Aeroplanes crash (From Gazette Series)

Aeroplanes crash

Gloucester League Division Two Dursley 15 Bristol Aeroplanes 8

A LATE Steve Eggleston try sealed victory for Dursley against a tough Bristol Aeroplanes side.

Playing on the reserve pitch due to the condition of the main pitch, Dursley started with the advantage of the slope.

However, it was the visitors who started the stronger and it was soon evident that the recent lack of games was no advantage to the home team.

BAC dominated the first 20 minutes with well-drilled scrums and lineouts, putting Dursley under near constant pressure.

However, their defence was resolute and the visitors only had three points from a penalty to show for their efforts.

The home side started to find their feet thereafter and, from a lineout catch and drive near the visitors' line, they got the first try of the match claimed by hooker Benny Price.

Shortly after the restart, Dursley were awarded a scrum on the visitors 22.

Greg Keyes, making a rare appearance for the first team, used his considerable bulk to force his way over the line to give Dursley a 10-3 lead.

The score stayed like that for the rest of the half.

The second period started with the visitors desperate to score to keep in touch but some quite magnificent defensive work kept them out, including three try saving tackles from man of the match Trevor Scott.

Dursley struggled to get out of there half and eventually an Aeroplanes winger claimed a try for the visitors.

With the scores now 10-8 to Dursley, a tense last quarter was played out with neither side wanting to make a mistake.

The game was then halted for some ten minutes after Dursley prop Ash Young was injured after a scrum collapsed and, with Dursley already having replaced one front row, the propping duties fell to skipper Perry.

Time and again the visitors attacks were thwarted with Dursley desperate to hang on.

However, relief came after the visitors coughed up possession trying to run the ball from their own half and home centre Eggleston managed to beat the cover defence to score in the corner.

Dursley, now leading 15-8, quickly put the ball out of play from the restart and the referee blew the full-time whistle.

Tomorrow the maroon and yellows go to Old Elizabethans.

l Dursley would like to thank the Aeroplanes player - a qualified doctor at the Bristol Royal Infirmary - who treated Ash Young after his injury and made sure he was okay while he waited for an ambulance to take him for a precautionary x-ray.