By David Wilkinson
It had been five weeks since Macclesfield ran out at Priory Park, with last week’s fixture being called off after the big dump of snow. Taunton had been sitting in second spot, prior to the postponement, with Macc in the polar opposite position. Statistically the odds were against the home team, with the rearranged fixture putting four, would-be starters, out of the mix through unavailability.
Taunton kicked deep at the start, the return giving them an attacking lineout on halfway; they wasted no time in demonstrating their attacking prowess. The ball was recycled quickly from the lineout, and when it was switched back to the left, the visitors’ pace got them free out-wide, two passes to support players putting them under the sticks for a 7 – 0 start before people in the Stand had taken their seats.
Two phases after the restart and the ball came out to the Taunton Left Wing again, some slack marking gave Prowse space to run into, with his searing pace swerving around two defenders, to take it to 14 points, after less than five minutes. The pressure on Macc was unrelenting; they gave away a penalty following the restart which put the visitors back on the attack. The catch-and-drive from the lineout made good ground, and when the ball was spun out the Right Wing, they were almost over, but for a foot in touch. However it made little difference as the throw-in at the lineout didn’t find its man, going over the top, with Taunton’s number 8 taking an easy 5-points, and a 19-point lead with Macc only touching the ball once.
Sam Adu bursting through the tackles to score
Eventually Macc got their hands on the ball, Dan Leake ran the ball back from a clearance kick, and was on-hand again, after a few good phases, to give a delayed pass to Harry Oliver, playing his 100th game for Macc. Harry’s pace beat the first tackler, but Sam Adu couldn’t quite reach the pass to set him clear for the line. Taunton cleared from the lineout, but Macc ran it back with vigour, winning a penalty that took them into the 22. The training ground move at the lineout didn’t quite come off, but the recycling was good, before fast-hands got the ball to Sam Adu on the Right Wing, his power and pace carried two would-be tacklers over the line to get Macc on the score-sheet. An excellent conversion from wide-out, by Harry Oliver made it 7 – 19 after 14 minutes.
Taunton pressed to within 6 metres, following the restart, before knocking the ball on. Macc cleared, and Taunton’s high-tempo, chucking-the-ball-out game, was telegraphed by Sam Adu, who intercepted on halfway. They went through numerous phases, picking up a penalty advantage on the way; and when the Referee called play back, the boys in blue were clinical; two phases from the lineout, and Ollie Longmore barged over for a try, 12 – 19.
Macclesfield were always solid in the scrum
Phil Laing had come on for George Boughey, before Macclesfield went through some excellent phases, wining a penalty on halfway. After bringing the ball down cleanly from the lineout the ball was passed right to Harry Oliver on an acute angle, who dotted down in the corner, but the Referee adjudged that he had encroached inside 10 metres, before the lineout was finished. Taunton got back into Macc’s half, but the boys in blue looked very strong in the scrum, 3 times they disrupted Taunton, but only got the backing of the Referee on the third occasion. Macclesfield cleared, but Taunton were soon back at Macc, searching for their bonus-point score. Numerous phases followed, with immense pressure on Macc’s line; playing with a penalty advantage, Taunton’s 10 sent out a looping wide pass to the Right Wing, who had an easy route to the line, 12 – 24.
Dan Birchall charges on
The Somerset side wasted no time in setting up another attack, on the second phase the ball came back to the left, whilst Macc had sufficient players, their defence was dog-legged, creating the opportunity for the Outside Centre, once the break was on, Taunton’s support, once again, flooded through at great speed, making the score look easy, 12 – 31. Macclesfield attacked, looking as if they were the team in the ascendancy, but they couldn’t finish it off. Dan Birchall came on for Dan Percival before the Referee blew for halftime; it was going to be an uphill battle in the second half.
It didn’t start well for Macc, a high-tackle, put the visitors into the 22 where there speed of passing and recycling had the hosts scuttling back; Taunton’s powerful 12 came onto the ball at pace and powered through the tackle to score, 12 – 38.
Jamie Harrison scorches to the line to score
Macclesfield’s lineout has not been good all season, and up until this point it had been inconsistent; but Harry Hughes took it cleanly, and Macc set up a determined attack, the forwards took it on, and Dan Leake burst into the line feeding Jamie Harrison on the left wing, who beat two players to score, another excellent conversion made it 19 – 38.
Macclesfield had a period where they were in the ascendancy, until they were pushed back into their half of the field. Macclesfield won a scrum and were dominant pushing Taunton back, but it was Macc’s Tight-head that stood up first, it was a 3-point gift for the visitor’s, 19 – 41.
Billy Birkett chasing his kick
Taunton set up a very strong rolling-maul that trundled up-field until there was a speedy break, that took some solid retreating defence to stop the score. Taunton threw it out to the left but it was Billy Birkett, on for Sam Adu that hacked it into the visitor’s 22. A scrum resulted for Macc, they attacked to the right and won a penalty. The ball was flashed to the left from the lineout, with Billy Birkett joining the line to make an extra Centre, and scoring, 26 – 41.
Macc ran it out following the restart, with an excellent break by Harry Oliver; with a defender in front of him, he tried to find support out on the right wing, but the ball went into touch. Taunton attack with speed from the lineout, Macc were penalised at a ruck, and debutant Frank Chatterton was sent to the bin. From the 5-metre lineout the Taunton driving maul proved to be irresistible, it was 26 – 48 with 12 minutes to play.
Macclesfield pushed on, but when they lost the ball deep in Taunton’s half, the visitors demonstrated why they sit second in the league, their speed of passing and support play swept them up the field in seconds for another 7-pointer.
There were a few changes made for Macc’s final-flurry, including Sam Adu, who returned to the field on-fire, his determination acting as a change-agent to the team, and their performance visibly lifted with some great charges from Harry Hughes, George Boughey and Harry Oliver. But it would be the determined Sam Adu that grabbed the opportunity, at the second grab, to get the final try, converted by the Skipper, 33 – 53.
It was far from a one-sided affair, but Taunton’s speed in support was at a different level. Mistakes at this level are immediately punished, and the boys will be disappointed when they look back at them this week. These were Head Coach Rhys Davies’s reactions: “It was a disappointing start, which meant we were always chasing the game. That said, we managed to do a lot of positive things against a team chasing promotion, but we have to be able to perform consistently across 80 minutes to get wins.
Next week, the National Two West bus rolls on to Loughborough, to take on the Students. Sitting in mid-table, they will definitely be in Macc’s sights for a possible win.
