The final away match of the season the firsts travelling to Market Bosworth. A bus trip for all players plus supporters so presumably a few stops on the way back. Bosworth proved to be formidable opponents in the home fixture earlier in the season so there was an expectation that they would be a hard team to beat on their own patch.
On a bright sunny afternoon with a slight breeze, Olney took to the field with several changes from last week for various reasons which allowed some familiar faces from the seconds to have a run out in this league fixture. Bosworth used the wind to their advantage early on and their kicking game proved effective to get them to within 5m of the line and the predictable catch and drive gave them the first score. Shortly after it was Olney at the other end with good support and recycling to get Harvey Dunn over the line for a try close to the posts, converted by Bill Tebby-McCloud who assumed kicking duties for the day. It was then Olney with the catch and drive and Will Ecclestone at the back of it adding the scoring touch. A fine run from Harvey Dench and quick recycling of the ball through several phases finished with scrum-half Noddy Deighton sniping in from close range to extend the lead. This running style was paying dividends again straight from the kick off with Deighton feeding James Brock who linked with Struan Brooks and Ecclestone in support to finish the move wide on the left. Elliot Simpson finished another sweeping move not long after with a try in the right corner taking the score to 7-29 in Olney’s favour. Simpson then had a spell on the side for a deliberate knock on close to the line which Bosworth made the most of by opting for the scrum and driving over for the try. They also made use of the extra man in the back line when they scored in the corner after some swift handling. Right on the stroke of half time some indifferent defending and hesitation allowed Bosworth to snap up a loose ball from a ruck and dart in for their bonus point try. Half time score was 24-29 and anybody’s game.
The first 10 minutes or so of the second half were a bit scrappy with a few errors made by both sides but Olney needed to up the tempo a bit and adopt the running style which suits them best. Following a scrum penalty, Captain Cahill was alert again when spotting an opportunity from a quick tap and slid in for his score. Olney will feel a tad disappointed to be denied tries on a couple of occasions due, in part, to their own mistakes or at times by good defending from the home side but still the had the upper hand and were intent on adding to the points tally. When the boys in cerise did get their quick game going it paid off when James Bennett, on his debut and having a fine all round performance, finished the move with a well deserved try. Deighton finished the scoring for the day when finishing a good handling move down the left and out running the defence to score close to the posts. Final score ended at 24-48 and 5 league points to keep Olney at the upper end of the table. Well done to all concerned for their performances on the day and for giving selection something to work on towards the end of the season. Also well done to Bosworth who were themselves fielding a side with some changes due to their captain’s wedding. On the same theme, this week we have a marriage tip from Plod Sowman…….Don’t ask your wife when dinner will be ready while she’s mowing the lawn.
Mr Harris is now of an age where medical check-ups are fairly normal and a couple of weeks ago he went to the clinic for an examination in the trouser department. As the young Filipino nurse was cradling his gonads she assured him it was perfectly normal to get an erection during the procedure. “But I haven’t got one” he explained. To which she replied “Maybe not, but I have!”