Stourbridge 17 - Bees 18
Jan
This was a victory that sustains Birmingham & Solihull's hope and as their
arch-positivist player-coach Russell Earnshaw will tell you 'Where there's
hope, there's life'.
No matter how pedestrian their threequarters appear Bees are not yet
dead men walking and while the chance of them avoiding National Two is
still on the emaciated side of slim, they do still have a chance.
And after they dogged out a valuable away victory they also have some
belief having moved off the bottom of the table with their second
successive victory.
Much of that centres around their indomitable front row which, even
when they bind properly as they sometimes did here, is a very decent
scrummaging unit.
Indeed their proficiency at the set-piece will bring into play their other
main reason for optimism - the goal-kicking of Mark Woodrow.
The impish fly half has a habit of saving his best for his former clubs and
he easily won the strategy battle with his opposite number during a first
half in which he kicked all four of his penalties. Two more came in the
third quarter and it proved enough.
Only when Stour's play-makers realised the best hope of getting back into
the match was represented by the gliding running of Tom Jarvis and
Nathan Bressington, did Woodrow's grip on proceedings wane.
That is took Stourbridge so long to either realise or do something about
it, was a calamitous failing. If they are to be relegated this season they
will be a good side that never was.
On paper they should be too good to go down but they are less than the
sum of their parts. Poor handling and ill-discipline tends to have that
affect.
As for Bees they will try to win a third consecutive match for the first time
since Adam thought 'Perhaps a fig leaf might be a good idea', when
Sedgley Park visit Solihull next Saturday.
Bees were sliced up like a gammon steak when the sides met at Park Lane
earlier this season. They cannot afford to be so open in the rematch and
that's where that front row and Woodrow's boot comes into theequation. But will it be enough.
STOURBRIDGE: Williams (Dipple 70); Bressington, Jarvis, Barkley, Hearn;
Robinson, White; Sturdy, Wordley, Hill, Hughes, Hurrell, Garner, Leach,
Hall. Replacements: Richardson, Reakes, Page, Lawrence
BEES: Lowden; Sadler, Evans, Connolly, Pons; Woodrow, Jolly; Darkintis,
Preece, Tau, Quarrie, Earnshaw, Brightwell, Farmer, Hopley.
Replacements: Long, Gregg, Dunne, Hawkes, Ford
Referee: Terry Hall (RFU)
