Biggleswade Men’s 2nd XV 97 - 0 Saracens ARFC
The final match of 2021 for Biggleswade 2nds - a rare home league game - was against the team sitting just below them in second place.
With the strongest squad available all season, the coaches and captains were looking to make a statement to the rest of the league, and Biggy’s message was emphatic.
From the start Jakub Grabowski was a dangerous threat and grabbed himself a brace of tries in the game. The scrums were a big improvement from previous weeks, with Dave Grubb returning to the pack.
Biggleswade demonstrated their ability to move the ball well and attack space effectively. This allowed their big runners in Dave Leslie and Ross MacLaughlin to rack up huge metres carried.
However, it wasn’t only the forwards who looked dangerous. With George Chapman steering the ship, the 2nds have scored the most amount of points in the league. His new(ish) half-back partner, Jack Sharp is growing in confidence every game and provided clean, quick ball whilst also showing his worth in defence, making tackle after tackle.
The first half saw Biggleswade working through the gears. A few mistakes and handling errors kept the score below 50 in the first half. Thomas Hill deserves a nod, for scored his first try of the season, carrying over two Saracen’s players to set down first.
As Biggleswade warmed up and became more consistent in their shape, they became unstoppable. Ed Findlay, Emre Can and Jack Davidson added their names to the score sheet, whilst Captain Jack Unite also added his third try of the season.
With 100 points a target, Biggleswade kept applying the pressure, taking drop goal conversions at times to speed up the game, but they just fell short.
As they head into the Christmas break, the 2nds sit top of the league with the chasing pack only a few points behind. In the New Year they face two of their three main rivals early on. If they want to maintain the push for promotion they’ll need to start 2022 just like they finished this year.
