Malton and Norton RUFC

Malton 2’s v Goole 2’s 10 Feb 2024

Following cancelations to the 1st and 3rd ‘s game due to poor weather, it was left to the Super 2’s at home against Goole to give the home crowd something to cheer about. In what can only be described as a whirlwind on Saturday morning, Lummers found himself in a pickle as his Nokia 5110 received more attention than it had since Pornhub had a special offer on over Xmas.

With players clamouring for a game, Lummers and the coaching staff had to navigate through the chaos reminiscent of a Black Friday sale at a tech store to ensure the players selected could come up with the goods on the day to get Malton back in touching distance of the top of the league. The coaching team faced a conundrum as big club stalwarts begged for a spot on the team sheet. Lummers, with his moral compass wavering like a drunk on a tightrope, had to make some tough decisions. While loyalty to the regular 2’s jersey wearers was supposedly at the forefront of his mind, it seems Lummers and the coaching staff’s principles flew out the window faster than a pigeon spotting a discarded sandwich when Triff, Angus, Stevo, Fozzy, Javan and Emms showed up ready to hit the field.

With Scotland V France on the TV, it seemed most of the clubs’ supporters where in favour of cheering on the super 2’s on pitch 4 rather than watching the jocks roll the French over and the game at the Gannock wouldn’t disappoint …. Well, it actually would… for the first half anyway! Goole came out of the blocks firing on all cylinders whereby Malton looked like they were still in the dressing room as following a couple of poor decisions resulting in penalties saw Goole roll off a line out and go in front within the first 5 mins of the game.

This early dominance set the tone for the next 20 minutes, with Goole asserting control across all aspects of play. One up rugby and a penalty count that was rising faster than monkey up a drainpipe, coupled with a scrum that seemed to be moving in reverse, meant the Malton coaching staff grew increasingly anxious. They began casting nervous glances towards the bench, hoping for a spark to reignite their team's performance as it became very clear that Goole’s selection also included quite a few 1st team ringers, so changes had to be made to stop the onslaught and deter the home supporters deserting the game to watch Finn Russell and the jocks back in the club house.

With Starbucks and Stevo now on the field, Malton found some energy and Finlinson’s boot seemed to come into play kicking for territory which gave some rest bite from Goole’s relentless attack. Even with Goole playing up the hill, they seemed to be able to counter with ease although momentum was starting to shift slightly with Jeffers finding the ball from deep at times and scathing his way through the big forwards Goole had fielded. It wasn’t until the 30th minute when Angus found a gap at a ruck to jink his way through the Goole defence to score Malton’s first try, could the supporters see a glimmer of hope. A further 2 penalties brought Malton back into contention but with half time whistle approaching, Lummers and the coaching staff knew the half time pep talk would be vital to reinvigorate the team and also offer the chance to bolster the pack and the backs in the 2nd half with Triff, Emms, Rainsey and Javan to come on. Playing up hill in the 2nd half, with a try in it, it was all to play for and the Super 2s hybrid 1’s squad had it all to do.

Lummers and the coaching teams tactics of moving the attack and hitting our structures round the corners with quicker ball soon kicked in with some initial bursts of play bearing fruit again with Angus setting off through the middle and Javan going over to take the spoils followed by a further try by Connor. However, a counterattack not long after by Goole exploiting the width, gave Goole an unexpected try in the opposite corner that was converted to put Goole slightly in front 26 to Malton 23.

That was to be Goole’s only opportunity apart form a missed penalty kick that could of given them the game .With Emmsy new on the pitch to shore up the scrum to offer a better platform along with super sub Rainsey, it would come down to the last 10 mins for Malton to turn the screw on Goole moving the ball using the width only to be denied by some rather contentious decisions by the referee who was clearly orchestrating what was to be a fine finish by Malton. The score board should have been a far bigger win hadn’t it been for a clumsy double movement by a player with more caps than Jason Leonard but as Triff stated in his post-match interview – “every days a school day“ Final score Malton 33 – Goole 26