Stroud travelled north to new opponents Evesham. We all got lost in the fog and the 1 way system. It didn’t matter as kickoff was delayed 1 hour due to the frozen pitch. The players huddled in the changing room like Emperor penguins trying to keep warm before venturing out into the fog. It didn’t help matters that the Glos Academy boys were texting pictures of a sunny Plymouth with a pristine AGP pitch waiting for their game vs Devon RFU.

So we were representing GRFU vs Worcestershire. Could a weakened team pull off another victory? Last week vs Levens should give them confidence but a flurry of concussions (or was it GCSE exam headaches?) and last minute player withdrawals was going to be a challenge to handle. This time it was Euan’s turn to learn the winger position, and Stoner to learn how to be a lineout jumper.

Eventually the pitch was declared safe so a brisk 20 minute warm up was all we had to prepare the new look team for the contest.

Forwards: Lucas, Orgy, Carlos, Darion, Jedd, Harry, Stoner, Mr T
Backs: Hilly, Will, Alex, Arthur, James, Euan, Flash
Subs: Bernie, Callum

Stroud kicked off and Evesham immediately went on the attack – helped by some hesitant tackling as players feared for their knees, elbows, and gelled haircuts…. Flash saved the day with a tackle and Will then intercepted the offload. The play went nowhere so we restarted with an Evesham scrum on halfway that they won and attacked through repeated phases left and right. Eventually Stroud won a penalty after Evesham held on after a Alex tackle. The cost was high as Alex twisted his ankle but couldn’t sub off as no back or flanker replacements available. No need for ice pack – just let the permafrost deaden the pain……

Will kicked the penalty to the Evesham half but the lineout was lost due to a wobbily throw. Evesham had a scrum restart and attacked left. Mr T won a turnover and the forwards took over. Carlo and Darion made some hard yards. Then the backs took over. Will set Alex and Arthur away on some attacking runs. The forward shaped winger was accelerating onto the final ball. This time it was Orgy in the outside channel making a good 20 metres – much to the surprise of his family but the coaches weren’t surprised as he always hid out there on training duty. Man-of-the-Match performance already the parents muttered – made a change from Orgy trying to bribe the match reporter at the end of the game…... As Orgy stormed towards the line he was illegally forced into touch. His worried Mum declared that the pitch was unsafe and he might hurt his poorly knee, or get mud on his pristine hands, so as he was the closest to scoring a try we should abandon the game but declare a territorial Stroud victory, and give her son the players trophy as closest to breaking the whitewash. Mother Organ was even more inventive than her son! The ref disagreed and the game continued….

Stroud won their attacking lineout with Darion on jumper duties. Handing out the Xmas jumpers that is to keep the players warm…. The forwards drove but Jedd was forced into touch. Evesham won their lineout and kicked deep. James recovered it well but Evesham kick chase was quick and they forced a penalty for holding on. Their penalty kick missed touch so Will kicked it back with interest. Evesham went back to route 1 and ran hard at our forwards. Harry made 3 tackles back-to-back showing he was coming back well from injury and back to his combative best. Realising there was no way past the roaming Harry Evesham kicked diagonally over his head but knocked on the recovery.

Stroud won the scrum on their own 22 and attacked right. Alex and Flash combined well to make some good distance. Then Jedd went on a llama run creating chaos. This created space for Arthur to exploit. The ruck was secured with Darion and Man-of-the-Match-elect Orgy getting to the breakdown quickly. Quick ball from Hilly fed Will and his name sake Mr T crashed through on the perfect line and scored a brilliant individual try. Now that’s Man-of-the-Match material claimed Tori and we paid the engraver another £5 to change the trophy inscription from Orgy to “Orgynized chaos – Mr T”. A good conversion and Stroud were up 7-0.

Evesham kicked off and Will secured the ball cleanly but Stroud couldn’t go anywhere so had a scrum for a failed Evesham intercept. Stroud won the scrum well and Arthur ran it out from the 22 but a failed offload caused an Evesham turnover. The next turnover was a crunching Lucas tackle that jarred the ball and players teeth loose. Stroud won their scrum again but more pressure from an uprushing Evesham defense forced another turnover and they quickly saw a gap over the top and kicked over the Stroud defensive line and recovered the ball and ran in a try from 30 metres. A good kick made it all square at 7-7. Game On !

Stroud kicked off again and showing good effort Lucas was first in with the tackle. Evesham kept the ball alive and worked their way left. Stoner put in a bone-jarring tackle – good job the ground had softened because 60 minutes earlier that would have been some very damaged ribs bouncing off the tundra…. Evesham won a penalty for errant hands in the ruck. Stoner claimed it was a Polar Bear doing the dark arts – but video analysis from his dads phone for his GCSE PE will show a Stoner paw in the honeypot……

Another missed penalty kick to touch gave Flash a good run back opportunity. Mr T then kept the attack going and then Harry up the left. More good rucking from Orgy (now back to joint MoM according to the public vote) won the ball. Will kicked over the top and a swift kick chase and tackle won a turnover on the Evesham 22. The forwards took over and Darion, Stoner and Carlo softened up the Evesham tacklers. Somehow the ball was lost at the breakdown though and Evesham ran it back with interest. A weaving run broke down the right wing and Flash missed his last tackle and the Evesham back ran it under the posts for the go-ahead try and a 14-7 lead.

Stroud kicked off and Arthur was unlucky not to recover the kickoff. Evesham box kicked their way out of danger and Flash recovered it. The next attacks were led by Darion and Mr T. Will’s kick was charged down and Euan was brave to dive on the loose ball. Harry took it on into contact but good mauling by Evesham won them the scrum on halfway. They attacked through their backs – but wish they didn’t because Carlo and Stoner put in crunching tackles. The next few minutes ebbed and flowed as the teams exchanged possession. The forwards doing well with a lineout steal from Darion and powerful Rhinos from Jedd and Harry. Will had a good intercept and James ran the ball well.

The final phase was a Stroud scrum on the Evesham 10 and a great backs move to the right with quick hands and looping runs. Finally Flash had a run down the wing but good Evesham cover tackles forced him into touch as the ref blew for the half

Half Time: Evesham 14 – 7 Stroud

Half time was short – only 2 subs to make and the iced up water bottles not thawed enough to deliver refreshments…..

Evesham kicked off deep and Will kicked it back into touch. Stroud disrupted the Evesham lineout and Orgy dived on the loose ball. Good runs from Harry, Jedd and Carlo kept Stroud alive. Bernie was quickly into the action with a pounding run. The forwards took over with Rhinos and earnt themselves a penalty that Will kicked into the Evesham 22. Stoner was the only lifting option with Darion off and Euan on the wing. A clean catch and dish set up a quick attack. Alex crashed through the middle, always veering left on his dicky ankle. If there was no player on the pitch we don’t think he’d run straight and would run a big 60m circle! The forwards took over and kept the ball in tight with a good combination of Rhinos and Llamas. They were inching closer to the line and wearing out their opponents. Captain Will urged them on as it was working but for unknown reasons the ball came out to him and a rushed drop goal just skewed wide.

Evesham had a 22 drop out that Alex ran back. Then Mr T and Arthur had some good runs. Stroud were awarded a lineout and that man Stoner was again performing well up in the misty clouds. More good runs from Mr T, Arthur and Carlo were snuffed out by organised Evesham defense. James had a good run up the left and did well to control the ball in the tackle. Evesham were good at the breakdown and were winning turnovers and attacking back. Callum was getting into the thick of it as well – until a tough tackle forced him off the pitch injured. Evesham eventually hacked the ball into touch and a returning Darion won the lineout. Good moves by Harry and Darion inched Stroud up the pitch but eventually Evesham won a turnover. This just gave Euan and Jedd chance to show their tackling skills and James was contributing well in contact.

Evesham worked their way into the Stroud 22 and were controlling the game. Carlo and Stoner tackles slowed them down but they still edged closer. Mr T, Alex and Arthur were helping hold them out. The pressure was immense as they camped on the line but they couldn’t force over and eventually knocked on. Stroud won the scrum on their own line and Will kicked long and Flash forced a knock-on in the tackle. Stroud had a scrum close to halfway and Mr T had a good run but eventually the ball was lost and Evesham worked it back into the Stroud 22. Desperate tackling by Alex just delayed the inevitable and a well worked overlap gave Evesham a try in the corner. Kick missed with the score now 19-7. Time to wake up boys !

Will kicked long and Arthur recovered it well and a great offload to Darion looked to give us an immediate try but the ball was knocked forward and the chance went begging but Stroud had showed their intent to not lie down quietly. Stroud won the scrum against the head with Orgy having a great hook and Mr T leading the pushing. The MoM trophy battle was still well balanced between both of them. Alex crashed through the middle but was held up. The forwards went into Rhinos but couldn’t score. Out to the backs and a looping Alex took on the ball but was forced out of play close to the try line.

Evesham lost their lineout and Carlo pounded towards the line. We thought he scored but must have been held up as it was taken back for a Stroud scrum. Mr T took the ball from base of scrum and pressured the line. He was stopped short and the backs went left and James was tackled into touch. Evesham won their lineout and went to kick but it was partially charged down. Must have been Orgys beaming face said Sam and Mark in unison – still trying to influence the MoM voting. James did great to jump and catch the ball and control it under the inevitable big tackle. Harry, Carlo and Jedd went Rhinos and Llamas in equal measures until the inevitable turnover and Evesham knockon. Stroud had a scrum restart on the Evesham 22 and as Evesham rushed up to put pressure on the pass Will adapted and kicked over the top, recovered his own kick and dotted down under the posts. Great skill. Easy conversion and the game was back close again at 19-14 with 4 minutes to play. Could the boys in blue win it at the death?

Evesham kicked off and Stroud ran it back with a Will, Alex, Arthur combo. Bernie did well to control a high pass as he went into contact. Jedd had 2 powerful runs in close succession, then it was back to a Bernie rumble. Will went to gruber kick through a gap but Evesham controlled it well and ran it back into a James tackle. Dark horse for the MoM trophy ? Evesham won a penalty but missed touch so Flash ran it back. Carlo and Mr T had some good runs and won a penalty.

Will did a great kick into the Evesham 22 and the miracle comeback was still on. Darion won the lineout as Orgy tried to cement his MoM performance. Bernie had another strong run, then Lucas and Jedd took the ball deeper into the Evesham 22. As the forwards kept the ball close they managed to lose it at the breakdown and then give away a penalty. With great relief Evesham kicked it to touch and celebrated a well fought victory as Stroud had come up just short at the death.

Full Time: Evesham 19 – 14 Stroud

Tunnels were formed and the players clapped each other off the pitch. Team debrief was held and players were praised for their effort and for playing out of position and adapting to a challenging day against good opponents. The first 10 minutes and the last 10 minutes had been very good. It was the middle 50 minutes that had cost us the chance of victory.

As we walked back to the clubhouse Orgy siddled over and I thought he was going to start the bribery MoM talk. Confident in his contribution to the match he changed tact and declared that we only lose to out-of-County opponents like Farnham, so therefore we are still unbeaten within GRFU County borders. Inventive I thought – thinking out the box. But still not trusting his manipulative mind bending tricks…..

So 2nd loss of the season. Not a disaster. Still playing well most weeks, and plenty more players to come back in future weeks after injuries and GRFU/Academy duties. Could be worse - could be Saracens fans ;-)

So who was Man-of-the-Match. Orgy or Mr T ? The coaches conferred and decided that those trophies were for Under 10s and below so no trophy was awarded and instead a trip to the clubhouse and a burger for everyone for the effort they put in was the best we could suggest.

Just before we headed for the cars Tori and Sam were seen in an arm wrestle clench claiming the “Parent-of-the Week” trophy. Now that trophy is for "Under 50’s Only" a brave Coach Stone interjected so we can award that one. 2 hours later with the cold burgers congealing with fat and the pitch now match ready and the fog finally lifted for a lovely winters day the Mothers arm wrestle was declared a draw and no trophies to be awarded!

Thanks to Evesham for their hospitality. We look forward to returning the favour when you come back down to Gloucestershire later in the season (29th March) and can have another good entertaining game of rugby – hopefully in warmer and drier conditions!