After a string of narrow defeats which left them sitting alarmingly low in the league Beverley RUFC badly needed this victory.
Rochdale hardly looked like a side still without a win this season and contributed hugely to an entertaining game. For most of the time the fast flowing rugby played by both sides matched the fine autumn sunshine. Well, it did for the first half at any rate. In the second half Beverley RUFC rather lost their way. Their play became ragged and the game eventually fizzled out on a scrappy note. 31-5 up after only twenty five minutes Beverley RUFC will no doubt wonder how they came to finish with a winning margin of only twelve points.
They got off to a sensational start. After only three minutes Junior Tupai in his own 22 offloaded in the tackle to full back Phil Dale who jinked his way upfield on a thrilling run of over seventy metres before outpacing the defence to cross under the posts. As individual tries go we will not see a better all season. Within five minutes Beverley RUFC went further ahead when Tupai stepped inside his man thirty metres out and crossed for a second try. Phil Duboulay having inexplicably missed the first conversion from under the posts made no mistake and went on to convert four of Beverley RUFC’s six tries with some fine goal kicking.
Rochdale showed no inclination to be rolled over and hit back with a try in the corner from winger Arron Howarth following a five metre scrum. Their backs, well directed by fly half Robert Neave, moved the ball about crisply and with plenty of attacking intent. But they were well contained by some excellent Beverley RUFC tackling and they lacked the incisiveness of Tupai and Sam Atiola in the Beverley RUFC centre who were quick to pounce on any Rochdale mistakes, of which there were plenty. Indeed it was Rochdale’s frequent loss of possession at the breakdown that was largely their undoing.
Duboulay shimmied his way over for a third try. Chris Infield then rounded off a fine break by Jon Fisher to earn Beverley RUFC their bonus point with a fourth, and direct from the restart Tupai broke through in midfield to send Atiola racing in for a fifth. Beverley RUFC were virtually out of sight and it seemed likely that a rout might be on the cards. But Rochdale continued to attack regardless of the deficit. Lock Nick Duncan forced his way over following a forward drive from a penalty scrum and with Mike Bradwell adding the conversion the interval score of 31-12 looked a lot less dramatic than it might have done.
Having already lost hooker Rob Todd early on Beverley RUFC were forced to make a second change with Goran Jelencic departing at halftime. Dale who had had a very good first half was surprisingly moved to the wing to accommodate Chris Harding at full back which rather disrupted the fluency of the backplay. Quite why Beverley RUFC’s play went so alarmingly downhill in the second half was hard to fathom. Their pack increasingly got pushed about in the set pieces. Carelessness crept into the passing and several good openings were squandered that wouldn’t have been in the first half.
Beverley RUFC managed only one further score – a bulldozing try by Danny Morris who took the ball on the burst five metres out. Morris had had a good first half. John Stephenson in the second row enjoyed another fine match as did flanker Chris Brant who probably had his best game for Beverley RUFC. Rochdale meanwhile were striking back. Full back James Flitcroft scored a nice try under the posts which Bradwell converted and only a superb covering tackle by Atiola prevented winger McNicholas quickly adding another.
With the match petering out in a scrappy finish Howarth sprinted away from his own half to touch down for a converted fourth try and earn Rochdale a bonus point which no-one could begrudge them. Still, in the end it was a good day for Beverley RUFC even if it should have been better.
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