A cold blustery day saw the Green & blacks squad travel to Aylesbury to play a depleted Aylesbury II
3 minutes in, saw Aylesbury with a lineout 20 metres from the Oxford line, a scrappy throw in saw ORFC flanker Dave Wells (6) gather and feed George Hanley (9) who passed out to centre Tom McClimont (13) who carved through 70 metres before an unforced dropped pass saw the first opportunity of the game fall through Oxford hands. Was this an ominous sign?
18 minutes; saw a quick tap & go by Fly Half /Coach Dom Matthews (10) after Hooker Josh Jelfs had come close to scoring under the Aylesbury posts, but saw Matthews slip over the Aylesbury line for the 1st try and conversion of the day
ORFC 7- ARFC 0
22 Minutes; A surging run from Captain Will Boyes (4) smash through the Aylesbury forwards only to be brought down meters from the line, but Boyes had been closely supported by No8 Rory Gratwohl who crunched over to increase the score with Matthews slotting the conversion
ORFC 14- ARFC 0
28minutes; a 5 metre scrum on the Aylesbury line saw the Aylesbury team running the ball from out of their dead ball line, only to fumble and from less than 5 metres out Dom Matthews was in again
ORFC 21- ARFC 0
34minutes; After a crunching tackle from the Oxford back row on the Aylesbury fly half, a panicked Aylesbury centre kicked a head out of desperation only for a bit of miscommunication by the Green and Black defensive team, saw Aylesbury ARFC crossing the Oxford line after a well-timed Aylesbury pass to their 15 from the pressurising ARC centre
ORFC 21- ARFC 7
This was turning into a closer game than what the Green & Blacks have known recently … or was it.
2nd Half
48minutes; Oxford reduced to 14 men after Wells was adjudged to have high tackled a falling ARFC player
60minutes; a long toe punt by Aylesbury down to the ORFC line, saw the Oxford prolific (10) Dom Matthews cheekily run the ball out from inside the Oxford try line before being brought down just over the Oxford 22m line, when the ball was scooped up by Hanley (9) who thumped the ball through for a sprinting Josh Jelfs (2) to chase down the 75-meter distance and score; with DM converting
ORFC 28 - ARFC 7
76 minutes; a well worked backline move eventually saw winger Ali Gib nip over and score, to take the final score to 33-7, in a game that can only be described as a win for the green and blacks but one with out their usual panache and style and a game that in all honesty Oxford should have scored upward of 50+ points.
High Wycombe next week which will lead the team into Christmas