Isle of Wight RFC Vets 31-26 Guildford RFC Vets
In their first Veterans game for many years, Isle of Wight were victorious over tourists Guildford in a fine match played in terrific sunshine and in a sporting manner throughout.
IW had a few players who have seen regular action this season, but in the main were made up of those who had not played for some time, though experience and nous counted for a lot as some excellent passages of play were put together. The hosts scored from the off, as Guildford failed to deal with the kickoff, and a few phases later scrum-half Alex Augustus danced around a couple of tackles to touch down. He added the conversion, but Guildford were soon to retort with an unconverted try of their own.
After 12 minutes, IW were on the board for a second time with probably the best of their tries. Club coach Neil Evans, operating at centre, made a half-break and passed to wing Jayme Bishop who was tackled just short of the line. IW recycled efficiently and flashed the ball across the pitch, where Dan Bishop was able to touch down. Again Guildford fought back with a long spell of pressure, which IW’s defence dealt with admirably before breaking out. Augustus sniped from the breakdown and offloaded to centre Ian Bennett, who applied the finish for a 19-5 lead. The score remained unchanged until half-time.
Possession and territory was evenly shared in the first half and this continued into the second, Guildford scoring soon after the restart to narrow the gap to seven points. With Red Funnel man of the match Adam Groves and replacement Joe Bussell prominent, Bennett thought he had scored his second but it was correctly chalked off for a knock-forward, and Guildford took advantage by grabbing another seven-pointer to level the scores.
IW responded by again taking the lead, which they would not relinquish again. This try came from a lineout, which went slightly awry but was rescued by Kevin Blackburn at the tail. He gathered and passed to fly-half Dave Hanson, who ran a fabulous line and used his pace and sidestep to cross the whitewash.
The final IW score started with an expert turnover by Bennett in midfield. Possession found its way to the influential Bussell, who threw a great dummy and applied a couple of hand-offs, before offloading to Dan Bishop who cantered over for his second try. Biffa IW man of the match Augustus added his third conversion, though Guildford had the final say with a converted try just before the final whistle.
After this enjoyable match, plans are being considered for a return fixture at Guildford and possible entry to the Hampshire Veterans’ Cup next season. On Saturday next, IW firsts travel to Ventnor for their penultimate league match of the season.
IW: Gadsby, Stretch, Evans, Bennett, J Bishop, Hanson, Augustus, Tombleson, Tennant, Newnham, Blackburn, D Bishop, Puzey, Davey, Groves, Dixon, Bussell, Metcalfe, Warvill.
Thanks to Katharine Overton for the photos!
