Match
Sponsors
Sponsors
Match
Ball
Sponsors
Sponsors
Marquee
Sponsors
Sponsors
|
Match Sponsors |
Match
Ball Sponsors |
Marquee Sponsors |
Date : 03/03/2007 : Venue : Newbury
Kick off = 15:00pm
Newbury 10 Pertemps Bees 23
Newbury 10 Pertemps Bees 23
Pertemps Bees booked their place in the EDF Energy National Trophy semi-finals
with a brilliant team performance at Monks Lane.
Despite the disruption caused by losing Canadian winger to a family illness
in the build-up to the match and having no specialist hooker on the replacements'
bench the Bees again showed what team spirit and a will to win can achieve as
they made it six wins in their last seven games.
They will now join the South West trio of Exeter, Cornish Pirates and Plymouth
Albion in the hat at Monday's semi-final draw. It will be the Bees' third semi-final
in four seasons following games against Newcastle in the 2003/04 Powergen Cup
and Bedford in the Powergen National trophy the following season.
"It was superb team effort," said Bees' head coach Steve Williams.
"Everyone must have been involved in the first try we scored, Leo Halvatua's
try was also a collective effort and we got another through the forwards.
"It was a good mix of rugby and we supported it with some brilliant defence
when Newbury came back at us at the end. It was an excellent effort and very
pleasing to be through to a national semi-final."
The one negative for the Bees was that winger Adam Billig's injury problems
continued. The former Leicester and Bristol player, who recently returned from
a month out with a broken thumb, suffered a broken nose during a bruising encounter.
The Bees' defensive effort was led by prop Matt Long and centre Simon Martin
but full-back Matt Nuthall also played his part with a crunching tackle which
denied Newbury's Gregor Hayter the oppening try after Jon Higgins had slotted
a penalty.
Higgins added a second penalty and the Bees went eleven points clear when soem
superb handling was finished off by winger Kyle Palm, recalled to the side to
replace Henderson.
Newbury pulled back three points with a penalty from former Bees fly-half Tim
Walsh and with the wind in their faces in the second half, the Bees still had
pleny to do.
But Walsh, as he often did in his time with the Bees, missed two second half
penalty chances which proved costly as Halavatua's try stretched the Bees' lead.
Nuthall and Palm featured prominently in the build-up.
Higgins added the conversion and the Bees took a firm grip on the game when
lock Mark Gabey was driven over from a line-out catch-and-drive after 64 minutes.
Newbury finished strongly with Combined Services back-row Isoa Damudamu crashing
over and Walsh adding the extras but a superb rearguard action in defence, which
featured a try-saving tackle from Martin on Mark Simpson-Daniel saw the Bees
home.
COURT TO FACE NEWBURY (March
1 2007)
Ireland
A international prop Tom Court comes straight into the Pertemps Bees' starting
line-up for the EDF Energy National Trophy quarter-final against Newbury at
Monks Lane on Saturday March 3.
The Irish-qualified Australian joined Pertemps Bees on loan for the rest of
the seaosn from Ulster last weekend and showed up well in training this week.
Court, who played three games for Ireland A in last season's Churchill Cup,
takes the place of Emyr Lewis on the tighthead as Pertemps Bees bid to reach
their second national semi-final in four seasons. They were beaten by Newcastle
Falcons in the semi-finals of the Powergen Cup in 2004 having ousted Wasps in
the quarter-finals.
Lewis drops to the replacements bench where he will provide cover for hooker
Matt Miles because Rob Elloway is cup-tied having played for Gloucester in the
EDF Energy Cup earlier in the season. Brendan Lynch will provide replacement
cover for the props.
Skipper Mark Cornwell has recovered from the illness that forced him to miss
last week's National One win over Waterloo and he displaces Alex Davidson in
the second row.
Kyle Palm returns to the left wing in place of Canadian international Brodie
Henderson who has returned home to be with his sick grandmother.
Pertemps Bees: 15 Matt Nuthall; 14 Adam Billig, 13 Simon Martin, 12 Tristan Davies, 11 Kyle Palm; 10 Jon Higgins, 9 Rod Petty; 1 Matt Long, 2 Matt Miles, 3 Tom Court, 4 Mark Gabey, 5 Mark Cornwell (captain), 6 Will Matthews, 7 Akapusi Qera, 8 Leo Halavatau. Replacements: Alex davidson, Emyr Lewis, Brendan Lynch, Matt Larsen, Dean Miller, Reece Spee, Mike Baxter.
| Team
15 Matt Nuthall 1 Matt Long |
Replacements
Alex Davidson |
 |
Match PictureS