A very disappointing morning for the lads, as they battled extremely hard against a very physically dominant Phoenix outfit.
We certainly played some outstanding rugby, but struggled to contain some enormous runners from free taps.
The boys played some very impressive shape, playing out of the back on several occasions and using a screen effectively to move the attack to the edges. Our edge players were busy, having plenty of opportunity to attack, with both Henry and Isaac dotting down from set plays.
The game came down to the pack, who had their work cut out managing the sheer size of the opposition. George Cartwright led the way with several fantastic tackles and very physical clearouts (see video below), with Seth, Tom, Tommy and Ellis working hard.
We asked for workrate, and there were some great moments to reflect on. The scramble from Naoh and Tommy to prevent a try, Henry scoring from gathering a kick off and Owen chasing down an attacker, turning him over and scoring.
Overall, our rugby intent was excellent and it was great to hear the Roth coaches congratulate the boys on their structure and organisation, however, it was a 9-5 loss as we were out muscled from set play.
A great watch, and a very enjoyable game.
Well done boys 👏👏👏
Players of the match;
George Cartwright
Absolute warrior today. Led the physical battle.
Billy
All round performance. Carried hard, tackle completing at 100% and tidied up a lot of messy moments. Very switched on.
Charlie Cooper
Roth's man of the match.
An outstanding performance: control,impact and pressure