What a Fryller at Fylde. The Woodlands ground was illuminated by a fantastic, fast-paced match that ended in euphoria for the home team and heartbreak for the Green Machine and the travelling faithful.
On a grey, dull day it was the visitors that started brightly. Fylde took 12 phases from the restart before they decided to kick and then Dale showed them how to use the ball. On fourth phases Joe Fawcett broke free and looked to be going through to score but Dale had to quickly recycle the ball for Elliot Stockton to open the scoring. Robbie Davidson slotted the conversion.
Fylde threatened to score but a knock-on gave Dale the platform to move the ball downfield. Dale’s next two possessions led to errors, a forward pass and a knock-on. The Green Machine went into top gear and, without mercy, drove the Fylde 8 back to win scrum penalties. The second one was near enough for Davidson to get three points from the tee.
Penalties were given away by Dale, mainly for high tackles, and Fylde twice had line-outs close to Dale’s line. The Green Wall held and from the goal line drop out a handling area by Fylde gave Dale good field position. A penalty followed and Dale had a line-out on Fylde’s 10 metre line. What followed was the move of the afternoon, or even the season, nay “one of the best tries I’ve ever seen”. It was to, the older spectator, a classic; beautiful because of its simplicity. Fast hands, strong passing in front of the receiver allowed the ball to be in Ryan Hamilton’s hands on the left wing in a flash. Hamilton needed no further invitation and once he got the ball in his hands he was gone; easily beating the cover to touch down. Davidson added the two points.
Dale extended their lead to 22 points with an individual effort by Hamilton. A turn over was won on half-way and Hamilton was gone before Fylde could reach him to make any effective challenge. No conversion. The ref was now issuing warnings to both sets of players. Fylde’s front row were warned about the repeated scrum penalties and Dale were warned for too many high tackles.
Dale had to lose Jack Pinder just before half-time when the next infringement occurred; Fylde were allowed another couple of scrum penalties before they too had to rest a player!
The second half started with Fylde doing the scoring and with 4 unanswered converted tries they burst into a 28-22 lead. Missed tackles and handling errors gave Fylde good territory and possession and they used it well. Tries were scored by Freddie Reader, Ben Gould, Jordan Dorrington and Toby Harrison. Patrick Bishop converted all four.
Many teams would now have been counted out, down on their knees and just wanting to go home but not Wharfedale. Skipper, Oli Cicognini, gathered the troops under the posts and exhorted the boys to lift themselves and go for glory. And how so close they came; they forced a turnover from the restart and 5 phases later, with multiple penalty advantages in the bag, Harry Bullough dived over to guarantee a bonus point and to bring the score to within a point. Dale had to ride out some dangerous high tackles before Bullough touched down but did so without complaint and without manic screaming from the bench.
This now led to a dramatic finish. The momentum was now with the visitors. It was now the turn of Fylde to defend their line. They had to undergo numerous phases; many deep in their own 22 before giving away a penalty. Davidson struck the ball well but it bounced back off the upright and fell, just out of Elliot Stockton’s reach, to a Fylde player. Back came Dale as the clearing kick did not find touch and 17 phases followed before Davidson was given another shot at goal. This time he was accurate and Dale crept back into the lead 28-30.
Dale took the restart and tried to run out the final minutes but time went on and on. They managed 6 pick and goes but, on the 7th, Fylde were awarded a very kickable penalty. Bishop held his nerve and won the game for the home team.
The match photographs are available at https://www.flickr.com/photos/128183691@N04/albums/72177720322582732
Next week sees the Christmas Derby at the Avenue with Harrogate travelling along the A59. KO will be 2pm
Wharfedale: – Bullough; Hamilton, Prell, Cicognini (c), Bullock; Davidson, Kaup-Samuels (Riddiough 54); Patchett (Dickinson 16), Stockdale (Collinson 72), Armstrong, Burton (Borrill 61), Stockton, Pinder (Weston 69), Fawcett, Beresford.