SAINTS TRAVELLED TO UPPER EDEN LOOKING TO EXTEND THIER WINNING SEQUENCE, AND AT A GROUND THATS NOT AN EASY PLACE FOR ANY TEAM, SAINTS CAME AWAY WITH A GOOD SOLID PERFORMANCE AND A BONUS WIN, SCORING 6 TRYS IN THE PROCESS.
THE CONDITIONS WERE VERY COLD AND THE PITCH STICKY ON TOP , ADD TO THAT A BITING WIND, SAINTS WERE PLAYING WITH THE WIND IN THIER FAVOUR FIRST HALF, AND AS EXPECTED EDEN TRIED TO KEEP THINGS TIGHT IN THE FORWARDS AND HAVE A GOOD PICK AND DRIVE GAME, SAINTS GAVE AN EARLY PENALTY AWAY FOR OFFSIDE IN FRONT OF THE POSTS AND EDEN SLOTTED OVER TO GIVE THEM AN EARLY LEAD, 3/0, SAINTS IMMEDIATLY WENT ONTO THE OFFENSE AND GOOD LINK UP PLAY BETWEEN FORWARDS AND BACKS TOOK PLAY INTO THE EDEN 22, THEN WITH AN EDEN PLAYER ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE RUCK, SAINTS SCRUM HALF GORDON MAUDLING WAS DEEMED TO HAVE USED HIS FEET, AND THE REFEREE DISPATCHED A YELLOW CARD, DURING THE COURSE OF THIS GAME SAINTS WERE TO HAVE A FURTHER 2 PLAYERS IN THE SIN BIN, AND BE ON THE END OF SOME CONTENTIOUS REFEREEING DECISIONS WHICH PERPLEXED A LOT OF PEOPLE ON THE SIDELINES FROM BOTH SIDES, ANYWAY BACK TO THE GAME ITSELF, WITH SAINTS DOWN TO 14 MEN, THEY COULD HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN IF THEY HAD KEPT IT TIGHT AND LET THE CLOCK TICK AWAY, HOWEVER THIS IS NOT THE SAINTS WAY AND THEY OPENED THE PLAY UP, SOME GOOD WORK BY RYAN FISHER IN THE LOOSE THE BALL WAS MOVED TO MIKE HAWLEY WHO SLIPPED A NICE BALL TO HIS WING MARK CAULFIELD TO SCORE IN THE CORNER, WITH THE BLUSTERY CONDITIONS IT WAS NOT A DAY FOR THE GOALKICKERS AND DANS EFFORT WENT WIDE, SAINTS LEADING 3/5, SAINTS WERE NOW CONTROLLING THE GAME AND BEFORE THE RETURN OF GORDON, SAINTS WERE ON THE SCORESHHET AGAIN, THIS TIME COURTESY OF A STRONG DRIVING RUN FROM CENTRE KURT MAUDLING FROM A FLAT PASS BY DAN RAYSON, KURT BURST THE LINE AND FED RYAN FISHER, RYAN SHOWED FLEET OF FOOT TO TOUCHDOWN UNDER THE POSTS, DAN ADDED THE KICK AND SAINTS HAD A LEAD OF 3/12, WITH GORDON RETURNING SAINTS WERE BACK TO 15, AND ON 20 MINS, A HIGH OLD FASHIONED UP AND UNDER FROM RAYSON, SAW THE EDEN FULLBACK SPILL THE BALL, SAINTS POUNCED AND RETRIEVED THE BALL, BALL WAS MOVED LEFT AND LINK UP PLAY BETWEEN RYAN FISHER AND KYLE HIDDLESTON SAW THE BALL FED INSIDE TO THE SUPPORTING GAVIN MAUDLING HE TOOK THE PLAY FORWARD AND POPPED A BALL INSIDE TO RYAN WHO THEN FOUND KYLE HIDDLESTON FOR HIM TO GO OVER THE LINE FOR SAINTS 3RD OF THE DAY, DAN MISSED THE CONVERSION BUT SAINTS WERE NOW WELL ON TOP, AND WINNING 3/17.
EDEN ALWAYS HAVE A POWERFUL SCRUM AND WITH SAINTS MISSING TWO FRONT ROW MEN IN MIKE RAMSDEN AND CRAIG HALLIGAN, IT SHOWED SAINTS STRENGTH IN DEPTH THIS YEAR WITH CALUMN HOWSE AND JAMIE JARDINE DOING SOME REAL HARD WORK ALONGSIDE YOUNG BEN IN THE FRONT ROW, SAINTS 4TH TRY OF THE AFTERNOON WAS SCORED BY THE CREATOR OF THE LAST ONE AS GAVIN MAUDLING TURNED FROM PROVIDER,TO SCORER, THE BALL WAS STOLEN FROM THE BASE OF THE EDEN SCRUM BY SCRUM HALF GORDON MAUDLING, HE QUICKLY MOVED THE BALL AND IT WAS BROTHER GAVIN WHO WAS ON THE END OF THE MOVE TO CRASH OVER, DAN ADDED THE POINTS AND SAINTS LED3/24, WITH TIME TICKING AWAY TOWARDS HALFTIME, SAINTS PRESSURED THE EDEN LINE AND WERE FORCING THE HOME SIDE INTO MISTAKES, FROM NEARLY THE LAST PLAY OF THE HALF, SAINTS KYLE HIDDLESTON GOT OVER IN THE CORNER, AND DAN RAYSON DEFIED THE CONDITIONS WITH A SUPERB, CONVERSION FROM THE TOUCHLINE, THE HALF ENDED EDEN 3 SAINTS 31.
SAINTS RANG THE CHANGES AT HALFTIME WITH KRIS WOOD AND GARY GIBBONS GOING ON FOR CALUMN HOWSE AND SCOTT WOOD WHO BOTH HAD PLAYED WELL IN THE FIRST HALF, EDEN WERE ALWAYS GOING TO TRY AND USE THE WIND AND WITH LONG KICKS INTO THE SAINTS HALF, SAINTS WERE HAVING TO COME FROM DEEP, CONSEQUENTLY A LOT OF THE EARLY PLAY IN THIS HALF WAS CENTRED IN THE MIDDLE THIRD OF THE PITCH, EDEN WERE TRYING TO PRESSURE THE SAINTS SCRUM AND FROM A SCRUM 5MTRS OUT, KRIS WOOD WHO WAS PLAYING IN HIS UNFAMILIAR ROLE AT PROP, WAS DEEMED BY THE REFEREE TO HAVE COLLAPSE THE SCRUM WHEN EVERYONE WATCHING COULD SEE THAT HE ACTUALLY SLIPPED IN THE WORSENING CONDITIONS, HOWEVER AGAI THE REF WENT FOR THE YELLOW CARD, THIS HAD THE EFFECT OF CALUMN HOWSE HAVING TO RETURN AND SAINTS HAVING TO BRING GAV MAUDLING OFF, WITH THE EXTRA MAN EDEN SQUEEZED OVER IN THE CORNER CONVERSION SCORE NOW 10/31, SAINTS THEN BROUGHT THE HARD WORKING SHAUN WALKER OFF BEING REPLACED BY LEE WOOD, WITH THE RETURN OF KRIS FROM THE SIN BIN YOUNG BEN HARRISON WAS GIVEN A REST AND SAINTS WENT FOR BULK IN THE FRONT ROW , SAINTS 6TH TRY OF THE GAME CAME AFTER THE SAINTS PACK DROVE EDEN OFF THE SCRUM, BALL WAS MOVED TO CENTRE KURT MAUDLING WHO AGAIN BROKE THE LINE, HE FOUND RYAN FISHER ON HIS SHOULDER AND RYAN SCORED HIS SECOND OF THE GAME, DAN ADDED THE CONVERSION AND SAINTS LEAD WAS 10/38, AGAIN THE REFEREE BINNED A THIRD SAINTS PLAYER WHEN LEE WOOD WAS DISPATCHED FOR A TRIP ON THE EDEN CENTRE, SO FROM AN 80 MINUTE GAME OF RUGBY SAINTS HAD PLAYED 50 MINS OF THIS WITH 14 PLAYERS, AT TIMES TO A LOT OF PEOPLE WATCHING THE REF WAS TOO QUICK TO GO FOR THE OPTION OF THE CARD, EDEN SCORED THE LAST TRY OF THE GAME OUTWIDE WHEN CONFUSION IN THE SAINTS BACKLINE SAW SPACE GIVEN TO THE HOME SIDE EDEN CHIPPED OVER AND WON THE RACE TO SCORE, CON MISSED AND THE FINAL SCORE WAS UPPER EDEN 15 ST BENS 38.
ALL IN ALL A GOOD HARD WORKING SOILD PERFORMANCE, FROM ALL THE SQUAD, WE NEED TO CUT OUT SILLY MISTAKES WHICH AT TIMES IS PURELY DOWN TO US, FOR THIS GAME IT WAS ALL ABOUT HARD WORK AND STICKING TOGETHER, WITH THE WIND AND BITTER CONDITIONS IT WAS A CREDIT TO BOTH TEAMS, ITS HARD TO PICK OUT INDIVIDUALS THIS WEEK DUE TO THE FACT THIS WAS A TEAM PERFORMANCE, FROM 1 TO 18 EACH PLAYER PLAYED HIS PART.
SAINTS TAKE A BREAK FROM LEAGUE ACTION NEXT WEEK AS THEY PARTICIPATE IN THE INTERMEDIATE CUP AT HOME TO NORTWHICH, WE REUME THE LEAGUE PROGRAMME WITH A TRIP TO FLEETWOOD ON THE 5TH OF MARCH.