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Petroc into last 32 of Daily Mail Cup

Petroc men's rugby team bludgeoned their way through to Round 5 of the National Daily Mail Cup with a 13-11 win over Kelly College. In a performance which was littered with ill discipline and errors from the start the home side found themselves chasing the game for much of the contest. Poor discipline at the breakdown saw Petroc concede a good deal of territory to Kelly, who slotted a penalty to take a well deserved early lead. Kelly College then took control of territory and possession for the majority of the first half, and it was only two excellent pieces of defensive play by Flanker Reece Andrews and Wing Nick Evans that prevented the visitors from scoring two tries. Andrews tackled and turned over the ball from a Number 8 pick and carry just yards from the Petroc try line and Evans managed to get a hand in the way of a pass which saw Kelly squander a two man overlap.

Petroc were out of sorts and seemed to be coming up against stiff resistance when attacking the fringes and the midfield. However, they did enjoy more success attacking from deep and out wide. A good evasive kick return from full back Rob Elliott saw him beat several chasing defenders and create space for a fantastic inside run by Centre Harrison Grant who ran 60m, evading several covering defenders to score the first try of the game. Petroc were unable to convert the try and after a scrappy end to the half found themselves leading 5-3 at the interval.

During the 2^nd half Petroc used their possession much more wisely and attacked Kelly in the wider channels, with Man of the Match Harrison Grant making several big line breaks only for ill discipline or errors to let Kelly off the hook. Kelly managed to turn over the ball several times but were often stopped behind the gain line by a quick Petroc defensive line. However, they did get some reward for their efforts when they intercepted a loose Petroc offload, and following two quick rucks were able to score wide out. With the try remaining unconverted Kelly were in control 5-8. Chasing the game once again Petroc made several impact substitutions, most notably Toby Williams into Full Back and Sean Deasy into open side flanker. Stunned by the score line Petroc went into over drive in attack, but often found themselves having to attack from deep to counter Kelly's kicking game. Time after time Williamson, Elliott and Grant led the charge deep into Kelly territory, only for the phase to break down in the final third. However, with the visitors under increasing pressure it was their ill discipline that led to a series of penalties awarded within the Kelly 22m. After an unsuccessful line out drive, Mark Brend took a quick tap penalty and managed to dot the ball down over the top of the defence to restore a 10-8 lead, with 5 minutes remaining.

Kelly, desperate to get things going struggled to build anything against a good Petroc defensive line. However, sustained attempts did bring reward when they were awarded, and took, a penalty with minutes left to play to make the score 10-11 in their favour. At this point the tension was palpable as North Devon bludgeoned the Kelly defence out wide through Grant and Williamson, and whilst several chances went begging, offside in the backline from Kelly gave Mark Brend the opportunity for 3 points in front of the posts. A very tense crowd saw Brend stroke it over the bar for 13-11 home team advantage. With only 2 minutes remaining Petroc needed to shut up shop and close the game out. However, they ended the match as ill disciplined as they had started it and gave the visitors 3 kickable penalties to win the game. However, the Kelly fly half will rue these missed opportunities and all three fell wide to the relief of the Petroc players, support and staff.

Academy Manager Nathan Kelly said 'Whilst there are many aspects of the performance that were below the high standards we have set ourselves, I do feel that we deserved the win as we were the team that played the most positive attacking rugby. I hope that we've learnt the lesson that ill discipline can lose you games, and the ruck is something we need to address before Plymouth College in the next round'. Almost 500 teams entered this years Daily Mail U18 Cup and progression to round 5 and the final 32 in the country is Petroc's best run the competition to date. They will now face Plymouth College on the 25^th November at Barnstaple RFC.

What the Tabloids would say

Jacob Bull 5/10

A fairly solid day in the scrums and put in some good tackles around the fringes. Did look to carry the ball around the fringes, but did not enjoy too much success despite positive approach. Substituted on 55 minutes for Lavall.

Josh Ovey 6/10

A well respected leader. Took a long time to get the line out functioning with the jumpers and had a bad day trying to get the ball to two, although not to blame for this. Performance in the scrums was good and did look to carry the ball in the loose. Continues to find himself in support in open spaces which is encouraging but against a fiery Kelly defence and with poor quality ball struggled to have the impact he has made in previous games.

George Snell 5/10

Didn't dominate the scrums as expected. Was responsible for a high number of penalties conceded at the breakdown due to being over eager. Must learn to adapt to the referee's interpretation. However, did win several key turnovers that may have saved the match for North Devon.

Matt Wallin 5/10

Industrious as ever but struggled to get things going. Athleticism see's him able to carry the ball in the loose but against a good defensive side will struggle to make a huge impact.

Tom Harness 5/10

Was dominated by opposing jumper at the line out and was unable to make the adjustment to get in front of his man. Enjoyed more success with the 3 man line out. Industrious and is trying to get hands on the ball more.

Reece Andrews 7/10

A late starting replacement for Sean Deasy, saved a probable Kelly try early on and turned over the ball to release the pressure. Was part of a successful 7 man scrum, and made the move to 8 to protect the ball. A good performance in the loose.

Jack Andrew 6/10