There were early signs what kind of game this was going to be with some monster hits in the early stages. Big carries and even bigger tackles. After a great run from Matt Goode, Trowbridge were penalised for not rolling away and Ed Phillips did the rest. Trowbridge 0 Banbury 3.

Trowbridge took the lead after a great line break from Stephen Oakley before he offloaded to Andrew Twinney who couldn’t be stopped from close range. Tom Weaver added the extras. Trowbridge 7 Banbury 3.

Banbury’s situation got more difficult when first Steve Potter went off with a stinger and then Chris Phillips went off with a serious looking knee injury.

Banbury got their first try of the afternoon when Joe Mills went over. Jack Briggs (Wing) made a great break down the left wing before offloading to Sam Mills who was stopped narrowly short of the line. Jacob Mills gathered the ball and got the ball to Joe Mills who dived over out to the right. A real Mills’ family try! Ed Phillips converted to make it Trowbridge 7 Banbury 10.

Trowbridge started the second half with a great try from deep. The impressive Stephen Oakley burst his way through the Banbury line and some nice offloading eventually saw John King dive over under the posts. Tom Weaver converted, Trowbridge 14 Banbury 10.

Banbury re-took the lead when Ed Phillips sniped his way over in the corner. Jack Briggs made a great break down the side-line and did brilliantly to stay in touch when it looked like he had no right too. Ed Phillips gathered at the base of the ruck and darted his way over from close range. The conversion went just wide, Trowbridge 14 Banbury 15.

The Bulls extended the lead with another try. Ed Phillips looked like he crossed the line but was held up. From the resulting 5 metre scrum the backs got the ball wide before Duncan Leese played in Jack Briggs who crossed over in the corner. Ed Phillip’s conversion attempt agonisingly came back off the post to leave it a one score game. Trowbridge 14 Banbury 20.

Ed Phillips got a yellow card after a cynical penalty. Suddenly with an extra man Trowbridge were looking for a late try that might be a match winner. Two big chances went begging when Trowbridge knocked on just before the line and then when they were 5 metres out Jack Briggs intercepted what looked like a certain try for the home side. The winger so nearly took the ball the distance but a brilliant covering tackle from Stephen Oakley stopped him narrowly short of the line.

Banbury scored a bonus point try with barely a minute left on the clock. Sam Stoop was stopped narrowly short, but Matt Goode was on hand to gather from the base of the ruck and drive his way over from close range. Duncan Leese converted to make it Trowbridge 14 Banbury 27.

Trowbridge searched for a late score, but Banbury turned the ball over and kicked the ball out to bring up the final whistle. The score line might not suggest a classic but this was a brilliant game of rugby. Bruising, physical but played in the right way. Trowbridge were unlucky to get nothing from the game and they certainly played far above their current league position. Matt Goode was Banbury’s Man of the Match. An immense performance from the Head Coach. Some huge hits in defence, brilliant line breaks all game and a try at the end capped a fine game.

Speaking to Head Coach Matt Goode after the game:

14-27, 5 points to Banbury but that really doesn’t tell the story of that game. That was an incredibly physical contest today wasn’t it? “They play some great rugby. We thought if we came here and played our patterns, we’d win but it was much tougher than that. I’m elated we got 5 points, maybe they deserved a bit more. They played very similar style to us and it was a great game.”

Some huge shots out there, you must have realised pretty early on that you were in for a tough game? “Right from the beginning we knew they were a decent outfit. We had to be on our A-game. Against the wind we had to keep ball and look after it. In the second half we knew we could kick more and control the territory.”

Great performance from yourself but also some of the older boys in the squad. Was that experience the difference today? “As a team we’ve got that great youth section and that young spirit, no fear, but we’ve also got some wise old heads like myself, Sam Stoop, Joe Winpenny who know how to control a game and I think that was a big difference.”

Man of the match for yourself, that had to feel great today? “Thought I’d better step my game up a bit. I played 30 minutes last week and thought I better put in a shift today. How the game panned out probably suited my style of play. It’s not about man of the matches it’s about how we play as a team. I was able to get on the end of a couple today, few guys ran down my channel, just how it works out some weeks.”

You’re finishing 2018 with two back to back home games, how special are they going to be? “We need the support. I thought against Swindon last week attendance was quite low. These next 2 games are crucial in deciding in where we finish up in the league. To get as much support as we can would be fantastic. We missed that 16th man last time out. We want to finish the year on a high with two more wins, let’s make sure we get the support behind us.”

Banbury Scorers
Tries: Joe Mills, Ed Phillips, Jack Briggs, Matt Goode
Conversions: Ed Phillips (1) Duncan Leese (1)
Penalties: Ed Phillips (1)