Southwold welcomed to sunny Ipswich

Ipswich Black report (Gold team beneath)

There was a worrying lack of focus during the warm up but this vanished as soon as the whistle went for kick off. Ipswich Black hit the ground running with some barnstorming tackling and rucking from Tomos, Freddie, Riley and Tommy. Southwold were soon turned over and Ipswich got the ball wide to Luca who went in for his first try of the morning.

Southwold made more from their next restart. Despite some strong tackling from the Ipswich defence, Southwold managed to retain possession and crossed for their first try.

Ipswich then restarted and put together a series of strong runs from Daniel, Isaac, Leo and Frankie. Southwold’s defence however stood firm with strong tackles going in which saw possession change hands a number of times. Cameron, Taylor and Dylan then joined the fray, all contributing in defence and attack. Southwold quickly learned that it would take more than one man to get Taylor down! After another hard won turnover Cameron skilfully held on to a rather speculative pass and managed to make some extra metres before getting the ball to Luca who swiftly crossed for his second.

Southwold came straight back at Ipswich who were made to work hard in defence. Southwold made good use of their larger ball carriers who were able to keep the ball moving forward. Unfortunately a high tackle and the resulting penalty gave Southwold the opportunity to re-set their attack and they crossed to level the scores again. Ipswich nearly retook the lead with a great attacking run from Isaac but unfortunately he was stopped just short as the half time whistle went.

Southwold started the second half strongly. Some determined defence from the visitors saw them win the ball back and cross for the first try of the half. The next phase of the match saw the intensity at the breakdown increase with both teams displaying tenacious mauling and rucking as possession switched back and forth. Tommy and Daniel both secured turnovers by ripping the ball from the Southwold attackers and some great counter rucking from Freddie eventually saw the ball back in Luca’s hands as he crossed for his third try.

The visitors came back strongly and robust tackling from Ipswich kept them at bay before Southwold managed to get the ball wide to one of their speedsters. It looked like Southwold would take the lead but Luca now put his speed to work in defence and tracked back, scything the Southwold attacker short of the line. Despite some great support work which saw Ipswich again turn over the ball, they were unable to capitalise on this possession and it was not long before they were back in defence. That defence however stayed strong and they were able to stop Southwold from crossing again, keeping the scores level.

As the final whistle went both sides could take pride in their performance with great displays of attacking and defensive rugby. It was a first outing for this team combination and with a couple of players coming back, expectations for upcoming fixtures will be high.

Ipswich Gold Report

Having also taken some time to initially get heads turned on in the warm up, Ipswich’s Gold squad seemed primed and ready just in time for kick off in the second match of the day.

From the off, Ipswich were able to find their big runners and they don’t come bigger than Viggo, who showed his power and footwork to run through the whole of the ‘wold team, only to selflessly hand the ball to Lincoln on the line to cross for the opening score. Ipswich kept their foot on the gas and in the 3rd minute a great steal in the maul from Seb set Bryn up to run 40 metres through 6 tackles to score in the opposite corner.

Southwold were not put off by Ipswich’s lively start and they came back at Ipswich strongly. The Gold’s defence was firm, but carelessly Ipswich gave away a couple of penalties for tackles round the shoulders, which they will need to learn from. But Southwold could not find a way through, and Ipswich’s robust tackling and maul player was able to turn defence into attack.

The next Ipswich try was not far away and another powerful run this time from Lucas, set up Kamron to go over for Ipswich’s third score. Shortly after, another maul turnover from Viggo set up Seb to score with a long-range finish to the corner.

Ipswich introduced Alastair and Isaac into the fray just before half-time, but no more scores were forthcoming before the interval. A great first half came to the close, with Ipswich’s intensity and workrate being some of the best we had seen all season.

Southwold showed their own quality in the second half with some determined running and handling putting pressure on Ipswich. Some sloppy tackling let Southwold through to score the first try of the half.

The teams then traded tries, with another fantastic Viggo solo effort, replied by another good Southwold try in the corner.

Southwold applied a lot of pressure in the second period, but Ipswich’s defence firmed up, exemplified by William whose tackling in midfield was as certain as ever.

Whereas the first half had been dominated buy the maul, the second half was more of a rucking encounter with Ipswich being the more tenacious and aggressive at the breakdown. Arthur turned over a couple of balls and Isaac should be commended on his speed and determination in the ruck. Junior also gave an all-action display both in defence and attack, worrying the Southwold team all over the pitch.

Only a couple of loose passes and handling errors denied Ipswich running in a few more scores in the second half. However the team should be very pleased of their efforts on the day. Their intensity and desire in defence set the tone, and they showed power and speed in attack. For a first outing as a squad, this was a very encouraging display, with hopefully more artistry and panache to develop as the group get used to playing with each other in the weeks ahead.