A beautiful sunny afternoon saw Sandal start the season with a hard fought win against a stubborn Middlesbrough side.
Sandal where on top with the early exchanges and started well. On the 7th minute a lovely chip through from Hali Joannou was neatly collected by Harry Jukes on the wing and Sandal opened their account for their Centenary Season. The extras were stroked through the posts by Hali and Sandal were up and running. From the restart Sandal seemed in control and a line break from Callum Burden gave Sandal good meters. Pressure in the Middlesbrough half resulted in a knock on penalty which was converted by Hali.
The Sandal forwards worked hard at the breakdown and the ref blew up when Captain Dec Thompson performed a lovely jackle and secured the penalty. Hali stepped up and hit the upright however it was clear the Sandal were in control. Strong runs from the backs saw Walsh and Farrah interact well which created another penalty opportunity. Against the run of play Middlesbrough broke through and scored and from here Middlesbrough confidence grew and they camped out in Sandals half for a period of sustained pressure. Good Sandal defence kept their attack at bay and Sandal went into half time 13 - 7 ahead.
Middlesbrough came out galavanised and the second half was an arm wrestle between two sides that were quite evenly matched in this phase of the game. Middlesbrough went ahead on the scoreboard however Sandal dug deep and matched them. Scrum half Joe Potter made his debut and scored under the sticks. Joe is a good addition to the Sandal backs and made his mark on the game. Callum Burden played his usual gritty game and broke the line to help Ibrahim Shamchiyev go over the white wash.
18 year old Joe McCann also made his debut for the first team after playing second team rugby in the previous year. He played blind side flanker and is one to watch for the future. The return of Billy Addy added strength and experience to the forwards. A good debut from Karolis Navickas also strengthened Sandals forward.
I mention needs to go to man of the match Hali Joannou who controlled the game and made sensible decisions with the ball.
A good start to Sandals Centenary campaign saw the final score 28-22

Justin English