RUGBY UNION: The numbers' game part 1
7:09pm Saturday 5th April 2008
Blue Boar landed their first county trophy with an emphatic win at Iffley Road. Here is the numbers' game. See Tuesday's paper for full report.
Competition: Oxfordshire Shield final
Score: Oxford 8, Blue Boar 27
Oxford player ratings:
15. Graham Crapper 7 (looked to counter)
14. Joe Hartley 6 (kept in check)
13. Tom Olley 7 (decent first half)
12. Neil Walker 6 (worked hard)
11. Phil Longuet-Higgins 6 (made errors, but some good runs)
10. Robbie Hill 6 (faced up well)
9. Jon Derrick 6 (never really went forward)
1. Gary Walter 5 (replaced at half-time)
2. Jack Rudman 6 (solid throwing)
3. Ed Mitchell 6 (needed to show more)
4. Mark Viner 7 (powerful display)
5. Charlie Mason 6 (solid but unspectacular)
6. Lukke Soetters 5 (disappointing)
7. Tim Knapp 6 (faded after the break)
8. Andy McDonald 6 (never gave up)
Replacements:
16. Paul Molyneux 5 (struggled to make impact)
17. James Knox 6 (kept battling)
18. Josh Byles 5 (on the back foot)
19. Tom Samsworth 5 (no time to shine)
20. Stuart Waknell 5 (hardly saw the ball)
Blue Boar player ratings
15. Chris Sandbach 8 (some skilful touches)
14. Charlie Young 7 (powerful in attack and defence)
13. Jamie Brufell 7 (carried ball well)
12. Ben Nicholl 8 (got stronger as game went on)
11. Sam Cover 7 (took try well)
10. Sam Stoop 9 (STAR MAN, bags of creativity)
9. George Sykes 8 (kept on sniping)
1. Ben Lay 6 (held his own)
2. Jamie Orpwood 6 (reliable)
3. Russell Paul 6 (did his job)
4. Adam Pearson 8 (always dangerous)
5. Nigel Cox 6 (worked hard)
6. Carl Alder 6 (tackled well)
7. Barney Harrison 8 (a constant menace)
8. Rob Wearing 7 (carried the ball well)
Replacements
16. Tom Vaughan-Fowler 6 (filled in well)
17. Jonathan Barnes 6 (plenty of energy)
18. Steve Dixey 6 (kept scrum solid)
19. Paul Shepherd 6 (late introduction)
20. Jimmy Wallbridge 6 (brief cameo)
Referee: Andrew Graham (Oxon) 6 - missed a few things.
Entertainment rating: 7.
Highlight: Sam Stoop's link play
Lowlight: poor place-kicking