Two comeback wins for brave and battling Smiths sides

Last week's Smiths fixtures saw the 1st XV vs Tewkesbury at Prince of Wales Stadium and United making a trip to Ledburys 2s with both sides needing huge second half performances to secure their wins.

Smiths 1s started well with prop Jasper Frost scoring early for a 5-0 lead. Most of the rest of the first half half was all Tewkesbury though as the visitors scored 5 tries. with impressive play, particularly from their outside backs. A couple in response from flanker Sam Wilson and wing Jack Davies meant they ended the half 17-29 down.

Tewkesbury began the 2nd half with another score to take their lead out to 17-36. Smiths then replied with two tries from centre Jake Keylock-Townsend and one each from Duncan Spurrier and Luke Cador. Fly half Oli Aherne completed his player of the match performance with 4 conversions to add to one from the first period. 45-36 at full time.  

Captain Ben Hawker was pleased with the turnaround, 'A frustrating first half where we played well in patches and struggled to deal with Tewkesbury, who played some excellent rugby. After a good chat at half time, and despite conceding a try very quickly, we stayed calm and executed our game plan well, also playing the conditions smartly.' A local derby next week away at Cheltenham North before Bream at home on 20th will complete the first half of the season.

Smiths United had some disruption to preparations but stand-in scrum Tom Wardell half got them on the front foot early with some kicks in behind Ledbury. Smiths were first on the scoreboard from one of the kicks with winger Ben Tupper winning a chase to the ball to touch down. Ledbury grew into the game though and some Smiths mistakes led to the home team leading 19-5 at half time.

Refocussing at the half time break, Smiths were soon on top in set piece and able to put pressure on Ledbury. Possession on the try line saw Ledbury offend and a quick-thinking tap penalty from Wardell followed by his conversion brought Smiths to 19-12.  

Players of the match Dan Galeford and Luke Korba formed a powerful engine room to help put Smiths on top in the scrum and the next Smiths try was a pack effort. Adam Naylor touched down from Number 8 as they drove the home scrum over the line. Wardell again with the extras to draw level at 19-19.

The winning score came from some flowing phases from Smiths as forwards carried hard to cut the Ledbury defensive line. A lovely delayed pass created space for centre Vansh Ladwa to scoot through and beat covering defence to the try line. Wardell again added 2 more for a 19-26 lead with about 10 minutes to play.

The final passages of play were a real battle with Ledbury throwing everything at Smiths as they chased another score to level. Smiths found some relief with clearing kicks from Wardell and fly half Ben Williams, and also a 30m metre driving maul that took them out of harms way. Ledbury fought to the end though and had phase after phase in Smiths 22 after last play had been called.  

Smiths took apart a couple of Ledbury driving mauls and the home team's scrum struggles left them resorting to 2 or 3 tap and goes from about 10m out. One attempt to go wide saw them finish in the corner only for the referee to bring them back for a forward pass. Another tapped penalty saw brave tackling to shut out the home forwards and Naylor managed to get over the ball to snuff out the attack and in a turnover penalty. A brave team effort was rewarded with a 19-26 away win and will aim to secure at least 3rd spot in the league as they face old Smiths rivals Ross on Wye on 13th Dec at home.

Head Coach Ben Parker reflected on the resilient efforts of both sides, 'This past weekend was a fantastic one for the club, as both our First Team and our United squad secured impressive wins. It’s especially exciting to see United continuing to notch up results both home and away, truly competing strongly in the RFU leagues. Meanwhile, our First Team pulled off a gutsy home victory against Tewkesbury. Despite finding themselves 19 points down at one stage and facing some tough questions from their opponents, the team turned the match around spectacularly in the second half, scoring 28 unanswered points to secure a well-deserved win. Results the whole club can take a lot of pride in, showing our resilience and determination.'

Smiths U15s league fixture at Old Cryptians will be rearranged after the Crypts pitches were deemed unplayable.

Looking ahead, Smiths Christmas Social will be on Saturday 20 December with a home 1st XV fixture vs Bream and more fun and games to follow. Xmas jumpers mandatory!