Greens bring home the bacon

Wharfedale 27 Camberley 16

Wharfedale brought home the bacon yet again as they recorded their ninth successive league win at The Avenue, but although interesting because of its unpredictability the game was otherwise best described as mediocre, writes Keith Lewis.

Not that the Greens made a complete pig's ear of their afternoon's work. There were several high spots in their performance in what was generally considered to be a disjointed, error-ridden display by both teams and the officials.

It was naturally disappointing to have an end of season atmosphere in March but perhaps that was due to the fact that neither team is involved in promotion or relegation issues and the early and mid-season continuity and intensity are over.

The previous two home games had been against Otley and Morley and there was a feeling on the terraces that if the Greens had been able to generate the same kind of fervour with which they approach Yorkshire derby games then they might have had a cricket score against this side from Surrey.

As it was Camberley held the lead twice but in spite of their spoiling and willingness to counter-attack they never really looked like recording their second away win of the season.

It was an unusual game punctuated by schoolboy howlers and the occasional flash of brilliance, and one person who can look back on the afternoon with satisfaction is Wharfedale's flying winger Adam Mounsey, who ran like the England Schools sprint champion he once was to score a spectacular 55-metre try and establish a new club career record of 501 league points, edging past the 496 mark he shared with Alex Howarth. Mounsey was unlucky to have another long-range effort disallowed through no fault of his own and had a fine all-round game in both attack and defence.

The Greens made several changes to the previous starting line-up at Henley. David Whitfield came in at scrum-half and Ben, no relation, Whitfield took over from the injured Sean Gilbert on the left wing. In the pack props Richard Lancaster and John Metcalfe swapped sides, Paul Evans returned to the second row after his skiing holiday and Sam Allen was brought into the back row for injured skipper Charlie Vyvyan, Jonathan Davies taking over the captaincy.

Much local attention was focused on Simon Slater, formerly of Wharfedale and Yorkshire Under 21s, latterly with Harlequins and Rosslyn Park and now occupying the No 10 shirt for Camberley. The visitors also included other rugby nomads, centre Gavin Thompson, of Harlequins and England A, centre Sean Burns, of London Irish and Ireland Under 21s, lock James Winterbottom, of Wasps and England Under 21s, and back row Mark Russell, of Blackheath and England A, and they had half-backs Guy Gregory, of Wasps and England Under 21s, and Nick Briers, of London Irish, on the bench.

As if to set the tone there was a knock-on from the kick-off and the first scrum went against the head before Camberley winger Ben Stafford gave his side a 6-0 advantage with two early penalties.

Pears was wide with a penalty for the Greens after a thundering drive by lock David Lister and hooker John Lawn was dispossessed after another individual assault on the visitors' line.

The highlight of the game came after 20 minutes when Wharfedale centre Glen Harrison broke in his own half and Davies sent Mounsey scurrying down the tramlines for a spectacular try in the corner. Davies almost created another score minutes later when his kick and chase resulted in Slater having to ground the ball in his own in-goal area. Possession from the resulting five-metre scrum was switched blind to Mounsey who was just squeezed out inches short. Although a Wharfedale try looked likely as their determined but strangely unco-ordinated efforts continued nobody with the exception of perhaps Mystic Meg could have predicted exactly how.

Pears turned away in disappointment as another penalty attempt drifted wide of the posts but the ball hung in the air before coming down from a great height on to the visitors' line. At that point the Camberley lads were seemingly transfixed like a black and amber terracotta army and in among the statues dashed the ever-vigilant Greens' open-side Hedley Verity to score what was quite remarkably his first league try of the campaign. Pears still had the kicking tee in his hand and used it to good effect to convert for a 12-6 lead.

Camberley then took advantage of a succession of penalty awards to creep near enough for Stafford to land his third success, but the main talking point at the interval was a quite bizarre incident which resulted in a Wharfedale touchdown being disallowed.

Slater, who had played with his usual style and composure, attempted to chip over the advancing Wharfedale defence and the Greens' No 8 Russ Buckroyd plucked the ball out of the air and started a sweeping 50-metre counter-attack which resulted in Mounsey sprinting clear again and finishing in style under the posts.

A try had been awarded and Pears was lining up for the conversion when the touchjudge arrived to whisper sweet nothings in Mr Harland's ear. The game eventually restarted with a Camberley penalty on halfway which Stafford drove wide -- all apparently because of what was judged to have been a dangerous challenge by Pears on Slater at the beginning of the move.

True to type the second half started with another knock-on, this time by Camberley No 8 Russell and Verity careered 15 metres from the resulting scrum before the visitors were penalised at the breakdown and Pears made it 15-9. Another unforced error after the restart gave the Surrey outfit possession inside the Wharfedale half and when eventually the ball found its way to winger Bernie Green the Camberley man's pace and ability to change direction took him 40 metres for an excellent try converted by Stafford.

Trailing 16-15 the Dalesmen laid siege to the river end and David Whitfield was unfortunate that his attempt to send in Ben Whitfield ran out of space. The Greens gained momentum in the final quarter and replacements Graham Smith, Steve McManus and "Mad" Max Cummins all made valuable contributions. McManus gave everyone an example to follow with a block-busting flying tackle on Camberley fullback Tim Robinson following a Pears garryowen and Cummins, who lists London Irish and Saracens among his former clubs, looked as though he belonged at this level.

Although Camberley managed to keep their line intact the pressure told as Pears gratefully accepted three penalty opportunities and put the icing on the cake with a snap drop goal to take his contribution to 17 points. Pears has now rattled up 218 points in 19 appearances for the Greens and everyone at Threshfield will no doubt be hoping that he stays around next season to add a few more. Mounsey might then have to treat us to more of his own try-scoring magic if he is to maintain his position as all-time leading points scorer!

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