Worcester 12 Hereford 22
Hereford extended their winning streak to six games with this hard-fought victory over local rivals Worcester. The Wyesiders controlled most of the first half and took an early 8-point lead, but Worcester responded with a couple of tries to take a 12 points to 8 interval lead.
A fifteen-minute spell early in the second half saw Hereford add two converted tries, giving them a 10-point lead. During the final quarter Worcester threw everything into attack, but the Visitors’ well-disciplined defence held firm and closed out the game at 22 points to 12.
Head Coach Scott Sturdy was delighted with the third away win of the season. After the match he said,” Another outstanding week from the lads, with two top of the table clashes.” “Hereford played Worcester away in a really difficult competitive fixture. The 18 players who travelled were outstanding, definitely our best performance to date and we were really pleased to pick up a result from such a tough fixture away from home. Our 1870s put in another fantastic performance against Stourport in a first versus second clash at Wyeside.Brilliant performances which take both teams to six from seven.”“There were some outstanding individual performances yesterday. At Worcester I pick out captain, Connor Sullivan who although injured before half time managed to get himself back on for the last 20 minutes and put in some great shots. Also, Luke Yarranton in the back row who went from 7 to centre to wing, was outstanding in all positions and really put his body on the line for the team. Jack Goodwin in the back row came up with tries at the right time and had a really strong game.” “We now move on to next week when we travel to Ludlow who are unbeaten, so it is a first versus second clash. The 1870s host Malvern 2s in a local derby and we are under no illusion, they will be difficult games. We shall work hard this week and look forward to the challenges.”
The first chance fell to Worcester when Hereford were penalised for an offence at the breakdown, but the attempt at goal was wide. However, it was the Wyesiders who took the lead. An overthrown lineout was picked off by Scott Robinson, the ball was moved across the line, Worcester were off-side and Josh Wright made no mistake with the resultant penalty.
From the restart Jack Goodwin gathered and his driving run took play into the Worcester 22, only to end when the final pass was knocked on. Levi Hughes and Connor Sullivan combined to create a clear break which too ended with a forward pass. Eventually, a Jamie Humphreys rampaging run in midfield saw the ball moved wide to Jack Goodwin. Goodwin charged across the goal line from
twenty yards for the first Hereford try, the conversion attempt was not successful. The lively Worcester backs were troubling the Hereford defence and both of their tries came when space was created for slick passing movements to draw defenders, leaving gaps for a couple of tries in the corner one of which was converted to make the score at half time 12 points to 8.
Ten minutes into the second half Hereford regained the lead with a catch and drive from a lineout, touched down by Jack Goodwin. Josh Wright added the extra points.
Fifteen minutes later, a concentrated pick and go attack created a gap for Mark Philo to dive through, Wright again made the conversion. Worcester put in some strong attacks during the final quarter, which were well countered by some
robust Hereford defence. Hereford had plugged the gap wide out and Worcester never looked like getting through. The final score to Hereford of 22 points to 12 was clearly satisfying for the players and coaching team. It shows how far this bunch of players has come in the last twelve months.
The 1870s had another great result beating visitors and top side Stourport by 52 points to 10. Tries were scored by Dan Mills 3, Joe Russell, George Russell, Cal Duncan, Alex Thomson and James Lawrence. Cal Duncan kicked 6 conversions. Man of the match and Dick of the day were both awarded to Dan Mills. It was a struggle to find a Dick of the day until the scoring machine, who had been running riot, walked into the bar wearing a massive medical broken ankle style boot.
