Leith 2XV 23 - 43 Ferry Road Wanderers

Match Report by Will Tuft

The Jamaican Bobsled team, Rocky Balboa, Susan Boyle. All huge underdogs but hugely worthy of their place at the top table of their fields. After an incredibly cold drubbing in the frost on Ferry Road in before Christmas, Leith Rugby’s 2nd XV welcomed the third placed Wanderers to Academy Park as notable underdogs in a fixture that could have secured a fourth placed finish in their inaugural season in East Reserve 2.
As the soft spring sky was punctured by warming rays of a March sun, the unseasonably solid pitch and a positive demeanor from the home side were the main ingredients for a fantastic game of Rugby Union in which the classic elements of a Leith side were on show throughout.

Fast start at Academy Park
As home stand-off Shaun Guesford propelled the first of his picture perfect restarts into the cloudless sky, the ensuing combative kick chase from the Leith pack set an early tone as Danny Cordoba and the peerless Willie Cook made themselves a nuisance as a little and large combination, Cordoba looking for the knockdown and Cook thriving on the crumbs falling off the table. This early indecision in the Ferry Road side was leapt upon by Guesford’s wand of a boot massaging a delicate chip into space just outside the opposition 22 and geriatric centre Will Tuft pouncing, spinning and stiff arming the cover tackle like a much younger man to collect the first points of the afternoon, with Guesford duly converting. Despite the heavy underdog tag, the men in blue and white could sense an upset and the visitors were far from happy.

The best offence is a great defence
This unhappiness in the team from North of the Walk manifested itself in a period of pressure in the Leith half. The hard track allowed several phases of running rugby with the home side being dragged from pillar to post, with notable interventions from Robert Stitt and Sean Bates around the breakdown slowing the Ferryman’s progress on the fringes. Only after a sustained series of huge body blows did the Leith heavyweights take a backwards step and the side draped in a shirt looking suspiciously like a grandmother’s patchwork quilt glided in for their first score of what had been a thoroughly entertaining opening twenty minutes.

Don’t go breaking my heart
Defensively, Leith now had a fight on their hands and the Wanderers believed the floodgates could be forced open. But, like the regulars of the Foot of the Walk, they would not be moved. Tackle after tackle was made, breakdowns slowed and turnovers forced, from familiar ruck pests such as backrow Ewan Sutherland, Andy Barr and the opposition’s inability to remove his biceps from tackled players to winger Pete Duncan and a finely abrasive tackling performance, 1-15 were throwing themselves into every aspect of the game. When the home side got the ball, Josh Barker’s attritional carrying was very much to the fore and his every yard was earned and respected and even though only yard by yard, progress was made up the field, culminating in the highly professional option of Guesford slotting three points from in front of the posts.
As the half drew towards the half time whistle, the floodgates were pried open just a little with consecutive tries and conversions from Ferry Road, which applied a small gloss to their efforts of the first 40. The half culminated with a tremendous chase down try saving tackle from the irrepressible George Easdon and full-back Lex Dunko, which set the tone for a second half of heart, guts and determination.

Wild Horses
As the second half opened, it was clear that the efforts of the first half had taken their toll on both sides as gaps began to open up across the pitch and tackles on both sides started to fall off. Three players used this to establish themselves as habitual yard makers. Felix Palin, stalking the gain line like a hungry leopard, Ben Raeside, cascading past opposition tacklers like a white water torrent and noted Welshman Sam Davies, for whom the phase galloping like a wild horse was invented, started to cause severe bewilderment in the Wanderers defensive line and captain George Lees’ marshalling around the pitch meant that these striped waves continued unabated.
This front front ball meant the backs could start to extend their strides and expose the fault lines across the pitch with Guesford, Barr and Dunko eating up the ground like ravenous predators. The latter was put into space by the Leith stand-off and showed excellent pace to scoot around the failing limbs being waved in his direction and scored out wide to narrow the deficit to within a couple of scores.

Try, try and try again
These periods of pressure and continued momentum gave the home side massive encouragement and despite several changes to the backline, Leith pressed in search of the two tries that could gain a bonus point. Bob Grindley’s darting runs from scrum half gave forward momentum and with quick recycling and a raking pass from Tuft, Dunko rampaged past the exhausted tackle of his opposite number to cross the whitewash and set the nerves of the visitors on edge.
With an alarmingly high ball in play time, tiredness was playing a major factor in proceedings and try as they might, Leith were unable to find a killer pass or mesmeric break to secure a bonus point from the contest as structures broke down and broken field running was at the forefront of proceedings as Barr and Dave Keogh looked to stretch the game out wide.
As in the first half, the last play of the game was a try saving* tackle, this time from Tuft, but it mattered little as the men from Ferry Road ran out 43-23 winners in a clash that reminded everyone of how much fun Rugby is when the ground is firm and the sun is out.
Like most great underdogs, Leith 2XV’s story on this day ended in disappointment but huge improvements across the pitch have been made throughout the season and with two games still to play, it is clear that Leith 2XV deserve their place at this table of Rugby and comfortably have the ability to play at higher levels still.
Next week sees a bye week for the #2s before the season culminates with a visit to Moreport RFC and welcoming Raeburn Place’s Edinburgh Accies to a part of the city they have probably never visited before.

*was most certainly a try but was unseen by the referee on this occasion.

Tries: W Tuft, L Dunko x2
Conversions: S Guesford
Penalties: S Guesford x 2

Attendance : Over 20

MOTM: Shaun Guesford
DOTD: Lex Dunko