MACC PACK TOO STRONG FOR BILLINGHAM
By David Wilkinson
Billingham are one of those teams that have been defined by an iconic player, in this case, Peter Evans. Evans’s DNA of fast-flowing rugby has dictated their playing style for as long as Macclesfield has been playing them; as such, there would be no surprises in what was to come. The first two encounters went to Billingham, with Macc winning the last contest 16 – 6 in ’22.
Macclesfield kicked off, with the athletic Harry Hughes leaping the highest to claim the ball, even though he was infringed in the air. Ciaran Shone’s cultured young boot took play to within 10 metres. The catch and drive was clinical, with Ollie Longmore touching down; 7 – 0, with less than 2 minutes played.
Ollie Longmore finishes the driving maul for Macclesfield’s second score.
Macc knocked on at the restart, but were too strong at the scrum and came away with the ball. It was chipped forward, but a late tackle resulted in a penalty where the ball landed. What followed was an almost exact replica of the first score with Longmore bagging his brace, 14 – 0.
The ball was taken cleanly at the restart, with Macclesfield going through several phases until the ball was sent skywards. Billingham won a penalty but threw crookedly at the lineout. Macc’s scrum was again dominant, pushing their visitors back. The boys in blue were looking confident and ran it out from deep, getting deep into their opponents’ territory. Again, Billingham infringed at the tackle, and the Referee warned the Billingham Captain. What followed was a replica of the first try, from a lineout on 5 metres, 19 – 0 after 14 minutes.
Hat-trick Ollie Longmore gets set to put on the power
Once Billingham got their hands on the ball, they looked in a determined mood, shifting the ball from right to left. After a dart by Evans, their Outside Centre threw out a long looping pass to the left wing, Joseph Scarborough. Who, when he caught it, was already outside his opposite number. Scarborough took the ball to the line before passing inside for the score to be finished under the posts, 19 – 7.
Harry Oliver splits the defence after a well-executed move, scoring in the corner
The green-machine was on the attack again, but after several phases, Macc turned them over at the tackle, counterattacking from deep. When the move came to nothing, the referee brought play back for offside. Another long kick from Shone’s boot set up another attacking position. A training ground move saw Harry Oliver taking the ball at full speed, against the grain, scoring in the corner. Another excellent kick from Shone, near the touchline, took the score to 26 – 7 after 22 minutes.
Macclesfield were twice penalised after the restart, which took the visitors into the red zone with a lineout. Although the lineout was fluffed, Macc’s clearance kept Billingham on the attack. This time, they completed the lineout, and when the ball came out, fullback Elliot Husband joined the line. It was another training ground move. As he was tackled, he flipped the ball into the space outside him, with it to be met by Luke Wilson at top speed. Wilson’s pace and power took him past two would-be Macc tacklers to score his resulting goal close to the posts, 26 – 14. It was evident at this stage that the threat would come from Wilson, rather than their DOR, Peter Evans.
Billingham had another good period of possession, but Macc’s defence was solid. Billingham continued to press, and twice Macc were penalised. When the ball came out to the left, Tom Jennings’ tackle was adjudged to be high and sent to the bin, which was more due to repeated offences than the severity of the tackle. It was now all Billingham; they were very much in the ascendancy, with Macclesfield being penalised again for a high tackle. It took play to within 7 metres of the line. Billingham went through several phases following the lineout, until they compacted the defensive line; a big pass from Evans found his Captain Wilson out wide to make it 26 – 19 at halftime. It took little imagination to predict the mood and vernacular of defensive coach Darren Lamon during the break.
George Boughey finishes his duet with Mason Williams to score a terrific try
After winning a penalty, Macc got into an excellent attacking position with a lineout in the 22. The catch and drive was hurtling forward, but the touchline official advised the referee that Harry Harding was blocking. With the advantage of the video, I have watched this back on four occasions, and cannot see any infringement occurring. You are exonerated Harry, well, at least in my book, and that is all that counts, as this is to be my last report. The rugby Gods were looking down, and Billingham’s kick did not find touch; Macc were back on the attack. The attack went left, back right, and left again, which was excellently orchestrated by Mason Winterburn’s introduction at halftime. And so it went: Winterburn to Boughey, Boughey to Winterburn, Winterburn to Boughey, a dainty duet to take the score to 31 – 19.
Harry Oliver can’t be stopped at close range as he bags the final try
Billingham were forced back into their 22 after the restart, going through 16 phases trying to find a gap to run it out. Eventually, a chip pass to the Left Ing got them to halfway, but they knocked on. They were now desperately under pressure at the scrum, but amazingly, when given the option of “scrum or lineout”, they chose the former and suffered the consequences. However, they worked their way into Macclesfield’s 22 but could not break the defensive blue line, and eventually knocked on. Macc cleared to halfway, and a quickly taken throw-in was knocked on, not a lot was going right for the visitors. Scrum led to penalty, led to lineout, led to penalty, and Macc, quite rightly, opted to scrummage again. Winterburn dummied to the blindside before passing open, and a short pass from Shone sent Harry Oliver over for his second score, 38 – 19.
It’s mission accomplished after Ciaran Shone kicks the final points to finish the contest
Three times Billingham came close to scoring, but each time they fluffed their lines on the line, the first attempt was chased back by Dan Leake, demonstrating some excellent sprinting speed; the Green Machine supporters were biting their lips in frustration. They continued to throw the ball about, with big missed passes, but Macc’s defence wouldn’t be breached, pushing their visitors back into their own half of the field. Another long pass went forward by probably 2 metres, which was ridiculously challenged by a nameless Billingham player, with the referee changing his decision to a penalty. Macc worked their way upfield, and when they won another penalty in kicking range, they bagged the points to finish the game 41 – 19.
The boys in blue dominated the contest
It had mostly been a scrappy affair, Macclesfield bossing the scrum and maul, with Billingham chucking it about, playing a high-risk game that mostly worked for them. Macc’s defence had been solid, except for the period when it wasn’t before half-time. I managed to collar Head Coach, Rhys Davies, for a snippet, in between being pestered by his brood: “Yes, we played well except for when we didn’t before half-time, and we nilled them in the second half”.
Sheffield next Saturday at Priory Park will be a different kettle of fish, but we will welcome back Harry Blackwell and others. That’s it for me, I’m off to climb Imja Tse in Nepal on Saturday, and when I come back, it’s the Polar Express until Christmas. And if you see me in January, I’ll be in disguise somewhere in the Stand – well, after 15 years it’s time for someone else – watch this space.
