Macc end season at over-psyched rivals
BURNAGE ....................... 27 MACCLESFIELD ............ 44
THE last game of the season saw Macclesfield travel to Heaton Mersey to take on relative near neighbours Burnage.
The coach was packed with virtually the whole squad, including all of the walking wounded, to see off the season in boisterous style; equally, a good crowd from the Macclesfield faithful supporters gathered to cheer on the team.
Burnage and Northwich were both promoted last season into the North Premier, and both, by their own admission, did not want promotion, as they didn’t have the squads to compete at this level.
Macclesfield had taken on Burnage in the first game of the season, in what turned out to be a tetchy affair with both yellow and red cards being shown.
This game would be little different, if the matchday programme notes were anything to go by, the Burnage players would be well stoked-up for revenge after the September loss.
Burnage were one of the first clubs to get an Astroturf style pitch and as a consequence, it had seen a lot of rugby and is now due to be replaced in the close-season at a considerable cost. The surface and the very strong wind blowing down the pitch would play its part in the game.
Macclesfield kicked off playing against the wind, and were immediately in the ascendancy. It was attritional for Burnage, as phase after phase came at them, and when they finally got their hands on the ball, it was kicked 80 metres dead. Macclesfield secured the ball at the scrum and would not relinquish it again until Seb Pemberton dived over a morass of bodies to score after well over twenty phases of play; it was 0-5 after 14 minutes.
The second try would take less rugby to create; the referee had warned Burnage for high tackles and within a few minutes of the restart the home side’s 12 charged in high and was sent to the bin.
The ball was cleanly won from the penalty lineout to create a driving maul, James Oliver broke from the back, catching the defence napping and his pace speeding him to the line; it would be 0-12 after his brother’s successful conversion.
Burnage were quick to respond, they got into Macclesfield’s 22 after the restart and then from a lineout their 12 crashed through several tackles before slipping it to number 6, who had the simplest of tasks to finish off the move. After the restart Macclesfield knocked on, and an offside player allowed Burnage to reduce the arrears to 10-12.
Macc were back on the attack, going through several phases in the Burnage 22, but the home side’s defence was solid and eventually turned over
Macclesfield when the ball-carry became isolated. Burnage quickly turned the tables, getting into Macc’s 22 where they won a penalty to make it 13-12. Burnage took their narrow lead into halftime.
The wind had proved difficult for both teams, particularly at the lineout, and while Macclesfield had enjoyed the lion’sshare of possession, Burnage had bagged the points on their three visits into the visitors’ territory.
Burnage started the second half as Macclesfield had started the first, going through numerous phases until they reached the five-metre line. The ball was quickly recycled from the ruck with a short pass to the number 6 at full-speed who burst the tackle to swallow dive between the posts to take Burnage further ahead.
Macclesfield used the wind to put pressure back on Burnage who ran it out of defence to halfway, Phil Laing got his head on the wrong side of the tackle, taking a blow that would finish his rugby for the day. There was also a tactical change for Macclesfield, bringing on Matt Harrison into the backrow and moving Josh Redfern into the second-row, replacing Elliot Alston.
Harry Blackwell seemed to find an acre of space to run into, which resulted in a Burnage lineout in their 22. An untidy tap down combined with the Burnage playing surface, presented a gift for Matt Thorp to score, Harry Oliver turned it into 7 to make it 20-19, Ben Holden came on for James Cross.
The game was halted after the restart for some hand bag pushing and shoving, but the aggression got considerably worse two phases later as the Burnage 7 blatantly rucked a Macclesfield player’s head with his boot. The referee had no hesitation in showing red.
A well worked lineout found the safe-hands of Seb Pemberton again, two phases made another twenty metres before Burnage’s reluctance to listen to the referee gave Harry Oliver the chance to put Macclesfield in front 20-22.
Straight from the restart Macc were back on the attack, Josh Redfern surged through a gap and as it closed upon him, he timed his slip-pass perfectly to Harry Oliver.
Harry’s pace took him to the 22 where he drew the last man to the tackle before releasing Dan Martin to score the bonuspoint try 20-29.
The penny seemed to have dropped, in the minds of Macclesfield, as directly after the restart, James Hampson used the wind to force Burnage to defend from deep. The lineout throw went sailing over the out-stretched hands of Seb Pemberton but into the basket of James Oliver standing at the back. The sole Burnage defender had little chance against the pace of the Macc captain as he sprinted diagonally to the corner-flag for Macclesfield’s fifth try, 20-34.
Burnage wasted little time in trying to address the now two-score arrears; winning the ball at the restart, they made good ground before a welltimed pass to number 13, playing his last game for