A Spicy Affair

Our first home game of the season saw us welcome Keynsham to a sunny Swiss Valley. They are a side, and indeed club, that I admire and respect hugely. You will struggle to find a more slickly run operation from top to bottom. As a player (from youth to senior) I’ve always found Keynsham to be fierce competitors and I’ve very much enjoyed many closely fought contests over the years. During my Somerset days (things were in black & white back then) there was always a healthy sprinkling from their neck of the woods and I’ve made a few friends along the way. Despite this connection arranged fixtures against our esteemed visitors are sadly somewhat rare – and I suspect after this weekend’s spicy affair things may well stay that way.

Both squads had a number of absences both in playing personnel and coaching. Somerset duties, injury, sickness and concussion being the major contributors to Clevedon’s lack of numbers. However, 16 men dawdled across to join the cause and with the lethargy and finesse of the walking dead went about their warm-up. To add more fuel to the fire I’d even managed to forget the kit!!!!!

After much mid-week begging and flattery, we were able to welcome “French Brian” to the joys of refereeing junior rugby. A real coup, as he’d never refereed at U14’s level before (usually U16’s, Colts and Senior) and I’d promised him a lovely morning out with a gentle game to officiate between two good ball playing sides. Being the jewel of Clevedon 1st XV‘s front row for the last few years Brian is very much familiar with subtleties of the scrum and breakdown ball – arguably the most difficult and complex scenarios to officiate in any game. Unfortunately, his experience wasn’t respected by all quarters, and the odd mistake/not seen (easily made by every single referee every single day) was verbally vilified to an embarrassing level come the end of the day. It’s very sad in my eye’s we even have to address this and I really do understand how frustration can escalate emotions. But as adults (coaches, parents & supporters) we really do have an example to set to those on the pitch and the overall “positive” experience which should be the right of every child giving up their Sunday morning can easily be lost in the hell-bent pursuit of perfection and results by over excited adults. The Keynsham support weren’t all that bad (we’ve come across an awful lot worse) but it seems a good time to express a real gripe I have with the youth game – sorry to those expecting a quick report! I have to add, we ourselves have very much been guilty of this in the past and at some point will most probably be guilty of it in the future………… but we must all think about how we act in the interests of those 30 kids on the pitch.

It’s a very similar lesson to what I try and teach the kids. Firstly No.1, above all else - Respect the ref. Work out what they’re “hot” on and maybe what he/she’s not so strict about. You do this by asking and talking through your captain, during breaks of play and before the game in a calm and respectful manner. Referees are volunteers, humans, lovers of the game, and definitely imperfect – no matter how good or bad they are they need to be respected for giving us their time and stepping into the fiery cauldron of the game where many of us wouldn’t dare tread. They have their hands full with trying to officiate an incredibly complicated and unpredictable game unravelling at a hundred miles an hour in front of their eyes, often in at least 3 different places!!!! Premiership referees constantly refer to playbacks, slow-mo’s and linespersons views and opinions why, oh, why do we expect the same level of expertise on a Sunday morning. Suck it up ….it’s not going to happen. Instead of taking every opportunity whatsoever to lambast and complain every time something doesn’t go your way, spend your energy on praising, posing questions and challenges to the players and enjoying what is an amazing sport. The number one objective of a referee is to provide a safe playing environment. If he/she is constantly bombarded by abuse, questioning their integrity with ill-educated opinion and biased self-importance……then that environment is obviously compromised. In my opinion (and it is only that) It’s just not the way people should act at a junior grade rugby match.

Doh…..I think I’ve got carried away again……………….SORRY. You’d be forgiven for thinking the Keynsham entourage acted awfully and Brian was terrible – Please let me make this very clear, neither is the case at all. The Keynsham coaches did invade the playing surface at alarming regularity. And the tone of the vocal differences from the travelling support did nothing to endear themselves to the referee, in my view hindering their cause. But this is fine and all part of the “experience”. The only part I take issue with is outlined later in the report – and thankfully came to nothing.

Come kick off we seemed poorly focused and unfortunately this was confirmed through the early exchanges with Keynsham showing the way with some decent rugby. All the pressure was in the Clevedon 22 and despite some good tackling from the usual suspects there were too many bystanders that hadn’t switched on. This was very evident on the 5-minute mark when some awful defensive line speed from our three quarters provided Keynsham with their first score of the day and a nice “draw and pass” training ground exercise which they very competently took advantage of. Would this shake up the slumber party? Nahhh …… another carbon copy 5 mins allowed Keynsham to neatly go through the motions. 50% of the Clevedon players watched the other 50% try and stem the tide. Eventually the inevitable happened and K’s produced another well taken converted score. 10 minutes gone and deservedly 0-12 down. I admit even at this early stage I couldn’t see a way back and feared the worst. You just can’t play rugby with 7 or 8 players – it’s 15 minimum (the older we get, the more this is true).

Fortunately, the “gut-feeling” was wrong. I suspect Keynsham sensing this was going to be a stroll, hit the snooze button and further to that an unforeseeable chain of events over the following 6 minutes led to the whole Clevedon team waking from hibernation, actually beginning to care and making a game of it. From the kick off Keynsham made an uncharacteristic mistake and gifted us a scrum in their territory – it was nice to be in their half for a change. A solid scrum saw Dan (standing in at scrum half) explode up the generous blindside. An inside pass to Mac at full tilt saw us break into the Keynsham 22 with some excellent tackling by the visitors bringing down the “big fella” 5 meters short. Some superb support saw the ruck secured and Dan noticing no one a home on the slim blind intelligently sneaked over, finishing what he’d started.

The following kick off was expertly gathered by Rudy, who took off and sensing the Keynsham ranks mostly camped in front of him, drew them and released the ball up the hill. A series of interplay passing and fantastic support saw Dan 1 on 1 with the Keynsham winger and an unselfish inside pop to the flying Tyler Scott saw him race under the posts unopposed for his first well-deserved touchdown of the season. Big Mac – sporting his latest hairstyle (just in case he wasn’t noticeable enough before) uncharacteristically fluffed the conversion. 10 – 12 back in the game. Surprisingly K’s decided once again to pack the bottom touchline and kick to exactly the same man. Rudy was more than happy to take the gift and exactly as before draw the opposition before releasing the ball to the backs. Keynsham scrambled their defence but a number of successful phases later saw David use some great footwork and sneak his first try since returning to us – He’s having a huge impact on the fortunes of the team and his defence ethic is certainly something to admire. Mac made no mistake this time, teeing up, taking his time, and slotting the extras. 17 points in 6 minutes…….wow!

Clevedon were now in wonderland. Massive credit to our visitors, who were visibly rocked by the lightning turn around, they pulled themselves together and started to claw things back. I think this is the point Clevedon shot themselves in the foot. We fell foul of a similar slackness that had cost Keynsham. We were ahead, it was going to be easy, we didn’t need to try as hard, tackle as well, support as much……..instead of looking for the intelligent pass players were now becoming selfish and looking for personal gain. And so the remainder of the first half passed with little to admire.

Half time chat quickly and correctly identified that our most success was coming from keeping the ball alive and collectively the lads decided this was to be the blueprint for the rest of the day.

The second half started ok with both teams showing some quality but the game became more and more fragmented and the numerous stops in play did nothing to help this. From a promising looking foray into Keynsham territory the visitors gained scrum advantage which was spilled and Dan picked up (playing to the whistle as we teach them). Unfortunately, it was this one inconspicuous choice that would be the catalyst to some unsavoury scenes described earlier. The whistle blew to signal no advantage gained by the defending team, but it was too late. A Keynsham player had taken issue with Dan picking up the ball and took him down high and late. Mac was on the scene to take exception to the late tackle…and so it spiralled out of control. Some pushing, shoving and name calling ensued with multiple teammates becoming involved. I’ve no issue with Danny picking up the ball (we constantly ask the boys to play until the whistle has gone). I’ve no issue with the Keynsham lad who tackled him – it’s a tight game and there’s a good chance he was committed to the tackle. The fact it was high is neither here nor there as it wasn’t especially dangerous and I’m certain there was no real intent. I’ve even no issue with the “handbags” that ensued. It’s good the guys stick up for one another and as long as letting off a bit of steam is limited to the odd push and shove I’ve no problem. After all they are just a load of hormonal testosterone filled balls of energy finding their feet. As with 99% of on pitch skirmishes they fizzle out pretty quickly if left alone. And this is what doesn’t sit right with me. I was hugely disappointed to witness Keynshams coaches, replacements and apparently even the odd parent making their way onto the playing surface. There are referees and team captains on the pitch who are very able and capable of controlling this. To see people running on to the pitch and shouting will surely only escalate the problem and heighten the tension and animosity of those already involved. Thankfully this didn’t happen and things calmed down, however I do think this was down to luck rather than judgement.

As the game restarted it was obvious it suddenly meant an awful lot more to the players than previously. However, each side dealt with it very differently. Clevedon became more physical, more direct, more selfish – throwing the game plan out of the window. This meant turnovers and lack of possession for long periods. This became frustrating and in turn the frustration led to an ever increasing penalty count. Keynsham however did almost the opposite – intelligently using this energy boost to really start playing for each other. They spent long periods with the ball, often camped in the Clevedon 22. Only some superb tackling managed to keep the Keynsham boys at bay, notably from David, McCauly, Luke and Mac who were nothing short of immense during this period. Unfortunately, in the heat of the moment Mac tried to kick a ball out of the back of a ruck to relieve pressure and was rightly asked to leave the game – For future reference to all, it really should go without saying but if there is a player on the deck you should never try to kick a ball through a ruck it is reckless and dangerous. Far better to ruck past the ball or give up lost possession and get ready for the next phase. With five minutes left, camped on their own line defending a 5-point lead, with 14 players, Clevedon lost their cool. Giving away too many penalties for offside, late tackles and slowing the ball down. This will only end one way, and eventually Keynsham got the score they deserved for such sustained pressure with a try in the corner after some quick hands bringing the scores level.

The last few minutes played out with little quality or discipline and eventually the game ended, I think to everyone’s relief.

Lessons of the day – Try to stick to the game plan, until the game plan changes  . Channel aggression and frustration in the correct way, constantly being penalised for undisciplined play will make you more aggressive and frustrated . Warm-up before the game, not in the first 10 mins . Respect referees ………. your life will become better because of it, and you will live longer .

Players of the day – for general involvement, positive contribution and decision making, Rudy and Tyler Munn were outstanding.