Claverdon 57 Bedworth 0
Midlands Four West (South)
CLAVERDON’S Vice-Presidents Day is always something to behold and this time it exceeded expectations as the Lions earned some sweet revenge on their visitors from the north of the county.
Suitably fed and watered, the VPs and the rest of the Ossetts Hole Lane crowd were treated to a fine display from the hosts as they set the record straight following three defeats to Bedworth last season, most notably in the final of the Warwickshire Vase.
Claverdon soon had a lineout in the Bedworth 22 and the ball was shipped to Ollie Thornton who, just as he appeared to be smashed into, produced the most delicate of pop passes to newest recruit Alex ‘Keith’ Grove who ran a lovely line to score between the posts.
This was the start of a very dominant first half for Claverdon, although there were two chances missed after the ball got kicked into Claverdon territory. Great work from Keith and Mikey Jay at the back appeared to result in Tom Johnson running in two tries, only for the referee to deem forward passes on both occasions.
The Lions did get another score on the other side of the pitch after Jay used the overlap perfectly to release Harry Nathan on the right and he finished between the posts in style.
This was soon followed by another try when the ball was shipped from right to left and Johnson finally received the ball legally and in space to rampage along the left before finishing in the corner.
This finished a fantastic half for the home team, who had surged into a hugely welcome if slightly unexpected 21-0 lead.
The second half started the same as the first, despite Bedworth seeming to be pumped up after a grilling at half-time. A fantastic tackle from debutant Ollie Thorneywork created the turnover and allowed the home side to march up the pitch and score through Grove once again and this set the tone for the rest of the match.
Bedworth never really seemed to find their feet and never looked like scoring, with Claverdon’s defence spot in applying pressure when it mattered and leaving no holes for Bedworth to go through.
This was the foundation of a brilliant attacking display from the Lions who scored a further five tries including two from captain James Barton, two from new-boy Luke ‘Fordy’ Rogers and one from James Kirby.
Man of the match awards went to William Lawton and Thornton for their solid displays and controlling the game very well.
Claverdon turn their attentions to a Midlands Junior Vase second round tie at home to Tenbury on Saturday before returning to league action the following weekend at Bromyard. The Lions have three wins from four league matches.
Report compiled by Charlie Byrd.
