Melksham fight back in second half for the win

Sat. 8th December. South West Division – Minety 13 Melksham 15

Melksham travelled away to hosts, Minety, expecting a tight game. 

They weren’t disappointed with a very competitive encounter of two halves. The game saw Minety taking all the points in the first half with the slope of the pitch and Melksham taking them all in the second. Melksham were final victors 13-15. 

Kicking downfield with the slope and high winds at their backs, the home team pressurised the Melksham defence, coughing up a penalty for the first points on the scoreboard. The visitors struck back but Minety’s defence held, returning the ball downfield for another penalty to push ahead 6-0. The visitors rallied with a try but were called back for a forward pass. The possession alternated, with Minety deep in their opponents’ half, spotting a hole after a scrum to score a converted try, taking all the points at halftime 0-13.

After the restart Melksham, now playing the pitch advantage, got on the scoreboard with a penalty struck by Scrum half Callum Hurn. The visitors continued to battle for the next points, with debutant hooker, Chris Griffin, running a superb line off the breakdown to score Melksham’s first try. The conversion lost in the wind. Looking to maintain attacking momentum, Melksham were just denied on the line from a quick tap and go. Sensing their advantage and increasing possession Melksham worked the ball out wide for Luke Cador to level it in the corner for the visitors. The conversion was well struck by Hurn, slotting the hardest kick of the day. The score was to remain13-15 for the dying minutes of the game, which was contested heartily by both teams.