Sat 30 Oct 2021
Following on from a disappointing outing away at Wath in their last game, where the home team’s physicality proved too much for the travelling Baildon squad, this week’s Baildon team were keen to make amends on a windy but dry Baildon day. The game itself followed a similar pattern to Baildon’s season. Glimpses and spells of brilliance coupled with spells of just the opposite.
It was a true game of two halves with both teams making the most of the downhill slope that makes Baildon such a well-known and often revered destination for travelling teams.
Baildon, playing down the slope in the first half, made the perfect start when a short spell of high intensity pressing led to Grant Nunney extending his long arms to charge down an attempted box kick to enforce a second attempted clearance to be rushed and gave the Baildon back-3 a great first opportunity to show what they’re made of - with winger Will Sismey claiming the clearance well attracting the nearest two defenders before passing the ball and swift hands from full back Jake Duxbury and Andy Walker enabled Fly half Tom Parnell to finish a swift full width of the pitch play in the corner. The conversation pulled wide by Duxbury. 5 – 0.
What followed was the smart game plan that Yarnbury came with, force the Baildon team to defend narrow, but defend hard and for prolonged periods of time. Strong tackles from the Baildon pack forced another clearance to be taken on the top side by Sismey, who fed Duxbury and a sweeping move from right to left ensued and when outside centre Jonty Glendinning found himself with only the full back to meet and winger Matty Robinson to beat, a try looked certain but unfortunately having made the pass a small fumble from Matty Robinson brought an end to the move. This was the shape of the first half, Baildon creating chances, through stellar forward play and lovely hands but not being able to convert with the final pass just not going to happen, as happened when a series of post contact offloads ended up with Baildon dropping the ball agonisingly close to the Yarnbury try line.
The pressure was building, phase after phase of attack, strong Baildon carries, anchored by a well-drilled scrum, were thwarted by strong Yarnbury defence and sloppy handling and ruck work from Baildon led to turnovers only to be kicked back to Baildon who mounted another siege on the Yarnbury line, but the defence was resolute. The only chink was a penalty conceded for a late tackle, converted by full-back Duxbury to make the score 8-0.
It needed a moment of magic to unlock the defence and Tom Parnell, Baildon’s very own Devonian fly half provided this, an outrageous dummy, sidestep and turn of pace allowed him to make the breakthrough what was beginning to look like an impenetrable away defence, this time Baildon did finish as Parnell’s silky one handed off-load found full back Duxbury, who went in under the sticks and converted his own try. 15-0 after 30 minutes.
Moments later, Duxbury turned provider when another flowing move involving several pairs of hands was finished well by the Baildon winger Will Sismey, who gleefully slide into the corner for his maiden 1st team try.
Sadly, that is where Baildon’s fun ended. Just before the half time interval another near miss from Baildon was countered well by Yarnbury, who spotted a mismatch in the backline coming back against the grain to make the initial break and a lovely over the top pass put their outside centre in under the posts. 22- 7 at half time and that 14 point turn around proved pivotal.
Yarnbury came out in the second half buoyed by the late score and immediately imposed themselves. Initially strong and robust defence from the Baildon forward pack allowed a turnover and a quick break up the left edge found Yarnbury chasing back, outside centre Jonty Glendinning, who found an inside ball before the ball was kicked through over the fullback and a footrace ensued, which was won by the Yarnbury winger, who tracked back well to dot the ball safely down behind his own goal line. Danger averted.
A series of penalties conceded by Baildon allowed Yarnbury to march down the field before using their slick hands to great effect to make the most of an unusually narrow Baildon defence to go in for their second of the game and the comeback was well and truly on. 22 – 14.
Following this some weaker Baildon defence allowed the Yarnbury team to get some much needed go forward, a smart kick through and Baildon were on the retreat. A clearance kick that needed to find touch was missed by Duxbury and Yarnbury took full advantage, three quick phases later and the gap appeared through a now, not so resolute Baildon defence. Conversion successful and 22-21 was the score.
Baildon, with a renewed sense of ambition put pressure on immediately from the kick off and forced the turnover. A slick backs move provided Will Sismey with space to run into, a deft chip through to beat the on-rushing full back and covering defence was pin-point and Tom Parnell, now at 13 collected the ball and dived over for what was sure to be a pressure relieving score. Sadly, eagle-eyed referee Nick Leadbeater had spotted that Parnell was in front of Sismey and gave a penalty.
Yarnbury saw this as their reprieve and went back on the offensive, a fantastic clearance kick got Baildon back pedalling. It was Yarnbury’s turn to counter, from a poor clearance kick, strong forward carries led to the dangerous Yarnbury full back finding 5 yards of space down the left-hand side and that was all he needed to beat, a soft Baildon first line and round the last man with a fantastic side step. Yarnbury took the lead for the first time in the game, but they took it when it mattered, another penalty kick later took the game to its final score, 29-22 to the away team.
Baildon were left to lick their wounds after a second half that they definitely will not be happy with. Yarnbury however were rightly jubilant and well deserving of their win, we wish them all the best for the rest of the season. As always, a huge thank you to all the fans, spectators and officials, who chose to spend their day at Baildon!
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