The Quins unbeaten record this season finally fell on Saturday as they lost an epic top of the table tussle against Crediton II which was in the balance right up to the last moments.
Crediton came to the Blackmore with a score to settle after Sidmouth knocked them out of the Devon Cup with a relatively comfortable 33-19 victory in October. This was a much strengthened Crediton side, highlighted by the fact that 3 players had been dropped from last weekend’s 107-0 win over Exeter Athletic.
The game started at an intensity that did not waiver until the final whistle with both sides throwing everything into a full blooded affair. Sidmouth’s front five of Ned Coles, Harry Backway, Chris Otway, Nick Mills and captain Tom Butler put on a superb display of scrummaging to achieve parity and occasionally superiority against a pack that usually the strongest in the league. This platform allowed Alex Clemo-Crosby to provide a great service to Dan Retter who in turned guided the Quins around the park with a beautiful array of kicking including an outstanding 50-22.
Whilst the game high on intent, scoring opportunities were few and far between with the game battled out broadly in the middle third. The Sidmouth back row of Alfie Collins, Olly Marsh and Ryan Davies got through a huge amount of carrying and tackling in the opening exchanges as Sidmouth’s relentless defence put significant pressure on the visitors whenever they had the ball.
It was from one such defensive set that Crediton through a loose pass which Ollie Hansford-Harvey pounced on and sprinted clear to bring the opening score. Retter added the extras for a 7-0 lead.
Crediton were momentarily on the back foot and Sidmouth came pouring forward to try and extend their lead. Only a deliberate knock on from the Crediton centre and dropped ball by a diving Sam Basnett from a pin point cross filed kick from Retter kept the scoreline at 7-0.
Crediton managed to reset and soon brought some pressure of their own which despite some outstanding defensive work from the Quins eventually paid dividends with a try out wide brining the score back to 7-5.
The half ended with Sidmouth in the ascendancy and the backline was looking increasingly dangerous with Scott Henderson making good inroads through the centre and Tom Price looking dangerous in the wider channels. Crediton finally started conceding penalties and Retter added an extra 3 pts to send the home side into half time at 10-5.
The second half was in the main the same as the first although Crediton made more use of their kicking game which kept fullback Charles Edwards busy as he showed his versatility having moved from his usual number 9 slot.
Crediton narrowed the gap with a penalty but no sooner had they done so that almost straight from the kickoff Retter nonchalantly slotted a 40m drop goal from nowhere to re-establish the 5 point cushion.
As the game wore on the Crediton pack, bolstered by some big lads off the bench, started to assert a dominant edge in the tight phases which was providing additional room for their backline to challenge the Quins. The introduction of Charlie Farrington-Smith, Henry Williams and Kyle Baker gave bit more impetus to the Sidmouth effort but it was not enough to stop Crediton getting the next score with their second try to take the lead at 13-15.
Once again Sidmouth came straight back and an infringement on the 10m line gave Retter the chance to put the Quins back in front, 15-16. Adam’s Howe and Squance entered the fray for Edwards and Basnett but they weren’t able to stem the increasing pressure being applied by the visitors. With 10 minutes to go Sidmouth’s resolve was finally broken as Crediton piled on the pressure and finally powered over the line and into a 4 point lead, 16-20.
With only a few minutes left on the clock Sidmouth did not sit back and accept defeat but pushed on to try and find a way to win the game. Unfortunately their ambition was not met with success and instead it was Crediton who managed to capitalise and score the final try of the match, not only securing themselves a bonus point but also depriving Sidmouth of a losing one.
The result means that Crediton now benefit from a 6 point lead at the top of the table, but Sidmouth can close that to 1 point if they can make the most of their game in hand next weekend as they travel to New Cross.
Sidmouth II: Ned Coles, Harry Backway (Charlie Farrington-Smith), Chris Otway, Nick Mills (Kyle Baker), Tom Butler (c), Alfie Collins (Henry Williams), Ollie Marsh, Ryan Davies, Alex Clemo-Crosby, Dan Retter, Sam Basnett (Adam Howe), Scott Henderson, Tom Price, Ollie Hansford-Harvey, Charles Edwards (Adam Howe)
Scorers: O Hansford-Harvey (t); D Retter (C, P, DG)
Man of the Match: Dan Retter
Crediton came to the Blackmore with a score to settle after Sidmouth knocked them out of the Devon Cup with a relatively comfortable 33-19 victory in October. This was a much strengthened Crediton side, highlighted by the fact that 3 players had been dropped from last weekend’s 107-0 win over Exeter Athletic.
The game started at an intensity that did not waiver until the final whistle with both sides throwing everything into a full blooded affair. Sidmouth’s front five of Ned Coles, Harry Backway, Chris Otway, Nick Mills and captain Tom Butler put on a superb display of scrummaging to achieve parity and occasionally superiority against a pack that usually the strongest in the league. This platform allowed Alex Clemo-Crosby to provide a great service to Dan Retter who in turned guided the Quins around the park with a beautiful array of kicking including an outstanding 50-22.
Whilst the game high on intent, scoring opportunities were few and far between with the game battled out broadly in the middle third. The Sidmouth back row of Alfie Collins, Olly Marsh and Ryan Davies got through a huge amount of carrying and tackling in the opening exchanges as Sidmouth’s relentless defence put significant pressure on the visitors whenever they had the ball.
It was from one such defensive set that Crediton through a loose pass which Ollie Hansford-Harvey pounced on and sprinted clear to bring the opening score. Retter added the extras for a 7-0 lead.
Crediton were momentarily on the back foot and Sidmouth came pouring forward to try and extend their lead. Only a deliberate knock on from the Crediton centre and dropped ball by a diving Sam Basnett from a pin point cross filed kick from Retter kept the scoreline at 7-0.
Crediton managed to reset and soon brought some pressure of their own which despite some outstanding defensive work from the Quins eventually paid dividends with a try out wide brining the score back to 7-5.
The half ended with Sidmouth in the ascendancy and the backline was looking increasingly dangerous with Scott Henderson making good inroads through the centre and Tom Price looking dangerous in the wider channels. Crediton finally started conceding penalties and Retter added an extra 3 pts to send the home side into half time at 10-5.
The second half was in the main the same as the first although Crediton made more use of their kicking game which kept fullback Charles Edwards busy as he showed his versatility having moved from his usual number 9 slot.
Crediton narrowed the gap with a penalty but no sooner had they done so that almost straight from the kickoff Retter nonchalantly slotted a 40m drop goal from nowhere to re-establish the 5 point cushion.
As the game wore on the Crediton pack, bolstered by some big lads off the bench, started to assert a dominant edge in the tight phases which was providing additional room for their backline to challenge the Quins. The introduction of Charlie Farrington-Smith, Henry Williams and Kyle Baker gave bit more impetus to the Sidmouth effort but it was not enough to stop Crediton getting the next score with their second try to take the lead at 13-15.
Once again Sidmouth came straight back and an infringement on the 10m line gave Retter the chance to put the Quins back in front, 15-16. Adam’s Howe and Squance entered the fray for Edwards and Basnett but they weren’t able to stem the increasing pressure being applied by the visitors. With 10 minutes to go Sidmouth’s resolve was finally broken as Crediton piled on the pressure and finally powered over the line and into a 4 point lead, 16-20.
With only a few minutes left on the clock Sidmouth did not sit back and accept defeat but pushed on to try and find a way to win the game. Unfortunately their ambition was not met with success and instead it was Crediton who managed to capitalise and score the final try of the match, not only securing themselves a bonus point but also depriving Sidmouth of a losing one.
The result means that Crediton now benefit from a 6 point lead at the top of the table, but Sidmouth can close that to 1 point if they can make the most of their game in hand next weekend as they travel to New Cross.
Sidmouth II: Ned Coles, Harry Backway (Charlie Farrington-Smith), Chris Otway, Nick Mills (Kyle Baker), Tom Butler (c), Alfie Collins (Henry Williams), Ollie Marsh, Ryan Davies, Alex Clemo-Crosby, Dan Retter, Sam Basnett (Adam Howe), Scott Henderson, Tom Price, Ollie Hansford-Harvey, Charles Edwards (Adam Howe)
Scorers: O Hansford-Harvey (t); D Retter (C, P, DG)
Man of the Match: Dan Retter
