Saturdays game started with a minutes applause to remember Mike Gardner.

The stags had opted to go with the wind first half and from the off they made good use of it.

Stags found them self ramping up the pressure with several visits to the opposite 22 but ultimately fruitless. Luckily enough the wind and the opposite 10 made sure the ball didn’t go very far from a kick which fell straight into the hands of the returning Cal Dacey who immediately made his presence known with big carries and the famous step off the left. After some more phases the ball made its way wide for Shaun Hubbard to show some dazzling footwork and go down for the first in the corner.
7-0 top conversion by Coates.

For a while there was a bit of a fight back from bridgnorth but another wayward kick found it’s self in the hands of Dacey, on the half way, who takes the crowded route towards the touch line. All looks changed from confusion at this decision, to a delighted shock as he bounced the first man a metre from touch then steps towards touch to carry on, slows down just to let someone catch up so he can fend them off and then canters in somewhere to the left of the posts.
12-0
Pressure continued from the stags, Johnno throwing his head into some dark places, questioning what his head is made of to come out unscathed!

This forced some chaos among the bridgnorth ranks where the 10 received the ball over the tight dead ball line giving the stags a 5m scrum. At this the stags forwards started to salivate, 5m scrum with a down hill push thanks to the lay of the land, a props wet dream. The forwards delivered, scrum was haring forwards and Sammy Clayton controlled it well all the way to the line and dots it down.
17-0
Bridgenorth returned from this with some pressure, kept the ball well and scored to end the half.
17-5 HT

No half time oranges on this day, it can only be assumed that brexit is to blame for the lack of orange deliveries to the local area.

Play returns and Leonard goes for a high short kick, neglecting the wind which likely would’ve ended up on our own 22 had Pads not caught it. Solid scrum again by the stags but the visiting 8, who carried well all day, picks it up quickly only to be pounced upon again by Johnno ensuring that Leonard didn’t have to make the tackle.

This is what Ben Avent described as his job for Lordeh back in the day.

Along the way stags turnover the ball somewhere and forced penalties to make it down to the opposite red zone. Some defiant defence kept stags out for a little bit until Brezzo takes a 5m run up, tucking it in the bread basket about 30cm above the ground and the two defenders in front didn’t want any of it, basically taking a step back.
22-5
Play continues for a while and stags get a line out in the bridgnorth half, a 5 man line out executed well in gaily conditions finds it way to Norton who eyes up the 10, who did not want to tackle anything, runs through him and sprints around the winger behind to go over in the corner.
27-5
Following this complacency creeps into the stags side, bridgnorth put together some phases and score two tries to close the gap.
27-19
Stags respond in the best way possible by pulling together some consistent phases pushing all the way to the bridgnorth 22, good hands in the final passage sees Sam Racklyeft go down for the last of the day.
32-19

A good win for the stags and a return to the top of the table!

MOM goes to Brezzo, big performance back from injury with, solid scrummaging several strong carries topped with a good try.

We go again next week away to Derby , Up the Stags

Josh Leonard