April 5th 2014

Helsby 7 Congleton 48

TRY-FEST TO FINISH THE SEASON

Congleton ended the season by trouncing a physical and aggressive Helsby team 7-48. The tone was set early with a couple of tries in the first 15 minutes to settle an excited Congleton team hell-bent on entertaining the away supporters who had travelled on the coach: codename funbus.
With 8 tries there was plenty to shout about as Congleton went about their task with ruthless efficiency. Helsby were simply no match for the might of Congleton who rubbed salt in the wounds of their ailing opponents late on with three fantastic tries to hand out a real hammering.
Helsby saw their line breached after only 8 minutes, young debutant Allen at scrum half got the pack moving forward and Williams’ long pass set up winger Whiteley to outpace the struggling defence. Given Congleton’s dominance they still only led by 19 nil at the break. They were also dealt blows with the loss of Somers in the 19th minute to a hamstring injury and King with problematic shoulder early in the second period. Into the action came Davenport into the back row and Jim Lloyd at centre and both impressed with some excellent tackling and ball stealing.
Congleton emphatically pulled clear in the closing stages. There was the wonderful sight of players smashing holes though Helsby’s defence followed by swathes of support runners keen to get in on the action. Wood continued his impressive form with a hatrick of tries and Reardon, Davenport, Williams, Whiteley also grabbed one apiece. His robust style of play along his developing running game lifts those around him. The front row of Watt, Hassell and Readon were also excellent both in the set pieces as well as the loose. Carter had his best game this season as he hunted opportunities to get his sizeable hands on the ball and fellow second rowers Beck and sub Dalton were powerful going forward. Bainbridge at 7 showed what he can do when he is focused and line busting Karen Somers busted lines. Holbrook's power when he came on just added to Helsby's pain. Williams continues to look sharp at 10 and his pace and tackling add spice to an already exciting back line. The go-to partnership of Kanaurous and King in the midfield means the opposition get punished if they allow these two a little space. Defensively, Manning and Whiteley on the wings are rock and today they also showed some sharp edges in attack and, when working with Broderick at 15, they are a potent force. Willis also looked like the devilish player we know he is when he came on highlighted by several crunching tackles.
And so to the future. With the blooding of a number of colts in recent weeks and with the depth of quality the club is developing, there is a fizz and a buzz about the place and, with strong competition for each position, there has been a positive impact on numbers at training. All this adds up to stronger performances on the pitch. With Reardon stepping down as Captain he can be proud that he leaves behind a better team and a team who play with his passion, determination and enthusiasm. The prospect of this group of players working hard for personal and collective improvements next season is exciting. As one of the supporters said “It’s been amazing watching the team grow with every match. I can wait for September”