Banbury were the visitors to Haslams for the last league game of the season. Derby had started the season with a visit to Banbury and had come away on the wrong end of a 69 – 7 scoreline, so they were looking to improve on that ! A beautiful, sunny day greeted the teams as they ran out and the day looked set for a feast
In front of their supporters and a large number of sponsors, Bridgnorth struck twice in the first six minutes. By breaking through close to the scrums and with close support, they scored two tries by No.8, Nicholls, and scrum half, Bladen. Stand-Off, Ritson converted both. With missing some players, Derby lacked the cohesiveness of the past five games. Something needed
A glorious spring day saw Derby trying to secure a 5th win in a row and probably secure safety. Changes were made after the victory over Silhillians; Jack Partington started at fly half, while Jake Roome played in the centre. Jake Barker came into the back row. Derby kicked off, but it was Dudley who struck first, with a penalty after 3 minutes. 5
Both sides knew the importance of this game and why it was tagged as a “Relegation Battle.” The visitors came buoyed up by a convincing win away over Burton, two weeks previously. Pre-match murmurings suggested a close game. Tensions showed by both sides as there were numerous penalties and scrums. Ball carriers did not want to make mistakes. This gave way to slower passes and some overly optimistic ones as well as some poorly directed kicking. Lewis
Friday night rugby returned to Haslams, as they played Long Eaton for the second Friday in a row. Long Eaton had comfortably won their home game last Friday, so Derby needed to improve. After the recent storms, Derby are waiting for their pitch to be repaired, so this game was played on grass ! Derby welcomed Jack Bates, Mike Johns
Marking his 200th appearance, Sam Tebbs, as team captain, ran out alone to the applause of a good crowd and the opposition. It was a mark of respect for a loyal and dedicated player. It was also debuts for Lui Natui at centre and young Kiberly Nalson at hooker. It was another great start for Derby as the forwards took
Derby travelled to Stourton Park, looking to build on their victory against Nuneaton in their previous fixture. Yet again injuries and unavailabilities caused widespread changes; the team sheet before kick off showed 10 changes to the 18 who faced Nuneaton although some of the changes were positional. Derby also have 3 of their 1st XV squad currently touring Australia! Derby’s
This win moves Derby to four points behind Dudley Kingswinford, with two games in hand. The fight for survival has begun. It was a good start for Derby with Mc Grath Van Wyk kicking an early penalty after just three minutes. However, Nuneaton responded with a quickly taken tap and go penalty and Ben Hayword touched down from a driving
Derby travelled to Barkby Road, looking to improve on their 67 – 11 defeat to Syston in September. They gave debuts to Thamsanqa Madondo in the 2nd row and Neldus Kruger at fly half. Tom Mycroft came off the bench to make his 1st appearance of the season. The problems Derby are having this season were encapsulated by having to
Having previously beaten Bridgnorth and Banbury, Dudley Kingswinford looked ready for this home encounter in front of a large crowd. Derby looked keen but produced a disjointed first-half performance. They gave the opposition time and space to move the ball and a couple of missed tackles proved costly. Lewis Hancock missed a penalty before Derby suffered an early setback when Mc
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