a regulation wingers try from Clements following good back play. 12-3 to the visitors with Weston looking a bit “out of sorts” and struggling to establish any platform in the face of some vigorous and unexpectedly aggressive play from the Reds pack.

Dickson kicked a second penalty after 37 minutes but this was cancelled out on the stroke of half time when Donegan was yellow carded for a technical offence and Freeth kicked the penalty to lead 15-6….expensive and ironic. Donegans’ technical offence had cost 3 points.

Redingensians centre Reynolds had got away scot free with an unprovoked, off the ball, and apparently unseen attack, although everyone in the crowd saw it, on unsuspecting Weston flanker George Wright.

The half time team talk must have been a good one.

The Weston pack, so subdued for the first half, climbed into their opponents with renewed vigour and purpose and started to dominate. Burge stole a couple against the head. Reds found themselves on the defensive and from a poor clearance kick, Richards, a fearsome sight at full pace, took the ball, charged through would be tacklers and fed Wright who exacted sweet revenge as he ran 35 metres, untouched past a beleaguered full back to touch down at the posts for a seven pointer.15-13 with 30 minutes to go.

Neither side could score a try as defences dominated. The visitors eased ahead to 18-13 with a Freeth penalty but they lost talkative fly half Hopkins to the sin bin after 61 minutes and Weston pressure resulted in a Dickson penalty and a drop goal in the space of three minutes for a slender 19-18 lead.

With full time approaching, Reds, following a series of attacks on the Weston line, were awarded a penalty as Wright (yes…him again) knocked on as he attempted to intercept and interrupt a backs’ movement.

The penalty was only 20 metres out and Freeth scuffed his kick horribly, but much to his relief it crept over to regain the lead.

Referee Doug Neagle played several minutes of injury time, and in the 86th minute, Weston were awarded a penalty on the halfway line. A kick to touch would have heralded the end of the game. Amid total silence from a very decent crowd, Dickson sent his kick between the posts to steal the game, and set off the loudest roar heard at the Recreation Ground for many a season.

Team, Warman, Middlemiss, Mackay, Bennett, Sprague, Dickson, Conway, Price,Burge, Donegan (Grimes 45-50), Richards, Glen, Smith (Fry), Wright, Sparks.

Rep not used: Young

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