Strong Performance Bodes Well

Watching a recording of the All Blacks squeezing past a determined England at Twickenham on Saturday it was exactly how this Cheshire and South Lancs clash panned out – a couple of very strong periods but not quite enough in the tank. Congleton had trained well during the week and expected to play well – particularly with Wood and Williams returning to the team combined with a reshuffled pack to give extra power in the tight and speed in the loose.

With Reardon leading by example, Congleton played with real passion and commitment from the first minute, applying pressure and pinning the opposition deep in their 22m. The scrum was the cornerstone which smashed Oldershaw backwards and giving them little chance to attack. However, after 20 minutes, Oldershaw bounced back against the run of play scoring a couple of well worked tries using waves of powerful runners. In the second half and 15-3 down, Congleton fought back with another intense and inspiring period and this time their efforts paid off with two tremendous tries by the backs from strong forward platforms bring the score back to 15 all. The first had runners hitting angles to confuse the defence for Ridgeway to score and the second highlighted what crisp handling and support play can do as Manning wrong footed the drift defence. Similar to England’s opposition, Oldershaw had a little bit more to give and took their chance well to strike a penalty and bag a try to seal the game.

There are many positives to take from this encounter. Congleton broke the line time and time again – far more than the opposition - both contact area and also in the midfield. Whilst they were not able to convert the pressure into enough points, they are on the verge of being a very exciting attacking unit. The tackling was excellent as it has been for the past few weeks and the defensive structure was good. To improve, they need to be a little quicker off the line in defence to put more pressure on the opposition attacking threats. That said, there were a number of turnovers created by strong first up tackles and speedy poachers. Broderick making his mark at 7 and Wood both made life difficult for the opposition at the break down – as did James when he arrived just after half time.

An area that has plagued the team all season is the penalty count – they need quicker support when the line is broken and too many times players dived over the ruck. The overall shape to Congleton’s attack was the best it has been all season and players are beginning to look comfortable attacking off 9 as they hit the gaps hard and occasionally offload. Ridgeway was on good form at 10 breaking the gain line regularly and showed his developing kicking game too. It was clear that the team do need to get their wide runners into the game more and give them a licence to thrill. With the new look backrow, the wide options have even more appeal. Another area that the team need to look at is the opportunities on offer when they win free kicks and penalties – they have the pace and should take them quickly.

This team has shown real character in recent performances and have been improving each game. There is an intensity at training and in matches which is converting itself on the pitch. Coach Richard Burkard said “there is now competition for places and the lads have stepped up to the plate. The structure is coming and they are starting to express themselves”.