Match Report – St Andrews 1st XV vs Manchester Metropolitan 1st XV
Saints Comeback Win Secures Place in the Final!
On Wednesday, a large crowd gathered at Uni park to watch the St Andrews 1st XV take on Manchester Metropolitan 1st XV (Man Met). The stage was set for a big game. Previously fixtures between these two teams had produced some dazzling rugby, however the Saints were yet to beat the table toppers. This time it was all to play for as the winner of the game would secure a spot in the Scottish Trophy Final. Additionally, the game had extra meaning as it was to be John Paterson’s 50th cap for St Andrews.
In typical Saints fashion, they started well. Freshman scrum half Ollie Bloore took the ball from the back of an early maul and cut through the defence to score. Schroeder slotted the kick and the saints took an early 7-0 lead.
However the Man Met response was exactly what you would expect from a league leading side. They dominated the remainder of the first half, scoring a quality try down the left wing courtesy of a great offload to level the scores. The Saints looked to answer back, but the attack was faltering and the Man Met defence was very physical, preventing the Saints from getting any momentum. After another impressive defensive set ended in a turnover, Man Met played some beautiful rugby to advance up the pitch and score in a couple phases. Their fly-half nailed his second touchline conversion of the game and they led 14-7.
Man Met’s attack was now in full flow, managing the greasy conditions well. Their pressure caused the Saints penalty count to mount, which culminated in a yellow card for freshman fullback Jamie Thompson. Quite what the yellow was for we will never know: Thompson thinks he was mistaken for Mather. Shortly afterwards Man Met scored due to a lovely miss pass that flew over the blitzing defence and put in their no.11 to score his second try of the game in the corner. The kick was good again, and the score was 21-7 at half time.
Following the half, St Andrews began to turn the tide. The defence increased in intensity, and now it was Man Mat who struggled to connect phases together. The Saints efforts were rewarded when they won a penalty, kicked to the corner and Captain Ferg Cato scored off the subsequent maul. Schreuder made no mistake with the conversion and suddenly St Andrews were back in the game. 14 -21.
With the crowd now back in full voice, St Andrews continued to ride their defensive momentum to control the game. After Man Met were forced into a handling turnover, Bloore gathered the ball and put in a flat cross kick towards James Murray on the left wing. Fortunately the ball slipped through the fingers of James’ opposite number, but there was no fortune in what happened next. Murray displayed his lightning pace, weaving through the chasing defenders to score from halfway. The stands erupted. Schreuder kicked the goal and the scores were level.
St Andrews then took the lead, courtesy of a great maul drive setting the platform for Schreuder to dance through the blitzing defence and score. The touchline conversion at this point was almost a formality. 28-21.
In previous games against Man Met, this is when the Saints would have taken their foot off the gas and lost the game, but this time there was a different air around the team. The effort in defence was outstanding. Despite Man Met starting to develop some fluidity in attack, for 25 minutes the Saints put in big shots and desperate cover tackles, holding Man Met scoreless.
Amidst a superb all round team defence, it was Mark Mackay who provided the match winning moments. Twice he was awarded penalties at the breakdown when Man Met were looking dangerous, and this allowed Schreuder to add three more points to the Saints lead.
St Andrews would hold onto this lead till the final whistle, securing a spot in the final. There were smiles on the faces of all the Saints faithful, who rushed to the sidelines to congratulate the players. John Paterson in particular was crowded by people looking to congratulate him on his 50th cap. I managed to get a moment with him and asked him what this occasion meant to him:
” I cannot put into words what this club means to me. Having the opportunity to put on the jersey on so many times is a real honour. Getting my 50th against Man Met, who have been our bogey team in recent times, was a great moment – and hats off to the boys for sealing the deal.”
The final will be against Loughborough 3XV on the 19th of March.
Rewatch the semi final here: watch