Sat 11 Nov 2023, 14:15
Harbury 2nd XV 38 Alcester 2nd XV 19
Alcester 2’s made the trip to Harbury RFC for their latest league fixture.
Those on the sidelines were treated to good conditions and an entertaining game of rugby.
Alcester, playing in their yellow and black, made an impressive start, starving Harbury of possession and bringing a level of control and physicality which has been lacking in previous games.
Harbury did settle into their patterns and began to impose themselves and made good use of their younger, fitter players.
Despite the determined defence, gaps appeared and Harbury were clinical in converting their opportunities into scores.
As half time approached, Alcester were four tries down with nothing to show for their hard work.
In the closing minutes, a degree of control was reestablished. The forwards made good ground working in their pods and, more importantly, kept possession.
Pinning Harbury back inside their 22, a strong carry from Liam Tallent got Alcester deservedly onto the score board.
Harbury, with plenty of substitutes to bring on made some changes for the second half whereas Alcester had no fresh legs to bring on at all. However, when asked to make the required improvements in the second half, the team rallied together to produce their best 40 minutes of the season.
Two converted tries from Luke Spencer narrowed the gap and talk of a comeback was echoed amongst the home supporters. Alcester were now playing some excellent rugby but unfortunately had too much of a deficit to contend with.
Harbury did have the final word as they managed to bag another Try in the final play.
There were some outstanding performances from Alcester. Scott McGee keeping things tidy at full back, dealing with a lot of kicks and putting his body on the line.
James Roberts had a great game at scrum half, keeping his head and executing some great passes whilst under a lot of pressure. Joey Wheeler really stepped up, bringing a presence and a commanding voice to the pack. Dylan Robson looked really promising as he filled in at fly half. Finally the accolade for man of the match goes to Alec Aucott. A brilliant effort and some fantastic scrummaging.
Not quite the end result Alcester would have hoped for, but an outstanding effort and a performance to be proud of.
