Guernsey Raiders 2nd XV
Matches
Sat 06 Dec 2014  ·  Investec CI League
Buccaneers
67
8
Guernsey Raiders
Guernsey Raiders 2nd XV
First loss of the season for the 2nds

First loss of the season for the 2nds

Natalie Davidson7 Dec 2014 - 09:45
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https://www.grfc.gg/teams/2576

But still plenty to play for

Against a very decent Jersey Buccaneers side Mark Stone’s 2nds saw their unbeaten record disappear spectacularly.

An inexperienced and patched up 2nd XV gave Buccaneers a good game for 40 minutes, but the second half was something of a write-off.

Buccaneers led just 12-3 at the break, but in the second half they ran away with the game.

Our hopes were hit early on, as the coach explained.

‘We lost Mitch Smith (shoulder) and Russell Roberts (broken nose) in the first 10 minutes of the match which didn’t help matters, and Rich Hile who was already over in Jersey was delayed, meaning a start for Rick Felbabel from the Vets,’ he said.

It was really a 15 minute period after half time where we conceded five tries in five minutes that just blew us away.

But despite the result for 40 minutes and intermittent periods in the 2nd half we showed some good rugby.

‘Our scrums, lineouts and driving mauls went very well, and the areas we did come up short were easy to identify and we can work on those at training.

‘The young lads stepped up well for the most part, particularly man of the match Charlie Scott who was at 6, Tom Veillard at 9, and Giles Quigley on the flank in the second period.’

The 2nds’ try came midway in the second half when Dom Rice pounced on a loose pass from one of the Jersey backs just inside the Jersey half.

He carried the ball for around 20 yards and fed the supporting winger Ben Honor to finish off. Alec Bailey converted.

‘We’ve been patting ourselves on the back a bit this season for some of the wins we have had, but if we truly want to progress as a team and start providing a regular supply of players to the 1sts then we have just had a wake-up call as to the standard we need to be at,’ said a reflective Stone.

‘All in all, it’s been a pretty decent start to the season for the 2nds considering the injury issues GRFC has had as a whole this year. We are still in a position to challenge for the JRA and a number of 2nds have gained match day experience with the 1sts, and we have blooded around 10-12 of this season’s Colts team who now have an idea of what the senior game is all about.’

The 2nds’ next JRA game is 24 January when we are away to Jersey 2nds again.

Match details

Match date

Sat 06 Dec 2014

Kickoff

12:00

Competition

Investec CI League
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