After five lean weekends it was a morale boosting and committed display at Priory Park which saw off the Blackheath challenge and it will put the squad in good spirits ready for the trip to table topping Ealing Trailfinders next weekend.
With so many absentees through injury and unavailability, everyone pulled their weight and stand in Scrum Half Matt Simpson lifted the hopes of the Priory Park faithful with a confident performance in an unfamiliar role to keep the threequarter line ticking. It will be a happy squad that reports for training this week.
Whilst the welcome victory doesn’t change our 8th spot in the table there were, as always, some interesting scorelines from the other games played. Ealing had a good bonus point victory at Tynedale (29-24) but Fylde surprisingly were beaten at home by Rosslyn Park 16-10. Cinderford kept up their recent high scoring form with as 25-3 victory at Barking but the big surprise for me was the 54-13 victory by Jersey at Cambridge, this being the second game running that the islanders have hit fifty. Sedgley Park and Stourbridge played out a high scoring 45-35 encounter at Whitefield and in the Midlands Derby Coventry beat Birmingham Solihull 29-13.
Macclesfield now have two high octane encounters in the next couple of weeks with that trip on Saturday to Ealing and then the following week – 26 November – it is newly promoted and very active Jersey who make their first ever visit to us. Make a note in your diary now to support the squad as Jersey, who regularly have gates around and in excess of 1,000 will certainly be bringing plenty to shout them on. After the Jersey game it is off to Cinderford as the campaign reaches the ‘half way’ stage.
As well as the 1st XV our other club sides had a successful Saturday with the Lions winning 30-10 up the road at Burnage and the Thirds at Priory Park with a 42-13 thumping of Preston Grasshoppers. The Fourth team game was in the hills at Buxton and they lost a close encounter to table topping Buxton Seconds by 24-22.
Interesting yesterday to see one Sean Long make a try scoring and winning debut in the Centre for Preston Grasshoppers just up the road at Bramhall. I recall his brother who I think used to play for Fylde in a similar role. Seems that several more players may well be changing codes each way in the next season or so.
The repercussions of a poor World Cup campaign still hit the England squad with Mike Tindall fined £25,000 and removed from the Elite Squad, Chris Ashton and James Haskell both fined £5,000 and ‘warned re their future conduct’ although as I pen these notes it appears that Tindall will appeal and it will be interesting to see how that goes and if any of the non playing ‘management’ side of the party receive sanctions as many perhaps feel that Tindall has been made something of a scapegoat. Watch this space.
For more club news and forthcoming fixture details visit http://www.macclesfieldrufc.co.uk/
Clubman
