Saturday afternoon saw the last of the Withies’ pre-season friendlies. The team against South Molton took on a different look from last week with a number of changes from the side that played at Raleigh Park.

With this game following on from the 2nd XV’s game, some players fancied more time on the field and put in an appearance for both games in a real test of fitness.

The Withy kick off was a good one down the pitch as the receiving catch was dropped, giving the forwards a very early scrum to deal with.

The scrum went well and the boys managed to keep control of most of the early exchanges of play; so much so as a high kick was successfully collected by Sam Warren who hands the ball out to Paddy Haddad and the out to the waiting hands of Joe Blyth to score under the posts.

Haddad kicked the conversion to give the boys an early 7-point lead after nine minutes.

It wasn’t long before Withies got their second try though as another break down the left wing saw Josh Saunders go over for an unconverted score.

Exmouth Journal: Lineout actionLineout action (Image: Adam Curtis)

As the half hour mark passed, the Withies had a momentary lapse of discipline with a string of penalties get Molton back up the pitch for a try under the posts.

The home side enjoyed the majority of the possession and territory in the final ten minutes of the half and get their reward with another breakaway try in the corner. The kick went wide with the half time score on 12-12.

As the second half got underway, the withies had a storm of a different kind to deal with as the rain became heavier and heavier, with the sound of thunder crashing round.

The defensive line remained strong up until the hour mark when Molton managed to create a gap and scored to take the lead.

The final score of the game went to South Molton after some well worked multi-phase play ended with a try next to the posts to bring the final score to 24-12.

It may have been a loss for the boys, but there were still a lot of positives.

The boys will become a better team and ready for the season which gets underway on Saturday September 4 at Bencoolen Meadows in Bude.

Withy 2s enjoyed an entertaining opening game in South Molton

They got their season underway this weekend with a game that was enjoyable for all to watch – and hopefully play in.

With a healthy mix of young and (ahem) more experienced players on the field, the scene was set for an entertaining game of rugby.

The deadlock was broken after 23 minutes for an unconverted score in the corner for Withycombe.

Almost immediately after, the hosts struck back with a mirror-image unconverted try with another break down the opposite wing to score in the corner diagonal to the Withies try.

The second half may not have seen any more points, but it wasn’t any less enjoyable.

With three minutes left, the hosts had the chance to get ahead with a penalty just inside their 22. The ball was struck wide.