1st XV match reports

Powergen National Trophy Round 5

To no one’s great surprise Scottish duly failed their toughest cup hurdle, being well beaten by an efficient Otley side which, used to playing at the pace required for three league levels higher, was never threatened.

The scoreline was harsh but fair. Harsh because the Scots dominated territory and possession in the first half; fair because they created plenty of chances and spurned the lot bar a single penalty. Scottish had missed another kick at goal, failed to convert a three on one overlap, and several times pushed to the line but not over it. Otley meanwhile, though restricted to half a dozen raids into Scots territory, returned laden with booty - two tries and two penalties.

Still, if the result was expected, the manner of it was not, and moreover Scottish will be pleased that while not scoring themselves they held their superiors from National League One (the tables rank Otley as the 20^th best side in England) for long periods, including restricting them to one score in the final 21 minutes when so often the minnow tires and struggles. The Scots’ promotion rivals Canterbury were indeed slaughtered at London Welsh, conceding 71 points.

The surprise was that Otley came with the fearsome reputation of having the biggest pack in National One if not in the whole of Christendom … but arrived somewhat injury depleted, and missing also half backs Dave Scully and ex London Scot Simon Binns.

Encouraged, Scottish - who have no mean pack themselves - proceeded after a nervy start to match if not control things up front, winning their fair share of ball in the tight and several times setting off on driving mauls which Otley supporters recognised had not been done to them all season.

The match turned however on what happened once the ball emerged on one side or the other. Otley’s centres had terrific games, Rob Whatmuff winning the Whyte & Mackay Man of the Match award but surely being challenged most closely by his centre partner Paul Mooney. Throughout, they defended solidly, stifling the Scots every time the home side tried to move the ball, and were instrumental in keeping the home attacks at bay even during a spell either side of half time when the visitors lost first prop Ben Fear and then – before he had returned – winger Waisale Sovatabua to the bin.

Scottish might have preferred referee Terry Hall to take a different view of Otley’s persistent infringing to prevent the Scots scoring at this juncture.

Scottish had conceded an early lead to two Ian Shuttleworth penalties either side of a converted try from Andy Brown set up by Mooney’s unchecked run through the whole of the Scots defence, the only reply being a penalty from Jerry Costeloe.

But 3-13 became an insurmountable 3-20 when Scottish conceded a penalty try at a ruck on their own line, a decision to punish a first offence that looked even more harsh as Mr Hall chose to penalise Otley with cards not points.

Thus the home side went into the half-time break in some disbelief, having matched their opponents for the forty plus minutes but already looking beaten on the scoreboard. Yet even when facing 13 men Scottish, themselves with half a side missing through injury, just did not have the extra half a yard or half a second required to break through, and the one time their forwards had a real chance, to push a seven man Otley pack off their own 5 metre line, the visitors dug deep and held.

After the break Otley pulled way and for a while threatened to overwhelm the Scots. First the visitors punished the Scots for illegally winning a lineout, Brown and Connor from the penalty setting up Robin Kitching to canter over on the far side, and replacement James Tiffany was the beneficiary when Otley for once pressured a home scrum in the Scots 22 and Brown pounced on spilled ball. The highlight though was Sovatabua’s lovely skill when, seemingly held  up in the left corner by great Scots defending he somehow flipped the ball out of contact into the hands of  Whatmuff for the score.

With over 20 minutes to go the home supporters feared a spanking, but to their credit and despite it now being clear that the players would, as the saying goes, now be free to concentrate on the league, pride and – for want of a better word – professionalism took over: Otley were held at bay till the death, when Ben Steele drove over in the corner after Mr Hall’s kindly view of Duckett’s handling on the floor, and honour was saved at the last when Luke Stack covered 80 metres to catch Shuttleworth just before he would have crossed to take the score over 50.

The Scots worst defeat since they left the professional ranks did not deserve to be a half-century thrashing, and on the play, if the Scots had taken their chances and Otley been less favoured by key decisions, a scoreline of say, 32-20 might well have been the result. It was more that sort of game. From it, Scots will take plenty of confidence; they are clearly good enough to play in the national leagues; they just have to be good enough to get there!

London Scottish 15. Luke Stack, 14. Nick Pinder, 13. Josh Heke (Mark Tweedie 35), 12 Tim Green, 11. Callum Morris, 10. Jerry Costeloe, 9. David Gaule, 1. Mat Johnston,  2. Paul Byford (David Box, 68) , 3. Magnus Macdonald, (Jim Kelly h.t). 4. Chad Eagle,  5. Mike Goodbody (Coleman McCarthy 46), 6. Alex Alesbrook, 7. James Temleman (James Street 57), 8. Karl Hensley ©

not used 19 Fraser Smeaton, 21 Ed Bishop

Otley: Rock (Duckett 60), Kitching, Whatmuff, Mooney, Sovatabua (Monks 60), Shuttleworth, Brown, Fear (Walker 55), Sayers (Steele 55), Fullman, Oakes (Tiffany 55), Williams, Connor, Stockdale (Pike 55), Wilson (capt)

Referee: Terry Hall (RFU)

MATCH STATISTICS

London Scottish 3

Pens: Costello

Otley 46

Tries: Brown, Penalty, Kitching, Tiffany, Whatmuff, Steele    Cons: Shuttleworth 5   Pens: Shuttleworth 2

Paul McFarland

report from Otley Website click here

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