Medicals leave Larrikins humourless

Intermural Cup - 22/04/09
Medicals 24, Larrikins 21

Medicals RFC booked their place in the Inter-mural cup final last Wednesday after edging past Larrikins at Cochrane Park. Having already beaten the side back in November the Medics must have fancied their chances. Additions to the Larrikins’ pack however and a stronger setup this time round forced a dog fight in a fast paced and furiously tempered encounter which made for interesting viewing. 24-21 the game ended and the Medicals will now face last year’s runners-up in a final the Cheeky Ladies will definitely not want to lose two years on the bounce.

Another day of North-East sunshine made for perfect playing conditions. Larrikins were first to make their mark kicking an early three points and seemed set on imposing themselves upfront throwing plenty of men into the breakdown. Opening exchanges with the boot made for a topsy-turvy start with little impression, but as the game matured both sides were willing to take it by the scruff of the neck and play a little closer to the edge, adopting adventurous passing games.

Both were a little premature in attack however, hoping to score on every occasion the backline received the ball. Making the yards by the individual rather than collectively, quality in attack lacked, although strong boastful tackling was still needed to stop the hard but optimistic charges. The first chance fell to Danny O’Brian of the Medics – a break down the left wing saw the hooker come meters from putting his side ahead, only to be caught by the chasing winger. Even amid the uneven match in pace between the front-rower and the Larrikin speedster, it still presented an appetising taster for things to come.

The Meds did find their score finally. Persistence in the forward-drive put Larrikins on the back foot. Handing the Larrikins a dose of their own medicine the men in maroon picked and drived thirty meters before sending Tom Burden over. A change in game plan and the Medicals kept the ball tight and tidy with plenty of support, Burden finishing with a short dart and dive over the whitewash putting his side ahead in the nineteenth minute.

Larrikins came back with a strong response. A period of controlled possession left the Meds propped up under their posts, until they finally buckled when Larries’ centre Will Mellor cut a line off the scrum, carving his way to a superb score for his side. A monster drop goal from halfway put a smile on Mellor’s face again and the Larrikins in pole position heading in at the half. 13-7 to the good and the Larrikins looked in inspirational mood.

But not as inspiring as the Meds’ half-time team talk. A flourish of tries reversed the lead again, David Winterflood making use of an endowment in space on the wing and a couple from scrum half Jack Mercer put the Medicals in the driving seat at 24-13. Winterflood was unstoppable with a quick step and change of speed to beat the fullback, and Mercer had a sense of Falcons’ Micky Young about him with the quickness of thought to pull off the breakdown and score on two occasions. A nice nudge from Mercer to convert the first of the three helped the Medics into a healthy lead with only twenty minutes still to play.

A Larrikins penalty opportunity was pulled wide before being called back, handing Mellor another chance to stick the ball over. Gaps began to appear in both defensive lines, and quick off-loading from the Larrikins pursuing attack saw them gain some well needed territory in search of a try to bring them back to within a score. And they found it, this time Michael Quest surging over on seventy-one minutes to bring the Larrikins back.

Unconverted however and the Larrikins remained three points short. Two Medical charge downs, one in each half, could have resulted in two extra tries if not for handling errors before touching down. The Meds survived the final ten nevertheless and will now be preparing for an even tougher operation this Wednesday. Even with the win under their belts, a sturdier game plan may be needed against Cheeky Ladies if the Medics are to bring some silverware back to their home in Heaton.