GB Students RL v Combined Services RL

Due to the effects of heavy usage the previous day the authorities in Cheltenham could not allow the match to take place at the Prince Of Wales Stadium so as both teams began to arrive notice was given that the venue had been switched to the Newlands complex.
The weather was dry but a persistent northerly breeze kept the temperature well down and failed to dry out the soft ground on the pitch.
With just the minimal three days preparation at HMS Temeraire this was always going to be an uphill task for the Services and this proved to be the case as the game got underway. A succession of penalties early on gave the Students the initiative and after 10 minutes left centre Matt Garside rounded off a good move by the Students to post the first points, Loose forward Mark Wool converted and the Students were ahead by 6. CS were having difficulty containing the strong running students and as a result were starved of any meaningful possession for the first 30 minutes. Continually on the back foot the Services side conceded a further three try’s, a second for Garside and one each for full back Jake Samson and replacement Laurence Pearce, Wool kicking a further two conversions. Finally after 32 minutes CS got their first points on the board, a good break from midfield saw the ball pushed out to the right giving scrum half Gary Dunn the space to beat the Students cover to cross for the four pointer. Despite some reorganisation by CS to snuff out the threat from the students left flank a further two tries went against the Services before the break. The first of which proved to be centre Garsides hat trick score again converted by Mark Wool. This proved very costly to CS not only in points but, in an attempt to stop Garside, CS and RN full back Darren Bamford sustained a serious upper arm injury which took him out of the rest of the game. So after a disappointing first half for the Services side the Students were 32-4 ahead at the break.
The second half seemed destined to go the same way as the first with the Students notching up the first points of the half five minutes after the restart, Adam Scott barging over to present Wool with an easy conversion which proved to be the Students final score of the match. The second half then proved to be a much more even affair with both sides moving the ball well and defending equally as well; CS put on a much more cohesive performance for the rest of the game and for the rest of the game matched the students preventing them from increasing their lead. Despite this endeavour CS were unable to score again until the 70th minute when Gary Dunn rounded of a good CS move latching on to a great one handed inside pass from Army prop Gareth Lodge crossing for his second try of the match. The final score of the game went to CS with another RAF player, replacement Steve Cooper beating the cover to cross for another four points. The much improved second half performance by CS did come at a cost however, Mike Haldenby (RN) who had enjoyed a good game at full back coming on as replacement for Darren Bamford received a potentially serious chest injury after a collision with Students No 16 Pearce. Too little to late it may have been but the second half has given Coach Mr Alan Davidson and assistant Danny Johnson plenty to work with ahead of the clash with the Aussie Students at Burnaby Road on Wednesday 1st December, kick off 2pm.

Teams;
CSRL; Darren Bamford, Sakeasi Yabia, Dave Hankinson, Jim Barnes, Marcus Turagai, Kev Botwood, Gary Dunn, Jamie Goss, Johnny Platt, Dale Jinks, Gareth Cadmore, Ade Peel, Replacements; Mike Haldenby, Andy Kay, Steve Cooper, Gareth Lodge, Ash Hedges, Tommy Wilkinson.
Scorers: T Dunn(2) Cooper
GB Students; Jack Samson, Pat Evans, Matt Garside, John Paxton, Kris Wickes, Dan Kerr, Nigel Scott, Mike Sykes, Pat Smith, Adam Scott, Andy Marsh, Kris Hodson, Mark Wool
Replacements; Harry Mostyn, Liam Gilchrist, Laurence Pearce, Johnny Horton
Scorers; T Garside(3), Pearce(2) Samson, Adam Scott
G Wool (5 Conv)