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Sheffield Tigers RUFC
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(Established 1932)
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A National League 2 North Club
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Reports 2004-2005 :
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15/05/05 - Tigers 1st XV Complete Treble Trophy Season by Winning the Yorkshire Shield Final
Sheffield Tigers 26 - West Park Bramhope 19
Following their Powergen Vase win at Twickenham and clear win in the Yorkshire 2 League, Tigers completed the treble with a solid win over West Park Bramhope. West Park came into the game on the back of an 80 point win in the semi-final against Heath and must have fancied their chances when they scored within the first minute. The Tigers kick off didn’t go 10 metres but West Park gained possession and moved the ball across the field to left wing Carl Nutchey. He kicked ahead and won the race for the touchdown, and a good conversion by centre James Lowes gave West Park a 7-0 lead. They stretched the lead after 7 minutes when a peel round the front of the lineout created space. A kick ahead bounced loose close to the Tigers line and flanker Richard Storey was credited with the try. Tigers were seeing little of the ball and it was a relief for the Tigers support when full back Rob Pound kicked a penalty after 10 minutes. Tigers continued to struggle to find their form. When the West Park full back, Jason Whitehead, broke through three tackles after 24 minutes to score under the posts, and give Lowes an easy conversion and a 19-3 lead, West Park must have felt they had one hand on the trophy. However this Tigers squad has been behind on a number of occasions this season and they have had the confidence in their abilities and fitness to strike back. It was therefore no surprise when they scored their first try during the first half injury time. A bit of pressure on the West Park line tied in the defence before the ball was worked wide and No. 8 Mike Schmid gave wing Brian Loftus enough space to get in at the corner. The conversion was missed leaving the half time score 19-8 in West Park’s favour.
The first quarter of an hour of the second half was somewhat scrappy with unforced errors and a lot of injury stoppages. However, Tigers began to get a bit of continuity and were playing the game in the West Park half. After 17 minutes Tigers were awarded a penalty 5 metres out in front of the posts. Rather than take the easy 3 points they decided to run the ball. The gamble paid off when centre Doug Trivella made it over the line with the help of a few of the forwards. Stand off Richard Butler converted. The Tigers come back continued when midway through the half the pack turned over a ball on the West Park 22 and mauled it towards the middle of the pitch before moving it blind. Pound committed the defence before a neat reverse pass found Trivella for his second try and gave Tigers a one point lead. Fitness was now telling and Tigers were largely controlling the match. Butler stretched the lead with two penalties after 32 minutes and 2 minutes into injury time. There were still 5 more minutes of injury time and West Park tried hard for the equalising score, but to no avail as the solid Tigers defence held firm.
This victory completed a remarkable season for Tigers with the 1st XV unbeaten and winning three trophies, and the 2nd XV winning the South Yorkshire Trophy. It is a credit to the squad and the back up that they could raise their game just one more time at the end of a long hard season.
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10/05/05 - Tigers 1st XV Extend Unbeaten Run to 40 Matches to go into Yorkshire Shield Final
Keighley 10 - Sheffield Tigers 26
Tigers took the field with a somewhat makeshift team containing only seven of the team that won the Powergen Vase at Twickenham a few weeks ago. Two players, lock Rory McCall and wing Brian Loftus, were making their 1st XV debuts. Things looked ominous for Tigers as Keighley dominated the early stages of the game and after 12 minutes had a well deserved 10 – 0 lead through a penalty by stand off Johnny Harrison and a beautiful try when full back Mike Cox came through the centre at pace to score under the posts to give Harrison an easy conversion. Most of the play was in the Tigers half as their pack struggled for good possession, but Keighley couldn’t unlock a resolute Tigers defence. On the half hour mark Tigers had one of their few attacking scrums on the Keighley 22 metre line. No 8 Mike Schmid attacked the wide blind side, scrum half Nick Scheinkonig drew in the wide defence before passing to wing Wayne Warren for the run in. Four minutes later Tigers took the lead when centre John Storey made a half break before passing to fellow centre Doug Trivella who outpaced the defence from 40 metres out. Stand off Eugene Martin converted. The turn round in fortunes was completed a couple of minutes later when a strong run by Storey took him clean through the middle for a try under the posts. Martin’s conversion took him to 200 points for the season. With a 19 – 10 half time lead Tigers looked home and dry.
Tigers had the better of the second half and should have increased their lead on at least two occasions early on when scoring passes were knocked on. They had to wait until the 26th minute of the half before increasing their lead when, after a period of good continuity, flanker Ian Cutts cut inside the defence for a try converted by Martin.
This gave Tigers a well deserved 26 – 10 win and took their unbeaten run to 40 matches. It is to the credit of the 2nd team players filling the boots of established 1st XV players that, having got used to the pace of the match in the first quarter, they rose to the occasion to compete against players used to playing in a higher league.
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04/05/05 - Tigers 2nd XV Win South Yorkshire Trophy
Doncaster Phoenix 1st XV 17 - Sheffield Tigers 2nd XV 34
Tigers got off to the perfect start when within one minute of the kick-off ball worked wide gave wing Alex Fraser the room to beat the defence to score a try converted by stand-off Richard Butler. Tigers had the upper hand in the early stages and it was no surprise when the other wing, Brian Loftus, got in at the corner for a try after 10 minutes. Midway through the half Loftus was on the scoreboard again when he fielded a poor clearance kick on his own 10 metre line, and with a wonderful solo run gave Butler an easy conversion. A Butler penalty just before the interval stretched the Tigers lead to 22 – 0 at half time.
Phoenix came out for the second half meaning business and a rolling maul after 12 minutes got them over the line for a converted try. They reduced the gap further five minutes later with a penalty. Tigers were struggling at times to retain possession and get continuity due to the Phoenix pressure, but on the first occasion they got good ball out to the wing, Loftus took a half chance well to complete his hat trick. A determined Phoenix side kept the game alive but a try by lock Neil Shaw, converted by Butler, five minutes from the end ensured the Tigers victory. Phoenix weren’t finished and an obstruction on an attacking move saw them awarded a penalty try which they converted to make the final score 34 – 17 to Tigers.
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30/04/05 - Tigers 1st XV Mission Accomplished To Finish Yorkshire League 2 Undefeated
Ripon 13 - Sheffield Tigers 19
Unavailabilities due to the end of season tour to Gloucester and injury saw an unusual combination take the field with the responsibility of completing the League programme without defeat. Whilst the pack had a familiar look about it the back line had hooker Harry Toews at scrum half, flanker Mike Schmid in the centre and wing Ian Meyer making his 1st XV debut. Tigers took an early lead when Eugene Martin struck an early penalty and he stretched it with a second penalty on the 15 minute mark. However, midway through the half Ripon struck back with a blind side break from a scrum by scrum-half Chris Marston for a try converted by stand off Robbie Brewer. Brewer then struck two penalties in quick succession and the Ripon support thought it could be their day. Although the makeshift Tigers backline was struggling to find fluidity, the pack could raise its game. Just before half time they pinched a Ripon lineout ball on the Ripon 22 metre line and rolled the maul all the way to the line for hooker Tom Ryder to score. Martin converted to make the half time score 13-13.
Tigers started the second half positively when they put pressure on Ripon. A good run by wing Alex Fraser five minutes into the half set up a lineout position close to the Ripon line. A couple of mauls saw Tigers almost over, but when the try didn’t come Martin dropped a neat goal. On the hour mark he struck another penalty, and although Tigers were ahead the game was not yet won. Neither side created real scoring chances for the remainder of the game, but Tigers had to work hard in the last five minutes when they lost prop Tim Fearn with a serious shoulder injury. With no replacements available Toews moved into prop and full back George Leach moved to scrum half. Ripon made one final onslaught but the defence held solid to ensure Tigers continued their unbeaten run.
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26/04/05 - Tigers 1st XV Show Character in Convincing Win in Yorkshire Shield
Ilkley 0 - Sheffield Tigers 38
Tigers showed tremendous character in pulling off this convincing Yorkshire Shield win against a side a league higher. Ilkley should have opened the scoring in the second minute of the game when they were awarded a penalty in front of the posts but the kick was pulled wide. Tigers suffered their first setback of the night when scrum half Dave Holmes had to retire after 15 minutes, but Nick Scheinkonig proved an able replacement. With neither team gaining the ascendancy Ilkley must have thought that things were going their way when a red card saw Tigers reduced to 14 men after 25 minutes. Shortly thereafter Ilkley missed another kickable penalty attempt. Tigers had their first opportunity after 35 minutes when stand off Eugene Martin had a near miss from a long range penalty. A couple of minutes before half time Tigers were reduced to 13 men when a yellow card for manhandling an obstructing player saw flanker Mike Schmid in the sin bin. With the score 0 – 0 at half time everyone expected Ilkley to capitalise on their two man advantage at the beginning of the second half.
It was then that the character of the Tigers squad came to the fore and they took the game to Ilkley. Five minutes into the half the Tigers pack drove a lineout maul some 20 metres before being stopped short of the line. The ball was quickly recycled for centre John Storey to come blind and force his way over for the try which was converted by stand-off Eugene Martin. Ten minutes later Schmid made amends for his sin binning when he latched onto a loose ball on his own 10 metre line and outpaced the defence to score under the posts and give Martin an easy conversion. Tigers now had control of the game and stretched their lead after 25 minutes. They showed good ball retention with a number of attacks close to the Ilkley line but couldn’t get over so Martin dropped back into the pocket to kick Tigers first drop goal of the season. Two minutes later wing George Leach picked up a loose clearance kick and ran it back at Ilkley, beating four or five tacklers before scoring. Martin converted. Tigers demonstrated their superiority in scoring two further tries in the last five minutes. The first came when replacement prop John Ashley forced his way over, and the second when Storey looked like he was going on the outside but popped a neat inside pass to Martin to finish off. With both tries converted by Martin the final score was 38 – 0 to Tigers.
The heavy rain throughout the match meant that the Tigers handling wasn’t as crisp as it can be, but this must rank as one of the best performances of the season in terms of the character and commitment shown by every member of the team.
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23/04/05 - Tigers 1st XV Stretch League Lead in Yorkshire 2
Bradford Salem 23 - Sheffield Tigers 35
Although both teams were safely promoted to Yorkshire 1 for next season this game was always going to be competitive as Tigers wanted to prove they were worthy League Champions and Salem wanted to end Tigers unbeaten run. Salem started the stronger and early pressure led to a try after 3 minutes when centre Jonathon Jacobs burst though on a short ball to score near the posts and give stand off Matt Booth an easy conversion. They stretched their lead on the 15 minute mark when Booth dropped a neat goal. Tigers soon replied when lock Chris Peel pinched a Salem lineout ball. The defence was stretched across to the far wing before the ball came back to flanker Doug Trivella who drove through three tackles before passing to No. 8 Mike Schmid to score. Stand off Rob Pound converted. Tigers took the lead on the half hour mark when a rolling maul from a lineout forced its way over the line for a try credited to prop John Ashley. Pound again converted. The first half was punctuated with a number of stoppages for injury and Salem had to use all three replacements much earlier than they would have wanted to. It was 6 minutes into injury time when Salem regained the lead with centre Steve McManus intercepting on his own 10 metre line to run in untouched for a try converted by Booth, making the half time score 17-14 to Salem.
Although Tigers started the second half the stronger and levelled the scores through a Pound penalty Salem soon bounced back. They put Tigers under a lot of pressure in a series of 5 metre scrums but couldn’t cross the line. Eventually Booth took the opportunity to drop a second goal. By this stage the pattern up front was well established with Salem putting the Tigers’ scrum under a little pressure, but Tigers having the lineout advantage and taking some Salem ball. It was a lineout infringement midway through the half that gave Pound the penalty opportunity to level the scores at 20-20. Five minutes later he struck another, but the lead was short lived as Booth kicked one for Salem. As the game entered the last 10 minutes Tigers were looking the fitter team and they made it count, especially when yellow cards saw both teams reduced to 13 men. With 2 minutes of normal time remaining another rolling maul from a lineout reached the line and a smiling Tom Ryder was last up with the ball. The final score came in injury time with the last play of the game. Centre Jono Storey got turnover ball deep in his 22 and broke through the first two tackles. Given the option of trying to go all the way for the try he kicked deep. Good chasing by wing George Leach and Trivella helped Tigers retain possession. The ball was moved wide to left wing Wayne Warren, who had had a smashing game in defence, to give him the opportunity to show his finishing skills and score the try for Pound to convert giving Tigers a well deserved 35–23 victory.
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16/04/05 - Tigers 1st XV Triumph at Twickenham Again in RFU PowerGen Vase Final
Solihull 13 - Sheffield Tigers 30
On a sunny spring Twickenham morning hundreds of Tigers supporters had gathered for the early start at 10am kick-off for the RFU PowerGen Junior Vase Final.
In ideal playing conditions Tigers kicked off and early pressure resulted in a Tigers put in to a scrum on the Solihull 22 metre-line. From the scrum, scrum-half Neil Pearson made a blindside break and passed inside to flanker Chris Peel who was tackled short of the Solihull line. Tigers forwards quickly recycled the ball and the backs spun it out wide to give full-back Matt Walker the space to round the Solihull defence and score in the corner. Eugene Martin missed the difficult conversion. The Solihull restart was not taken cleanly and the Solihull forwards regained control of the ball and drove into the Tigers 22. Tigers were penalised in the ruck and the Solihull full-back James Quantrill scored an easy penalty to bring the score to 5-3 after 4 minutes of play. From the restart, Tigers kept Solihull in their 22 and again pressure resulted in a Tigers scrum. From the scrum, Tigers moved the ball rapidly along the three-quarters to feed Walker coming into the line at pace who then ran through to score in the corner. Martins conversion just drifted wide leaving the score at 10-3. Solihull restarted and again Tigers turned over the ball to put themselves under pressure as Solihull were starting to play with more authority. Solihull kept the ball through a number of phases and were rewarded with another penalty wide out on the Tigers 22. Their full-back Quantrill converted the penalty to reduce the lead to 10-6. After 15 minutes Tigers threw into the first line-out of the match, and in an attacking position, a clean catch released the backs but a handling error brought play to a halt. Solihull were now seeing more of the ball and their backs broke through the first line of Tigers defence a number of times. A neat switch by the Solihull backs put their centre through a gap and only a try saving tackle from Rob Pound prevented a certain score. Solihull kept up the pressure and were awarded a penalty wide out on the Tigers 10 metre-line. They kicked for position and from the lineout drove into Tigers midfield. From the resulting ruck their scrum-half Barry John Cole broke blind and with only full-back Walker to beat, he passed out of the tackle to the hooker Jeff Large who touched down near the posts. Full-back Quantrill converted the try to take Solihull into a 10-13 lead after only 20 minutes. Solihull had the better of the second quarter with both sides missing a penalty kick each and having more attacking opportunities than Tigers. But Tigers defence held firm and as half-time approached some of the Solihull forwards were beginning to struggle with the pace of the game. The half finished with Solihull leading 10-13.
The second-half started like the first with an early Tigers score. From a quick 'off-the-top 'line-out win in the Solihull half, Tigers fly-half Martin chipped over the Solihull backs for left winger Wayne Warren to chase. The Solihull full-back just got to the ball first but knocked it straight into Warrens hands who sprinted clear to score under the posts. This took Tigers over the 1000 point mark for the season and it was fitting that it should be Warren who reached this milestone as he is the team's leading try scorer for the season. The conversion was a formality for Martin which took Tigers back into 17-13 lead. The game went quiet for a while as both sides were making unforced errors although Tigers were beginning to take control of the set pieces. After 9 minutes Doug Trivella came on for Matt Wood and immediately made his presence felt with a number of heavy tackles and direct running with the ball. Most of the play now was in the Solihull half and from a ruck in mid-field, John Storey missed a long range drop goal attempt. But minutes later, Solihull infringed after another Tigers catch and drive from a lineout and Martin converted the penalty to stretch Tigers lead to 20-13. With Solihull under increasing pressure from Tigers attacks, their mid-field backs were caught off-side in front of the posts giving Martin an easy penalty to extend the lead to 23-13. Tigers brought on 2 replacements, Rudolf Froneman (for Rob Pound) and the elder statesman of the squad David Holmes (for Neil Pearson). Tigers continued to attack and a quick passing movement down the backs gave Warren the chance to run at his opposite number. Warren chipped the winger but was obstructed when trying to round him to recover the ball. From the penalty, Tigers kicked to the corner for an attacking line-out. The line-out ball was secured and the driving maul was stopped illegally by the Solihull No.8 Dan Gallagher pulling it down. The No.8 was sin-binned by the referee and Tigers took a short penalty and drove over the try line but the referee ruled that the ball was held up. From the resulting scrum, Tigers went for the push-over but then released the ball to Martin who made a half break and slipped the ball to Storey for a simple run in under the posts. Martin converted to further increase Tigers lead to 30-13. Tigers brought on 2 more replacements, Tim Fearn (for Alan Wall) and Anthony Parkin (for John Ashley) and shortly after brought on Richard Butler (for Eugene Martin). All 6 replacements played their part in ensuring that there was no way back for Solihull. The final play of the game was a well organised Tigers defence repelling five phases of attack on their own try-line before winning turn over ball which Warren kicked into the stand to bring the match to an end.
Second-row Ed Knaggs was voted Tigers man-of-the-match by the playing squad and was presented with his trophy by Captain Rob Pound at the after match reception.
Congratulations must go to both teams for their efforts to play open rugby in the ideal conditions in the Twickenham stadium and to all the supporters who had to get up so early in the morning to arrive in time for the 10am start.
Tigers Squad:
Back Row: Chris Peel, James Norris, John Storey, Matt Wood, Ed Knaggs,John Ashley, Harry Toews, Alan Wall
Middle Row: Neil Pearson, Ian Cutts, Matt Walker, Rob Pound (Captain), Anthony Parkin, Richard Butler,
Middle Row (cont): Eugene Martin, Doug Trivella
Front Row: Rudolf Froneman, David Holmes, Tim Fearn, George Leach, Wayne Warren
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09/04/05 - Tigers 1st XV Victorious with Another Warren Hat Trick in Yorkshire League 2
Sheffield Tigers 53 - Castleford 0
Winger Wayne Warren scored his second hat trick of the season when Tigers avenged their early season away draw to Castleford with a comfortable nine try victory at home. The game was over in the first quarter of an hour as Tigers scored three early tries. The first came when an adventurous long pass in the windy conditions from centre John Storey found Warren. Warren beat his man on the outside for pace to score an unconverted try. This was soon followed by a try for the other wing, George Leach, following a superb piece of play by full back Matt Walker. Walker tidied up a loose ball in his own 22, chipped ahead and caught it himself. He found Leach in support around half way gave him the pass for the run in. Stand off Eugene Martin converted. The Castleford pack were by now under pressure in the scrum and scrum half Neil Pearson was causing considerable disruption. On the 15 minute mark Tigers mounted an attack from deep in their own half. Warren again got outside his opposite number and when the cover got across to him he had his flankers in support with Chris Peel passing to Doug Trivella to score. The game then entered a dull period when the Tigers ball dried up and the referee spotted a lot of infringements which stopped the momentum. Tigers stretched their lead in the 37th minute when Warren again found a bit of space before passing inside to centre John Storey for a try converted by Martin. In the last couple of minutes of the half Castleford put sustained pressure on the Tigers line. They were awarded a series of penalties which they decided to run, but the solid Tigers defence wasn’t breached leaving the score 24 – 0 at half time.
A deep kick off for the second half saw Castleford concede a 5 metre scrum and a quick ball saw Storey break through the middle for his second try converted by Martin. Two minutes later Tigers were on the scoreboard again. A rolling maul from a lineout was slowed down short of the line. Martin came in from stand off to lend his weight and when the maul went down over the line he was credited with the try. Castleford kicked deep from the restart and the ball was moved crossfield where Walker made ground before releasing Warren. When he was tackled Peel was on hand to finish off. The middle of the second half was somewhat similar to the middle of the first half with a lot of infringements breaking up the rhythm of the game. However, in the last ten minutes Walker and Warren combined again twice to give the latter his hat trick, Martin converting the penultimate try to make the final score 53 – 0.
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02/04/05 - Tigers 1st XV Secure Yorkshire League 2 Title with 3 Matches To Go
Knottingley 0 - Sheffield Tigers 50
This comfortable win over Knottingley means that Tigers have secured the League title with three matches in hand and can now concentrate on their Powergen Junior Vase match in a fortnight’s time. Unforced errors by Tigers allowed Knottingley to get the better of the early exchanges but once Tigers had opened the scoring in the 12th minute there was only likely to be one outcome. The first try came when the ball was quickly recycled after a Doug Trivella drive. Under pressure John Storey tapped a pass from fellow centre Rob Pound on to wing Owen Evans who drew the defence before passing back inside for Storey to score the try, converted by stand off Eugene Martin. A couple of minutes later Martin made a sharp break from inside his own half and found support from the forwards with flanker Chris Peel finishing off the move. Martin converted. The lead was stretched some 10 minutes later when wing George Leach came infield onto a short ball from a scrum and made 40 metres before being tackled just short of the line. He kept the ball alive for the support and Storey forced his way over for his second try, again converted by Martin. The final try of the half was a solo effort by Martin who made a break on the 22 to score under the posts and give himself an easy conversion to make the half time score 28 – 0.
The second half started with Knottingley dominating possession but failing to get into a scoring position. Tigers reasserted themselves when another Martin break was well supported and the ball got to Leach who had to work hard to get in at the corner for an unconverted try. By now Tigers were moving the ball and supporting well and both forwards and backs looked comfortable with ball in hand. A break by scrum half Neil Pearson and some slick handling saw replacement flanker Mike Schmid over for an unconverted try. It was not all one way traffic as Knottingley had attacking opportunities but the Tigers defence showed determination in trying to keep a clean sheet, captain Rob Pound setting an example with a couple of try saving cover tackles. By midway through the half the Knottingley scrum, which had looked comfortable early in the game, began to struggle with Tigers winning some ball against the head. Tigers last two tries were scored by Trivella who had moved to centre to accommodate Schmid in the back row. The first came from slick handling following a lineout creating space for him, and the second when Pound stepped inside to straighten up the line and Trivella came onto a short ball to run 40 metres to score near the posts. Martin converted to clock up the half century.
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26/03/05 - Tigers 1st XV Stretch Lead to 5 Points in Lack’Lustre Yorkshire League 2 Victory
Leodiensians 10 - Sheffield Tigers 24
Tigers ended up doing enough to win this catch-up league match that had previously been called off two months ago. Although Tigers didn’t encounter too much trouble, it wasn’t the convincing display they aspire to each week.
The match started in good conditions with no wind advantage on a slightly heavy pitch. Early possession and field position was evenly shared. It was Leos who opened the scoring with a converted try after some good build up play and well finished by their backs. Tigers came back immediately and opened their scoring with a penalty through Eugene Martin. Tigers had been playing a tactical kicking game but it was a move from deep in their own half with Doug Trivella releasing Matt Walker who then passed on to Wayne Warren to finish off for Tigers first try. Martin added the conversion. The rest of the first half saw few chances for either side and the break came with Tigers leading 10-7.
The second half ran in the same fashion as the first half. Tigers got more than their share of possession but basic mistakes and not creating much phase ball to work off frustrated their efforts. Tigers next score came from John Storey who worked a neat switch with Martin to go over for a converted try. A further period of sustained pressure resulted in Tigers third try. A good build up and some continuity of play allowed Rudolf Froneman to go under the posts for Martin to again convert.
Tigers then had two players yellow carded late in the game, which gave Leos some good attacking opportunities. While they attacked for all the last 10 minutes of the game their only points were from a late penalty and the game ended at 24-10 to Tigers.
Tigers are away again next Saturday in another league match. The squad will, no doubt, be training hard this week to put right certain aspects of their play to get back to the high standard of play they have been working towards throughout the season.
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19/03/05 - Tigers 1st XV Open up 3 Point Gap Lead in Yorkshire League 2 after Win over Ripon
Sheffield Tigers 53 - Ripon 14
Tigers opened the scoring after 12 minutes when a forward drive from a lineout following a penalty kick to the corner saw Ian Cutts touch down and Eugene Martin add the conversion. Breaks by Martin and centre John Storey saw the Ripon defence fully stretched before further forward pressure resulted in prop John Ashley scoring an unconverted try to give Tigers a 12-0 lead after 25 minutes. Injury stoppages were preventing the game from flowing but after 30 minutes Tigers were awarded a penalty in front of the Ripon posts and Martin added the three points. Tigers were making life difficult for themselves by giving away penalties while pressing the Ripon line and by a couple of turnovers when players had the ball ripped from them. As the half neared its end Tigers produced a flowing handling move from a lineout on the half-way line and Mike Schmid scored a try which Martin converted to increase the lead to twentytwo points. Tigers then had prop Ashley sin-binned for a second offence and Ripon took full advantage when their wing-forward scored a fine converted try from 40 metres to make the half time score 22-7.
At the start of the second half Neil Pearson replaced David Holmes. A charge down by Doug Trivella saw the same player gather the ball, race 40 metres, pass to second row Chris Peel and take the return pass to score with Martin again converting. Ripon now had their best spell of the game and quick tap penalties saw them pierce the Tigers defence for a converted try under the posts to make the score 29-14. Alan Wall was now substituted in the front row by Tom Ryder. Tigers were keeping the ball alive on every occasion and the earlier pressure started to take its toll on Ripon. Good handling and a break by Martin saw Storey score a converted try and slight of hand by Trivella put Matt Wood in for another try to increase Tigers lead to 41-14. On sixty five minutes Tigers used their final replacement when Nick Barker came on for Wood. In the final five minutes two further tries were scored by Storey, after an excellent solo run, and George Leach, who outpaced the Ripon defence along the touchline to score under the posts. Martin converted one of the two to make the final score 53-14.
This was a very good win in a rather disjointed match against a courageous Ripon side that never gave up. However, Tigers showed once again that they play for the full 80 minutes and pose attacking threats from anywhere on the pitch.
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12/03/05 - Tigers 1st XV Martin just beats Warren to the ‘Ton Up’ in Yorkshire League 2 Win
Sheffield Tigers 42 - North Ribbledale 6
In almost perfect conditions Tigers quickly took control of the match. The first score came after 7 minutes when scrum-half Dave Holmes made a break round the front of a lineout, and at the ensuing ruck North Ribblesdale were penalised. Stand-off Eugene Martin slotted over the kick. Midway through the half Tigers really stretched their lead with three scores in four minutes, the first of which was a second Martin penalty. At the restart No 8 Mike Schmid fielded the kick and fed flanker Chris Peel who drove into the opposition before the ball went through the hands of centre Doug Trivella, full back Matt Walker, wing Wayne Warren, back to Walker and into Trivella who scored under the posts. Martin converted to make him the first Tigers player to reach 100 points this season. This try was quickly followed with another credited to hooker Tom Ryder when a rolling maul from a lineout made it over the line. North Ribbledale were being starved of ball but they did open their account with a penalty by stand-off Adam Whaites after 27 minutes. Tigers continued to dominate and had a succession of forward drives which almost made the line, but when they were awarded a scrum they moved the ball wide and Walker came into the line at pace to score a try converted by Martin. With half time approaching Tigers stretched their lead further when another Walker incursion gave Warren enough space to sprint in at the corner and make him the second player to reach the 100 point mark for the season. This gave Tigers a 32-3 lead at the interval.
The first 10 – 15 minutes of the second half belonged to North Ribbledale as they kept Tigers pinned deep in their own half. Stout defence kept them at bay and eventually a big tackle by Trivella knocked the ball loose and Tigers were able to clear their lines. Tigers then reasserted themselves and got another try from a rolling maul from a lineout. This time prop Harry Toews emerged with the ball. Martin’s conversion kick from wide out drifted onto the post and bounced out. Ten minutes later Tigers were on the scoreboard again when quick hands by flanker Ian Cutts got the ball to wing George Leach who sprinted 40 metres to score an unconverted try. In the final 10 minutes Tigers could have had three more tries by Walker, Trivella and Schmid, but on each occasion the referee spotted a minor infringement. It was North Ribblesdale who had the last word as replacement flanker Adam Stubbs dropped a goal with the last kick of the game.
This was another solid performance from the team, and with 3 of last week’s starting XV against Sidmouth on the touchline demonstrates the strength in depth in the squad.
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05/03/05 - Tigers 1st XV Sink Seasiders Sidmouth in Semi-Final of PowerGen Junior Vase
Sidmouth 34 - Sheffield Tigers 36
Tigers reached Twickenham for the second time in 5 years after a pulsating match in South Devon played in front of a large crowd of over 1000 spectators. On a sunny day Tigers kicked off with the stiff cool wind behind them. Early pressure from Sidmouth resulted in an attacking line-out that was stolen by line-out specialist Chris Peel, a pattern that was repeated several times during the match. Although the clearance kick by stand off Eugene Martin did not find touch Sidmouth gave away a penalty just inside their half and Martin was successful with the long kick to give Tigers an early three point lead. A further mistake by Sidmouth saw centre Rob Pound pick up a loose ball and quick hands released winger George Leach who sped to the corner to increase Tigers lead by a further five points. It was then Tiger’s turn to make a mistake when they knocked-on from a scrum and from the resulting scrum the Sidmouth number 8 picked up to run in unopposed from 25 metres and reduce Tigers lead to just three points. A quick tap kick in the Sidmouth half from a penalty award then went wrong for Tigers when the ball was lost in the Sidmouth twenty-two and from a clearance kick the ball bounced horribly backwards into the hands of the Sidmouth winger who raced through to score a fortuitous try from sixty metres. This was converted to give Sidmouth a 12-8 lead. Tigers hit back with the best move of the match. A pass from scrum-half David Holmes to Martin was turned back inside to centre John Storey who then fed the ball outside again to full-back Matt Walker who sped through the huge gap that had been created in the Sidmouth defence. Martin converted to restore Tigers lead (15-12). Both sets of forwards were finding it hard to gain supremacy but Tigers were continually looking to play 15 man rugby. On 39 minutes Pound was replaced by Doug Trivella due to injury and on the stroke of half-time Tigers stuck again. Sidmouth line-out ball was again stolen and after good handling by the backs winger Wayne Warren was taken high by the Sidmouth full-back who was sin-binned and a penalty try awarded. Martin again converted to give Tigers a 22-12 interval lead.
Tigers now faced the wind and only 14 players but the second half started badly when the ball was spilled into the hands of the Sidmouth winger who ran through to reduce Tigers lead to just 5 points. Tigers forwards and backs then put together a nice passage of interchange along the touch line and a flowing move across the pitch and back again saw Warren finish excellently in the corner. Martin converted from the touchline to increase the lead to 29-17. If Tigers thought they could now close out the game with 25 minutes left they were stunned when good handling and strong running saw Sidmouth score a very good converted try under the posts. This made the score 29-24 to Tigers with neither pack of forwards yielding. Then the Sidmouth backs kicked ahead twice and a race to the corner saw a Sidmouth three-quarter touch down and a good conversion gave Sidmouth a 31-29 lead with less than 10 minutes remaining. Tigers were finding it hard to get into the Sidmouth half and all seemed lost when a penalty was conceded on their 22 metre line and Sidmouth added a further three points with injury time approaching. Tigers now needed to score a try to level the scores. As has happened on several previous occasions this season the pack rolled up their sleeves and produced one last mammoth effort. In the seventh minute of injury time after a long kick to the corner an excellent catch and drive by the pack saw prop Alan Wall cross the line under a mass of bodies. The referee was superbly placed and awarded the try that levelled the scores at thirty four points all. From the right hand touchline Martin had a kick to put Tigers in the lead. With nearly 1000 voices roaring at him to miss he held his nerve to slot the kick between the posts and re-establish the lead for Tigers. In a further two minutes of nail-biting injury time Sidmouth were contained by Tigers who deservedly reached the final with their never-say-die attitude.
Sidmouth are to be thanked for their excellent organisation, hospitality and the gracious way in which they wished Tigers well for the final despite the obvious disappointment of their defeat. Tiger’s supporters also deserve the thanks of the club and players for making the long 500 mile round trip. Everyone now looks forward to the final of the Junior Vase at Twickenham on April 16th against Solihull.
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Reproduced with permission from Nigel Chanter. For more pictures visit www.sportactionphotos.co.uk and follow the links from Galleries to Rugby. |
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26/02/05 - Tigers 1st XV Strength Tells Again to Stay Top of Yorkshire League 2
Pocklington 8 - Sheffield Tigers 43
This match very much followed the pattern of the two previous encounters between these teams this season, with the game likely to go either way at half time, but Tigers strength and fitness coming to the fore in the second half for a comfortable victory. Pocklington elected to play with the wind and slight slope in the first half and opened the scoring after 8 minutes with a penalty by stand off Kevin Bowling. Tigers attacked from the restart and were awarded a penalty which was put into touch at the corner. From the lineout Tigers drove over for flanker Mike Schmidt to be credited with the touchdown, Tigers’ 100th try of the season. Stand off Eugene Martin kicked a superb conversion from a wide angle into the wind. Within a minute there was a repeat performance at the other end as a Pocklington penalty from the restart gave them the position for a lineout and rolling maul to put flanker Scott Littlefair over for an unconverted try. For the next 20 minutes neither side could get on top and the nearest threat of a try came from an incisive Pocklington midfield break which foundered close to line when the player went to ground. With 5 minutes of the half left Pocklington had a chance to extend their lead with an easy penalty in front of goal. They declined the opportunity and went for the lineout in the corner. Twice Tigers were penalised at the lineout and at the third successive lineout on the Tigers 5 metre line lock James Norris pinched the Pocklington throw and the pressure was relieved to restrict Pocklington to an 8– 7 lead at the break.
Eight minutes into the second half Tigers took the lead when the ball was moved blind from a scrum and full back Matt Walker took on the defence on the outside before passing inside to wing Wayne Warren to score a try converted by Martin. Pocklington were now beginning to tire and aggressive defence by Tigers meant that they had to mount attacks off the back foot. A loose kick from defence was fielded by replacement flanker Doug Trivella near the right hand touchline. The ball was quickly moved across the threequarters where Walker’s incursion at pace set up Warren who stepped inside the full back for his second try. Martin, who was having his most controlled game of the season, again converted and Tigers were now firmly in control. Hooker Tom Ryder thought he was next on the score sheet when he forced his way over the line from close range but the referee adjudged that there had been a double movement and penalised him. Tigers didn’t have long to wait for a score as within a minute turnover ball was moved quickly to Walker who had the pace to finish. Martin converted. In the last 10 minutes Tigers scored three further tries, none of which was converted. The first came from a break by Martin through a tight defence. He found replacement prop Tim Fearn on his shoulder and he unselfishly shipped the ball on to Trivella to score. This was followed by a slick midfield move from a scrum which put centre John Storey through the gap with Walker on hand to finish. The final try came with the last move of the match. Winger George Leach held onto a loose pass at pace deep in his own half and sprinted 50 metres up the touchline before cutting infield to find Trivella who scored in the far corner.
This was a strong team performance against a good young team that was lying second in the League prior to the match, and was a good test before next week’s Powergen Junior Vase Semi-Final match away to Sidmouth.
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19/02/05 - Tigers 1st XV Ten Try Triumph - What a Storey! to Maintain Lead in Yorkshire League 2
Sheffield Tigers 58 - Scarborough 8
Centre John Storey scored 4 tries in Tigers’ comprehensive win over Scarborough. Having had a poor season up to Christmas, Scarborough came into this game with some confidence having won their last three League matches, and after only 2 minutes took the lead with a penalty. It wasn’t long before Tigers replied when quickly recycled ball put hooker Tom Ryder free to run through the full back and score on his first start for the 1st XV. Midway through the half Tigers confirmed their dominance with two tries in fairly quick succession. The first came when flanker Matt Wood, coming off a lineout, got the defence on the back foot. Quickly recycled ball saw a long pass from centre Rob Pound release winger Wayne Warren for a 40 metre run to squeeze past the defence at the corner. Stand off Richard Butler converted. A few minutes later No. 8 Mike Schmid accelerated through a gap and found full back Matt Walker in support for an excellent finish. Although Tigers held the upper hand Scarborough had opportunities to keep in touch, but kickable penalties were missed. Tigers finished the half when, after a series of quick rucks, centre John Storey got through on the short side for an unconverted try to give Tigers a 22-3 half time lead.
Five minutes into the second half Tigers stretched their lead when scrum half Dave Holmes pressurised his opposite number into an error at the base of the scrum. The loose ball was snapped up and moved wide for Warren to sprint from half way for his second try. Tigers’ pressure was forcing errors and from a Scarborough knock on Storey picked up the loose ball at pace and finished from 50 metres. Butler converted. The restart kick did not go 10 metres and Schmid broke off the ensuing scrum to make 40 metres before passing inside to the support. A fortunate bounce from a head saw the ball land in Storey’s arms for him to complete his hat trick. Butler again converted. Scarborough changed their tactics in the second half, and instead of releasing ball to their backs, who were making mistakes under pressure, they kept ball close to their workmanlike pack. This allowed them to get some continuity going and after a period of pressure in the Tigers 22 were rewarded with a try when they took a quick penalty close to the posts and moved it wide for their flanker to score in the corner. Tigers responded with a good try when Warren fielded a kick deep in his own half. He set up a counter attack which saw the ball go through a number of hands before replacement flanker Doug Trivella burst onto the final pass to score at the posts and give Butler an easy conversion. Tigers further stretched their lead in the last 5 minutes with two more tries, the first by Storey from a quick penalty and the second when an injection of pace into the threequarter line by Walker saw Pound take the inside pass for the try to complete an emphatic win for Tigers.
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12/02/05 - Tigers 1st XV Forwards Lead the Way into PowerGen Junior Vase Semi-Final
Sheffield Tigers 22 - Anselmians 3
The game was played in difficult conditions. Over night rain had made for a wet pitch and a strong cold wind and heavy showers throughout the day made a handling game nearly impossible.
Anselmians kicked off the first half with the wind slightly in their favour and were unlucky when an early penalty kick hit the post. The play consisted of a succession of knock-ons and scrums as both sides tried to get to grips with the conditions. The first score came after a Tigers forward drive when Anselmians were judged to be offside and Richard Butler landed a good kick to give Tigers a 3-0 lead. This stirred Anselmians into a period of their own forward pressure and Murray King levelled scores with an excellent penalty kick from wide out. Tigers were having to defend as the 20 minute mark was reached and Butler was putting in some good clearance kicks. After 25 minutes Tigers pushed Anselmians off their scrum ball and from a penalty decision Butler landed the kick from 25 metres to give Tigers a 6-3 lead. A rare handling move by Tigers backs and a long kick to the corner saw Tigers pack start to ask real questions of Anselmians but they were met with stern defence by the opposition. Despite the pressure by Tigers it was Anselmians who threatened to score when a quick drop out and long kick to touch saw play rapidly go the length of the field. However, as half-time neared Tigers forwards worked the ball out of their half and Butler kicked another good penalty from an offside decision to give the home side a deserved 9-3 lead. The players were glad to retreat to the changing rooms for the interval.
The second half started with a strong rally from the Anselmians forwards and Tigers were grateful for relieving kicks by Butler and John Storey. As the sun came out Tigers replaced Chris Peel with Doug Trivella and soon after Butler added a further penalty to the score, again for an offside decision. The kicking game continued from Tigers, pinning the visitors in their own 22. A good narrow side run by Storey and a forward drive from the lineout saw prop Alan Wall get over the line to increase the lead to 17-3. Tigers were now firmly in control and were unlucky not to score again when they were held up over the line. However, at the resulting scrum Dave Holmes put pressure on his opposite scrum half and Ian Cutts scored the final try of the match to give Tigers a thoroughly deserved 22-3 victory.
The referee Andrew Gardner had an excellent game and the two referees’ assistants, Barry Dalby and John Large are to be admired for running touch in short sleeved shirts!
Praise must also be given to both teams for their efforts in dreadful playing conditions; although there were concerns after the game that an Anselmians player may have been suffering from hypothermia.
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05/02/05 - Tigers 1st XV In Repeat Score Double Over West Park Bramhope in Yorkshire League 2
West Park Bramhope 6 - Sheffield Tigers 12
This was a somewhat frustrating game for both teams as there were only limited periods of continuity due to a very high penalty count. West Park opened the scoring after 15 minutes with a penalty by centre Jimmy Lowes. Tigers best chance of getting on the scoreboard came 10 minutes later when a maul set up on the 22m line rumbled to within a metre of the West Park line before the referee spotted an infringement and awarded a penalty. This allowed the home team to clear their lines and retain a 3-0 lead at the break.
Early in the second half a period of pressure deep in the West Park half eventually resulted in a Tigers try. A rolling maul from a lineout crossed the line and prop Alan Wall was credited with the try, his fifth in the last 4 games. Stand off Eugene Martin added the extra points with a well struck conversion from the touchline. Tigers were beginning to get the upper hand but kept putting themselves under pressure by trying to play adventurous rugby in their own half. This made it difficult watching for the Tigers supporters and they were relieved on those occasions when centre John Storey put in good diagonal kicks to force West Park back into their own half. With 15 minutes to go West Park brought the score back to within one point with another Lowes penalty. Sensing victory could be theirs they took every opportunity to attack. This backfired on them when full-back Nightingale marked a high kick into his 22. He took a quick tap kick and as he tried to float a pass to his support, Doug Trivella, who had been prominent since coming on as a replacement flanker, intercepted to go over for an unconverted try. Although West Park mounted a series of attacks on the Tigers line in the last few minutes the defence held tight to leave the final score 12-6 to Tigers, an identical result to their first League encounter earlier in the season.
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29/01/05 - Tigers 1st XV Win Again to Maintain Lead at Top of Yorkshire League 2
Sheffield Tigers 34 - Heath 5
Tigers took control of the game right from the start putting the Heath pack under pressure in both scrum and lineout. The first score came after 5 minutes when a good lineout take by ‘Man of the Match’ lock Chris Peel set up a maul which rolled over the line for prop Alan Wall to be credited with an unconverted try. The exercise was repeated 5 minutes later, this time hooker Harry Toews emerging with the ball. Stand off Richard Butler converted. As the half progressed the match became a bit stop-start with a lot of mistakes and stopages for injury interrupting the flow. Tigers should have extended their lead on a couple of occasions. The first was when a neat pass by centre John Storey gave winger George Leach a little bit of space which he used well, but his inside pass to the support was adjudged forward. A few minutes later Toews broke up the middle but the scoring pass was knocked on, so the teams turned round with the score 12-0 in Tigers favour.
Early in the second half Butler extended the lead with a penalty and, soon after centre Rudi Froneman made a penetrating break. Full back Rob Pound was in support to give the ball to replacement flanker Mike Schmid for a try with his first touch of the ball on his Tigers debut. On the 15 minute mark Tigers scored again when flankers Ed Knaggs and Ian Cutts showed excellent handling skills under pressure to get the ball to winger Wayne Warren. He stepped inside the full back for a try converted by Butler. Schmid was soon back on the score sheet when he was in support of another Froneman break, Butler again converting. Tigers found themselves reduced to 14 when Froneman picked up a leg injury and all 3 replacements were already on the field. They played the last 10 minutes reduced to 13 men when the Heath scrum half took a quick penalty and ran straight at the retreating pack. The referee adjudged that the forwards weren’t getting back fast enough and showed the yellow card. Heath got a consolation try when centre Martin White broke through the middle of the depleted defence. The conversion was missed leaving the final score 34-5 to Tigers.
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22/01/05 - Tigers 1st XV Frozen Pitch Postponement of Yorkshire League 2 at Leodiensians
Leodiensians P - Sheffield Tigers P
Tigers League match away at Leodiensians was postponed due to overnight below zero temperatures resulting in a frozen pitch.
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15/01/05 - Tigers 1st XV Power on to PowerGen Junior Vase Quarter Finals
Sheffield Tigers 48 - Heaton Moor 8
An excellent team performance saw Tigers run out comfortable winners against Stockport neighbours Heaton Moor who came into the game unbeaten since September. The visitors started the more confident of the two teams and odd flashes from their threequarters showed that they had the potential to score tries if they could secure good possession. Tigers by contrast seemed a little anxious and gave away a number of early penalties, mainly for offside. Heaton Moor opened the scoring after 6 minutes when wing Zandar Claassen converted one of these penalties. Tigers replied with a penalty by Richard Butler some 5 minutes later. By midway through the half the Heaton Moor pack was under pressure in the scrum and having to work very hard for possession, and it looked as if Tigers were just being to get the ascendancy. Five minutes before the interval Tigers got the critical score when a rolling maul saw prop Alan Wall credited with the try. Butler’s conversion in the gusting wind hit the post and bounced off, but it left Tigers with an 8-3 half time lead.
Tigers started the second half with a bang when wing Wayne Warren ran a kick out of defence and linked with full back Matt Walker to attack the right hand side. Good linking and quick recycling saw the ball moved wide to the far touchline where Warren had space to go over for an unconverted try. A Butler penalty 5 minutes later gave Tigers a two score cushion and from then on they dominated the match. After 18 minutes centre John Storey made one of his trademark breaks bursting through three or fours tackles before he was stopped short of the line but hooker Harry Toews was on hand to finish. A few minutes later a Storey kick bounced off a Heaton Moor player into the arms of Warren who offloaded to centre Rudi Froneman, having his best game since joining Tigers, to score under the posts, Butler converting. The Heaton Moor restart didn’t go 10 metres and from the resulting scrum Walker made a good break to set up a ruck near the line. Heaton Moor were penalised and a quick tap penalty was moved left to get Warren in for his second try. After 30 minutes it was fellow wing George Leach who got on the score sheet when he gathered a clever tactical kick by prop John Ashley and squeezed in at the corner.
In the second half the Heaton Moor pack had tired and their threequarters were starved of ball, but they showed what they were capable of doing when they worked winger Paul Nixon in for an unconverted try. Tigers came back with another two tries in the last five minutes. The first came when flanker Ed Knaggs pinched a Heaton Moor lineout ball close to the line and prop Ashley completed the hat trick of tries for the ‘front row union’. The final try came on the 80 minute mark when a poor clearance kick was fielded by Warren who made some ground before feeding inside to replacement flanker Doug Trivella to score the unconverted try and leave the final score 48-8.
The large crowd had been treated to an excellent game with both teams contributing to the spectacle. Tigers advantage came from the individuals working as a team with all 15 players comfortable with ball in hand. The strength of the squad was demonstrated when second half substitutions saw all four replacements settle into the team pattern and make positive contributions.
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08/01/05 - Tigers 1st XV Pack Builds Solid Foundation for Wall in Yorkshire League 2 Victory
Sheffield Tigers 25 - Old Brodleians 5
A very workmanlike performance from the pack gave Tigers their third win over Old Brodleians this season, with prop Alan Wall scoring two tries. Brods played with a very strong wind advantage in the first half and put early pressure on Tigers, but a well organised defence afforded them no real opportunities. It was 15 minutes into the game before Tigers first got into the Brods half and begin to gain some territorial advantage. Midway through the half they had a series of penalties on the Brods 5 metre line but each time the driving maul was stopped short of the line and eventually a knock-on gave Brods the scrum at which Tigers were penalised and they were able to clear their lines. A midfield break by the Brods centre gave them a real opportunity to open the scoring but new centre Rudi Froneman chased back to make the tackle and slow down the momentum. However, it did give Brods a foothold deep in Tigers half and a few minutes later they managed to squeeze their right winger in at the corner for an unconverted try. The conditions were such that as half time approached it was clear that a 5 point lead was unlikely to be enough. With a couple of minutes to go to the break stand off Richard Butler drilled a low kick towards the corner and good chasing by winger George Leach forced Brods to concede the lineout close to their line. The Tigers pack got a rolling maul going from the lineout and hooker Harry Toews touched down to make the half time score 5 – 5.
Tigers turned round to get the wind advantage and accurate tactical kicking by Richard Butler kept Brods pinned in their own half. A combination of short drives and rolling mauls by the Tigers pack was visibly sapping the strength of the Brods forwards and it was no great surprise when Tigers got another try from a rolling lineout maul, this time Alan Wall being credited with the score, his first for a few seasons. A few minutes later Tigers extended their lead when a blind side burst by Rudi Froneman pressured the Brods line. When the ball was quickly recycled a delayed pass by Richard Butler to centre John Storey on the burst put him in under the posts to give Butler an easy conversion. By now the pack was in complete control of the forward battle and Alan Wall got over for his second try. Butler wrapped up the match with a penalty 5 minutes from the end to make the final score 25 – 5.
The conditions were such that this could have been a shambles of a match, but it is to the credit of both teams that there were few unforced errors and both teams played their rugby to suit the conditions.
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18/12/04 - Tigers 1st XV Penalty Try aids Progress in PowerGen Junior Vase
Sheffield Tigers 24 - Pocklington 9
Recent form had suggested that this was going to be a tough game to call and the larger than normal crowd was treated to a very competitive match. Pocklington opened the scoring after only 5 minutes with a penalty by their inside centre and only a minute later increased their lead. An interception gifted them what seemed like a certain try but wing George Leach got back to make a brilliant tackle over the line, getting his body under the ball and preventing the touch down. However, from the ensuing 5 metre scrum the Pocklington stand-off dropped a goal. Although Pocklington had controlled the early play Tigers began to put some pressure on them and were rewarded with a penalty kicked by stand off Eugene Martin. Within a minute Pocklington had restored their 6 point lead through another penalty by their centre. Tigers best chance of a try in the first half came after 25 minutes when, following a series of forward drives, the pack crossed the line but the ball was adjudged to have been held up. The 5 metre scrum was a perfect platform for launching a try scoring attack but the ball was lost against the head and Pocklington were able to relieve the pressure and retain their 9 – 3 lead at half time.
As the second half progressed Tigers forward strength appeared to be taking its toll. In the first half Pocklington had been attacking the Tigers lineouts, having some success in disrupting them, but now Tigers were winning better ball and beginning to put pressure on through rolling mauls. However, the Pocklinton defence was holding out and they were not going to surrender their lead easily. The critical moment of the game came midway through the half. Tigers had a 5m scrum and were going for a pushover try when the scrum went down. The scrum was reset and the drive came on again. When the scrum collapsed a couple of metres from the line referee, Mr Ageraint-Roberts, had no hesitation in awarding a penalty try which was converted by Eugene Martin to give Tigers a one point lead. This changed the complexion of the game with Tigers playing with more confidence and Pocklington having to open up the play more than they would have if they had been defending a lead. Aggressive pressure defence by Tigers forced errors and turnovers and they were able to stretch their lead with 10 minutes to go. Quick ball from a ruck to the blind side allowed winger Wayne Warren to beat two defenders in the tightest of spaces and squeeze in at the corner. Eugene Martin converted to give Tigers a two score cushion. Tigers sealed the match in the closing seconds of the game when another turnover ball was moved wide to allow full back Matt Walker score. Eugene Martin was again successful with the touchline conversion to make the final score 24 – 9, a margin that somewhat belies the closeness of the contest.
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11/12/04 - Tigers 1st XV Drop Point in Uninspiring Draw in Yorkshire League 2
Castleford 10 - Sheffield Tigers 10
Tigers suffered their first League set back of the season when they could only manage an uninspiring draw against mid-table Castleford. Castleford, who are unbeaten at home this season, couldn’t have asked for a better start as within one minute they were 3 – 0 up through a drop goal by their stand-off. For most of the first half the play was fairly scrappy with a number of unforced errors. Tigers had territorial advantage and their pack was getting the upper hand in scrums and mauls but they rarely retained possession for a number of phases nor looked like penetrating the solid Castleford defence. An injury to scrum half Neil Pearson forced Tigers to rearrange an already unfamiliar back division by moving flanker Ian Cutts into the centre on the half hour mark. As the first half came to an end Tigers eventually got their reward for putting some pressure on Castleford when stand off Eugene Martin stroked over a penalty which bounced off the cross bar. From the restart Tigers moved the ball wide to the left wing where there was some space but the referee adjudged one of the passes to be forward. From the ensuing scrum a neat move by the Castleford backs saw their winger squeeze over for a good try which was converted to give Castleford the pyschological advantage at the interval of a 10 - 3 lead.
In the second half Castleford weren’t going to let the advantage slip away but they never really threatened to increase their lead. The half was punctuated by a lot of injuries and unforced errors continued to be made. Neither side got much continuity going. It was only as the match drew to a close that Tigers began to mount real pressure for the first time in the game. In the last few minutes full back Doug Trivella got stopped a couple of metres out when he looked like scoring and then centre John Storey, tackled short, got the ball over the line but referee adjudged it to be a double movement and penalised Tigers. Although Castleford were able to clear their lines Tigers got momentum going through a series of sustained drives and the ball was eventually released for John Storey to force his way over. Eugene Martin converted and the final whistle went for a 10 – 10 draw.
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04/12/04 - Tigers 1st XV Twenty on the Trot To Take Honours in Top of the Table Clash
Sheffield Tigers 27 - Bradford Salem 6
A Tigers victory in this top of the table League clash took their winning run to 20 games and consolidated their position at the top of the League. Both teams came into the match appreciating the need to make a good start and a John Storey penalty after 3 minutes should have settled any Tigers’ nerves, but Salem replied almost immediately with a penalty of their own through their stand-off. He then gave Salem the lead a couple of minutes later with a well taken drop goal. The importance of the game encouraged a safety first approach with both stand-offs kicking to set up positions from which to launch attacks. Mid way through the first half it was a pressure defence on one of Salem’s attacks in the Tigers half that set up the first try. They forced a loose ball which was picked up at pace by winger Wayne Warren who skinned his opposite number and sprinted 60 metres to score an unconverted try.
It is impossible to find words to adequately describe Tigers second try which had confidence and class written all over it, and some older spectators were saying they couldn’t remember having seen a better try scored at Dore Moor. Salem were pressurising Tigers when full back Matt Walker got possession close to his goal line. The obvious course of action was to kick for touch to relieve the pressure but Walker had the vision to notice Wayne Warren had a little bit of space on the outside and passed instead. Warren beat the first defender on the outside and as he approached half way cut infield where he found support in numbers. The lines of running from these support players and highest quality handling skills at pace overwhelmed the defence and centre Owen Evans scored at the posts to give John Storey a straightforward conversion. Shortly before half time captain Rob Pound had to limp off with a leg injury which gave Doug Trivella his first outing for 3 months having injured his elbow in the first match of the season.
With a 15-6 lead at the break Tigers started to gradually get the upper hand and dominate possession. However they had to wait until the 25th minute of the half before extending their lead. A short series of forward drives released good ball which allowed John Storey, who had moved in from centre to the stand off position, to attack a wide blind side. He drew the defence in towards him to make enough space for ‘Man of the Match’ Wayne Warren to squeeze in at the corner. Tigers sealed their victory in the dying minutes with a 30 metre solo effort from John Storey who came round the front of the remnants of a lineout to score in the corner. He was successful with the difficult conversion to make the final score 27-6.
This well deserved win showed that the team has the ability to raise its game against good opposition. The solid Salem pack made Tigers work hard for set piece possession and on one occasion nearly got a rolling maul from a lineout some 15 metres out over the line. The return encounter at Bradford, which is the final League game of the season, will undoubtedly be a tough encounter.
While Wayne Warren took the Man of the Match award, the week-in-week-out contributions from other players has not gone unnoticed, namely prop Alan Wall, No. 8 Matt Wood, outside centre Owen Evans and winger George Leach who have all been outstanding.
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27/11/04 - Tigers 1st XV Hat Trick for Wayne in Win over Wath in PowerGen Junior Vase
Sheffield Tigers 56 - Wath-upon-Dearne 0
Tigers were always in control of this Powergen Junior Vase encounter with the pack providing plenty of good possession in the set pieces and turning over ball in the loose. The first score came after 12 minutes when lock Ed Knaggs drove 10 metres from the back of a maul and popped up a pass to hooker Harry Toews who ran through the full back to score under the posts, centre John Storey converting. Some promising attacks were breaking down due to knock ons and it was a further 10 minutes before the second try came. Again the forwards were prominent, forcing the Wath defence to retreat and when flanker Ian Cutts made one of his telling drives a quick ball allowed John Storey to weight a long pass perfectly for winger Wayne Warren to take it at pace and cross the line for an unconverted try. From the restart Tigers didn’t control the ball and Wath were able to pressure their line, but the defence was solid. Full back Matt Walker initiated a counterattack from a turnover ball and when he was stopped on the halfway line flanker Jack Hennings was on hand to keep the momentum going. From the ensuing ruck stand off Rob Pound made an incisive break before passing to Jon Storey who scored under the posts to give himself an easy conversation. On the half hour mark Tigers took a scrum against the head near the Wath line, set up a midfield ruck, and quick hands and determined finishing saw George Leach score at the corner. John Storey completed the first half scoring with a penalty to give Tigers 27 – 0 lead going into the break.
It didn’t take long for George Leach to get onto the score sheet again when only 1 minute into the second half a little chip and chase gave him his second try. By now the tight Tigers defence meant that when Wath got possession they often had little option but to kick and this allowed Tigers to counterattack. Full back Matt Walker ran the ball back at them at pace and committed defenders to set up two more unconverted tries for Wayne Warren either side of a solo effort by John Storey, who took a quick tap penalty to run over unopposed for a try that he converted himself. The final try came when a rolling maul from a lineout was held up just short of the line. The ball came wide to Matt Walker who stood up the full back before accelerating outside him. The conversion was missed to leave the final score 56 – 0 in Tigers’ favour, just reward for a good team effort where all players were prominent at some stage and worked hard to support their team mates.
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20/11/04 - Tigers 1st XV Heavy Snowfall causes Postponement of Yorkshire League 2 Match
Sheffield Tigers P - Ripon P
Tigers League match was postponed due to a heavy snowfall followed by below zero temperatures at the end of the week leaving the Dore Moor pitches unuseable.
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13/11/04 - Tigers 1st XV Last Minute Victory in Yorkshire League 2
Old Brodleians 15 - Sheffield Tigers 16
Tigers maintained their unbeaten record with the last kick of the game in this low scoring, but competitive, league match. Any thoughts that there would be a repeat of the early season Powergen Vase when Tigers won by 62 points to 5 were quickly dispelled when Brods almost scored from the kick off, Tigers being saved by a knock on just short of the line. The much changed Brods pack was making the Tigers eight work a lot harder than in the previous encounter and they took the lead with a penalty after 5 minutes. Tigers almost equalised 5 minutes later when winger George Leach took an inside pass from full back Matt Walker but was held up over the line. Brods stretched their lead midway though the half when they took a quick free kick and found forwards defending against backs. Their fullback had the pace to beat the defence for an unconverted try. Soon afterwards scrum half Dave Holmes injured his arm and had to be replaced. Flanker Ian Cutts moved into the backs and Jack Hennings came on at flanker. With Brods having the considerable advantages of slope, wind and sun in the first half it was important that Tigers kept in touch. A well struck John Storey penalty from 40 metres reduced the lead and the teams turned round at half time with Brods 8 – 3 up.
Tigers equalised early in the second half when a rolling maul from a lineout crossed the line for a try credited to Jack Hennings. Brods nearly regained the lead a couple of minutes later when a penalty struck the bar and Tigers had to scramble the ball away. It was then Tigers turn to apply the pressure and they were awarded a series of penalties in the Brods 22. Instead of going for the 3 points which would have given them a lead they went for the lineout each time. Brods held out and Tigers, who by this time were looking to have control of the game, had to wait until the 28th minute of the second half before taking the lead. A series of forward drives aimed at the heart of the Brods midfield defence made ground before a quick ball was released and a long pass from Rob Pound, who had moved in to stand off, found Matt Walker coming into the line at pace to score an unconverted try and put Tigers ahead for the first time. With only 5 minutes left Brods got their second try from a quick penalty. This time it was their scrum half who tapped to himself and darted over to level the scores. The successful conversion gave them a 15 - 13 lead and the large home crowd was ecstatic. To their credit Tigers responded and raised their game, getting into the Brods half and mounting attacks through forwards and backs. They got close to scoring a couple of times but as the game drew to a close it looked as Brods would get the points. In the third minute of injury time Tigers mounted what would have been the last play of the game, and when Brods turned over the ball at a ruck in front of the posts the ref made a brave decision to award a penalty for hands in the ruck. John Storey tapped over the kick and the final whistle went to the relief of both Tigers team and their supporters.
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06/11/04 - Tigers 1st XV Nine Tries Takes Them Through To 4th Round of PowerGen Junior Vase
Sheffield Tigers 57 - Ashbourne 17
Tigers continued their Powergen Vase campaign with a convincing win over East Midlands club Ashbourne. Tigers looked like opening the scoring after only 2 minutes when an interception by stand off Eugene Martin nearly got wing George Leach over the line. Ashbourne were able to relieve the pressure when they were awarded a penalty for a scrumage offence, and they soon had Tigers under a bit of pressure when there was indecision in fielding a high kick under the posts. Ashbourne mounted a few attacks but Tigers replied in the best possible way when they spotted an overlap situation on their own line and winger Wayne Warren ran 75 metres before needing the support of flanker Harry Toews to finish the try, converted by centre John Storey. The pack was beginning to rumble and following a series of drives a quick release and a well timed pass by full back Matt Walker allowed George Leach to break through two tackles before passing back inside to Walker for an unconverted try. The same players were involved in the next try only this time Leach was set free to score himself, John Storey getting the conversion. By this stage Tigers were dominating but Ashbourne were still having their moments. They almost got over in the corner but the try was saved when George Leach intercepted, beat a man and sprinted the length of the field to score under the posts. John Storey converted. After 35 minutes Matt Walker completed his hat trick from a neat inside pass from John Storey. Storey’s conversion gave Tigers a 33–0 lead at the interval.
Tigers’ job became harder 5 minutes into the second half when a red card saw them reduced to 14 men. The handicap didn’t affect them initially as almost immediately Wayne Warren beat two men tight to the touchline to squeeze in at the corner, and 10 minutes later, following a quick penalty, Eugene Martin spotted space wide out and a long ball sent Matt Walker across the line unopposed for his hat trick. Ashbourne, to their credit, hadn’t capitulated and there was a big cheer when their open side flanker opened their account with an unconverted try. Matt Walker, who had been prominent all afternoon, set up the next try for Tigers when he fielded a clearing kick around half way, beat three men, and then good support from backs and forwards got the ball to centre Rob Pound who forced his way over. By now the handicap of being one man short was beginning to tell in defence and Ashbourne took advantage with tries scored by their scrum half and their centre who converted his own try. However it was Tigers who had the last word when Harry Toews took the ball up the middle to commit defenders and then offload to replacement wing Owen Evans for a try converted by John Storey that made the final score 57–17.
Tigers 2nd XV Win Well at Wheatley Hills
Wheatley Hills 0 - Sheffield Tigers 19
Tigers 2nd XV overcame a tough looking assignment to win fairly comfortably away at Wheatley Hills.
After an even opening quarter Tigers started to gain the ascendancy and Wheatley Hills were forced to give penalties away in an attempt to slow down the Tigers ball. From one of these Richard Butler kicked a simple penalty to open the scoring. Almost straight from the restart Tigers were awarded another penalty just inside the Wheatley Hills half and Richard Butler again confidently struck over the kick.Wheatley Hills were struggling to make any inroads into the Tigers half with the superior kicking of fly-half Richard Butler and the line out dominance enjoyed by Tigers keeping them under pressure. Richard Butler kicked his third penalty of the half shortly before the break to give Tigers a deserved 9-0 half-time lead.
If Tigers had been on top in the first half they were even more prominent in the second, and after Baldry had had a try controversially disallowed, John Francis took advantage of an overlap to score in the corner. The final score of the game came after further Tigers pressure saw Karl Sockett in space and he strolled over to seal the game. Tigers performance had been dominant and they were rarely in their own half throughout an impressive display against opponents from a Yorkshire 1 Club side.
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30/10/04 - Tigers 1st XV Take the Honours in Double Header Yorkshire Shield & League 2 Victory
Sheffield Tigers 43 - Leodiensians 8
In the first few minutes of this game, which was doubling up as a League and a 1st round Yorkshire Shield match, Leodiensians signalled their intentions by moving the ball quickly to their threequarters to try to stretch the Tigers defence. The defence held firm and the Tigers pack gradually began to take control. Sensible kicking by stand off Rob Pound and centre John Storey kept Leos in their own half, and after 15 minutes the pack pinched a Leos ball and a driving maul took them towards the line. A drive by lock James Norris almost saw him there but when stopped, hooker Harry Toews was on hand to score the try. Five minutes later Harry Toews tidied loose lineout ball to initiate a series of forward drives finished by flanker Ian Cutts coming on to the ball at pace to score a try converted by John Storey. Tigers were now in control of the game but three unnecessary mistakes in a couple of minutes changed the situation. The initial mistake came when during a Leos attack which was going nowhere their centre kicked over the back of Tigers flat defensive line and their right wing got to the awkwardly bouncing ball first for an unconverted try. Tigers then failed to get the ball 10 metres from the kick off and from the ensuing scrum Leos got position deep in the Tigers half. Tigers clearing kick didn’t find touch, and the Leos wing returning the kick was obstructed to give them an easy penalty and bring the score back to 12 – 8 and keep Leos in touch at half time.
Leos started the second half confidently but didn’t really look like scoring. Passions were rising in the forwards and after one altercation the referee, who had an excellent game, took a few minutes to cool things down before showing the yellow card and reducing the Tigers pack to seven men. This handicap didn’t affect Tigers and a powerful lineout drive saw prop John Ashley credited with a try. A few minutes later another forward altercation saw a Leos forward sinned binned and by midway through the half Tigers were totally dominant. A neatly threaded grubber kick through the Leos defence by Rob Pound set up the lineout position for the Tigers pack to roll over the line for John Asley to get his second try. Ali Sherlock, who had come on at centre for John Storey early in the second half, had been making his presence felt with some powerful runs, and it was no real surprise when he came onto a short blindside ball to score a try converted by full back Matt Walker. The last five minutes saw two more Tigers tries. The first came when wing George Leach picked up a loose ball around halfway, found Ali Sherlock inside, and when he was tackled he popped the ball up to ‘Man of the Match’ Ian Cutts to score his second try. Winger Wayne Warren finished matters with a dazzling 50 metre run past floundering defenders to score under the posts. Both of the last two tries were converted by Ali Sherlock to leave the final score a well deserved 43 – 8.
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23/10/04 - Tigers 1st XV Maintain Lead in Yorkshire 2 with another victory
Heath 18 - Sheffield Tigers 28
Tigers got off to the perfect start when, after 2 minutes, with their first attack of the game flanker Dan Kerley was in close support for a pop up pass in the tackle from centre John Storey to get over for an unconverted try. Heath came back with a well struck penalty after 4 minutes and took the lead with another penalty after 7 minutes. Some sustained pressure by Tigers, with the three quarters handling slickly, forced the Heath defence into straying offside and stand off Eugene Martin stroked the ball over for Tigers to regain the lead. Eugene Martin extended the lead after 24 minutes with another penalty. Tigers, while not dominating up front, seemed in control of the game and scored their second try just before the half time whistle when, after a few drives close to the pack, scrum half Dave Holmes spotted an undefended blind side and passed to winger Wayne Warren to run in an easy try. A good conversion by Eugene Martin gave Tigers a comfortable 18 - 6 half time lead.
Early in the second half the Heath stand off intercepted on his own line and looked as if he was going to run the length of the pitch to score, but he was chased and caught by Wayne Warren. However, another breakaway a few minutes later after a Tigers knock on, was hacked through and the Heath fly half won the chase to touch down for the try which was converted by their full back. Tigers came back 5 minutes later when they pinched a Heath lineout ball near to their own line and after a few midfield drives, John Storey came onto a short ball at pace to power his way over for a try converted by Eugene Martin. Midway through the half flanker Stewart Holes and scrum half Dan Storey came on for their debut appearances as replacements for Ian Cutts and Dave Holmes. Both were quickly into the game showing their potential in a number of attacks which maintained the pressure on Heath, but solid defence kept Tigers out. On the half hour mark the Tigers defence was slow in retreating to cover a Heath relieving clearance. The Heath Winger took the opportunity to hack the ball on a couple of times before winning the race to touch down over the Tigers line and bring Heath back to within one score with 10 minutes to go. However, Tigers reasserted their authority and forced a penalty in the dying seconds which Eugene Martin kicked to make the final score 28 – 18 in Tigers’ favour.
Tigers 2nd XV Comfortable Winners at Heath
Heath 14 - Sheffield Tigers 42
The second XV had a comfortable win away to Heath. Prominent in the three quarters were stand off Phil Smith with some brave tackling of the big Heath forwards, and Alex Fraser who had a few good runs in the centre. However, it was the pack who took the credits with lock Nick Barker scoring a hat trick of tries and No. 8 Ally Baldrey being Man of the Match.
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16/10/04 - Tigers 1st XV Through To Third Round of Powergen Junior Vase
Sheffield Tigers 22 – Roundhegians 12
With both teams undefeated this season this 2nd round Powergen Junior Vase match was always going to be keenly fought. Tigers got off to a perfect start with a deep kick off forcing Roundhegians to kick for touch. From the resulting lineout on the 22 metre line centre John Storey committed the opposition midfield who conceded a penalty in front of the posts. Stand-off Eugene Martin stroked the ball over for the 3 points. With the referee spotting a lot of infringements not seen by either set of spectators the penalty count was high, and by the half hour mark a couple more successful kicks by Eugene Martin had given Tigers a 9 – 6 lead. Neither side was getting the opportunity to build a series of attacks but the game was enlightened by a couple of electrifying counter attacking runs by Tigers full back Matt Walker. Five minutes before the interval, after pressure under the posts, a quickly recycled ball was moved right and a well timed pass by centre Owen Evans put prop Tim Fearn over for the try wide out. With the conversion missed in the difficult wind conditions it left the score 14 – 6 in Tigers’ favour at half time.
The first half hour of the second half was fairly similar to that of the first half with penalties breaking the rhythm of the game, set piece ball being scrappy, and neither team really threatening the other’s line. The respective kickers swopped penalties and with 10 minutes to go Tigers held a 17 – 9 lead. Another penalty to Roundhegians brought them back to within one score and they realised they weren’t out of the game yet. However, good positional kicking meant that they had to launch attacks from their own half and the solid Tigers defence allowed them to make little headway. The final score came when Tigers turned over ball on the Roundhegians 22 and Eugene Martin threaded a grubber kick through the defence for winger George Leach to touch down for an unconverted try.
John Storey and Owen Evans were outstanding in the centres, Ian Cutts on his starting debut had a solid match at blindside while Alan Wall and Harry Toews maintained their high level of consistency in the front row.
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09/10/04 - Tigers 1st XV Consolidate League Lead in Yorkshire League 2 Victory
Sheffield Tigers 12 - West Park Bramhope 6
The weather turned distinctly autumnal at Dore Moor prior to this match and the strong wind played its part in controlling the pattern of the game. Tigers played with the advantage in the first half and took the lead after 7 minutes. A strike against the head and a miss ball to winger Wayne Warren, created the space for full back Matt Walker to cross at the corner. A well struck conversation by stand off Eugene Martin gave Tigers the extra points. As the game developed both teams were playing some good rugby, with the young West Park threequarter line testing the Tigers defence. Prominent in the defence were winger George Leach, who time and again bottled up man and ball, and the evergreen Dave Holmes who got back to make the necessary cover tackles when the first line of defence was breached.
Mid way through the half a penalty gave West Park a lineout 5 metres out from the Tigers line. The ball was driven towards the line and when it seemed that a try was inevitable the Tigers pack stopped the momentum and drove West Park back so that they were forced to concede the scrum and the pressure was relieved. Although Eugene Martin made a few excellent positional kicks to set up attacking positions, this tactic was under-exploited and the threequarters tried to stretch the defence from too deep in their own half. However, on the half hour mark Tigers increased their lead when a rolling maul from a line out saw Jack Hennings touch down for an unconverted try. A couple of minutes later it looked as if Tigers could score again when very slick handling in the midfield saw Wayne Warren free with space to finish, but the referee deemed that the final pass was forward. Just before half time Tigers were forced into rearranging their pack when what looks like a serious ankle injury saw flanker Pete Walker replaced by prop Tim Fearn. Just when it looked as if Tigers would take a 12 point lead into the break they gave away a penalty under the posts. The West Park stand off stroked the ball over to make the score 12 – 3 at half time, and left the spectators wondering if a 9 point lead was sufficient with West Park having wind advantage in the second half.
Tigers had their moments at the start of the second half with centres Jon Storey and Owen Evans making breaks and, on a couple of occasions, working tight blind sides to free Wayne Warren and Matt Walker. Ten minutes into the half an interception by West Park gave them position for a relatively easy penalty but it was missed. By now West Park were exploiting the wind and keeping Tigers pinned in their own half and beginning to concede too many penalties. West Park shunned the opportunities to turn these into points, going for the lineout and rolling maul option which didn’t cause any real problems for the slightly superior Tigers pack. In the last quarter of an hour West Park started to go for goal from penalties, and although some kickable ones were missed their fly half was successful with one to narrow the gap to 6 points. Although West Park never got the opportunity to win the game, the spectators came away with the feeling that Tigers had had a poor second half. They put themselves under more pressure than was necessary by continuing to try to play an expansive game with long passes in difficult conditions instead of tightening the game up and using the pack’s superiority. However, it was a win against the team placed 3rd in the League and Bradford Salem’s defeat by North Ribblesdale now leaves Tigers as the only team with a 100% record and clear League leaders.
Tigers 3rd XV Fight Back Not Enough
Sheffield Tigers 21 - Doncaster Phoenix II 27
From the very start Tigers 3rds were pinned in their 22 by the wind and a well drilled Doncaster Phoenix 2nds pack. However all this early pressure only yielded 3 points for Doncaster from a penalty directly under the posts. The restart didn’t offer much respite as some well placed kicking pushed Doncaster deep into Tigers half again. The continuing pressure took Doncaster into a 21 – 0 lead at half time.
Backed by the wind Tigers pack forged ahead with young prop Matt Dyson scoring the first of his two tries. Tigers second try closely followed, scored by the veteran prop Gus Honeywell storming over the line and carrying several Doncaster players with him. Against the run of play Doncaster Phoenix did score a break away try but Tigers continued to push on till Matt Dyson scored his second. Captain Eddie O’Neil notched up a 100% kicking record converting all three tries. At the end of the game it was a respectable score against a very organised team with Tigers 3rds dogged determination once again showing they just never give up.
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02/10/04 - Tigers 1st XV Out Scrap Scarborough in Yorkshire League 2 Away Victory
Scarborough 9 - Sheffield Tigers 13
Tigers kicked off only for the ball not to go the required 10 metres. Despite this Tigers made good early pressure tell as Scarborough were forced to concede two penalties, the second of which went between the posts from Eugene Martin’s boot to give Tigers a 3-0 lead after only 4 minutes. The majority of the first half was a story of silly mistakes with both sides knocking on at regular intervals and no continuity to the play. Scarborough conceded several more penalties for killing the ball. Unfortunately most of these were beyond kicking range. The pack were struggling to hold their own in the tight and the Scarborough backs were starting to show more creativity as half time approached. From a kick ahead that was not gathered and cleared by Tigers Neil Shaw was forced to slow the ball down and was sin binned. The Scarborough fly half kicked the resulting penalty to level the scores at half time.
Scarborough started the second half strongly with their man advantage telling and Tigers were grateful for several long clearance kicks by Eugene Martin and Richard Butler. After withstanding this pressure, and with the return to the field of Neil Shaw, Tigers started to take the game to the opposition. Following a good break and off load by Jack Hennings, Neil Shaw continued the move and burst through to take the full back out of the game. Swift recycling saw the ball moved to the right down the Tigers back line and a well timed pass from John Storey sent in fellow centre Owen Evans on the overlap for a try. Eugene Martin converted to give Tigers a 10-3 lead. Almost immediately Scarborough were awarded a penalty, again kicked by their fly-half and Tigers lead shrank to just 4 points. Tigers tactics were now clear. A heavy shower had dampened the pitch and ball and Eugene Martin launched a series of high kicks to the edge of the Scarborough twenty-two. The full back was having trouble dealing with these and from a penalty Eugene Martin increased the lead to 13-6. Scarboroughs fly-half missed a penalty attempt but then made amends with a well taken drop goal to again narrow the difference in scores to just 4 points. Scarborough attacked strongly and good defence was needed to keep the Tigers line intact. With time running out Eugene Martin made a long raking clearance kick deep into the Scarborough half. A strong drive by the forwards saw David Holmes use all his experience to put a grubber kick into the corner to use up vital seconds. Yet more good line out work by Dan Kerley saw Tigers maintain this position as the referee ended the match at 13-9 to Tigers.
It was not the best of matches but the result shows that Tigers have the grit and playing depth to grind out victories in difficult away games.
Tigers 3rd XV Dash Dronfield IIs Hopes
Sheffield Tigers 37 - Dronfield IIs 12
Starting with a well worked try in the first five minutes, which involved most of the Tigers team, and two further tries early in the first half this looked like it could be a one sided game. But Dronfield came back strongly and closed the gap to just 17 – 12 at half-time.
In the second half Tigers used the strong wind well and spent long periods of time in Dronfield’s half, the forwards pressure and some sparks of individual magic from the centres created three more tries. Giving the 3rd’s their second win of the season. Tigers try scorers were; Matt Dyson, Danny Monahan, Andy Caley, James Eastwood, Tim Dennis with Alex Frazer getting 2, Eddie O’Neil only managed one conversion in the swirling high winds.
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25/09/04 - Tigers 1st XV Strength Tells in Yorkshire League 2 Home Victory
Sheffield Tigers 37 - Pocklington 7
Following last week’s sparkling display against Old Brodleians Tigers produced a somewhat lacklustre and scrappy display in the first half. Form may have suggested that this should be an easy win for Tigers, but Pocklington took the game to them and probably edged the first quarter in terms of possession and position. Tigers first real attack saw winger Wayne Warren force his way over, but an unsighted referee brought them back for a Tigers penalty in front of the posts and stand off Eugene Martin stroked the ball over to give Tigers the lead. Pocklington came straight back and a well timed incursion into the line by their fullback saw him over the line for a try converted by their fly-half. When it looked as if Pocklington were going to go into the half time break with the lead Tigers made one last attack. Following a couple of fairly static mauls prop John Ashley made the critical yardage to get momentum going and the ball popped up to lock Neil Shaw to force his way over. Eugene Martin converted to give Tigers a 10 – 7 half time lead.
After 5 minutes of the second half Eugene Martin stretched the lead with a penalty and another one 5 minutes later gave Tigers a two score lead and they settled into their game. The strength of the Tigers pack was beginning to allow them to dominate and good carries by John Ashley and Neil Shaw got a rolling maul over the line for hooker Harry Toews to touch down. Flanker Dan Kerley was next to drive over the line for a try. The final try, 5 minutes from the end, came when Tigers drove the ball from a lineout on the 22m line all the way for John Ashley to score. Eugene Martin converted all three second half tries to make the final score 37 – 7.
Although the win maintains Tigers lead in the League, the spirited Pocklington performance shows that there is no room for complacency. The fact that all three of the ‘pointless’ bottom teams in the League recorded wins over what was considered to be superior opposition demonstrates that it is likely to be a long and very competitive campaign with no easy matches.
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18/09/04 - Tigers 1st XV Ten Try Triumph in 1st round of PowerGen Junior Vase
Sheffield Tigers 62 - Old Brodleians 5
Tigers started their Powergen Vase campaign with a convincing win over fellow Yorkshire 2 team Old Brodleians. Having kicked off Brods were 5 – 0 down before they touched the ball again. A strong break by centre John Storey set up the position for prop John Ashley to get over for an unconverted try. Tigers were dominating the play and after 10 minutes the backs worked a tight blind side crisply to get winger George Leach free, and he did well to keep the ball in play at the corner flag and put full back Matt Walker over. Tigers were reduced to 14 men following a yellow card for obstruction and Brods pressured the Tigers line for about 5 minutes. The Tigers defence held and the pressure was relieved by a storming 50 metre run from No. 8 Jack Hennings. Brods came back and a lapse in concentration on the blind side defence saw Brods prop Lawrence Dowson score an unconverted try. Back to 15 men Tigers stretched their lead on the half hour mark when a dummy scissors created uncertainty in the Brods defence and a long pass put Matt Walker though for a try converted by centre Rob Pound.. Just before half time the Tigers pack took a ball against the head 5 metres out and stand off Eugene Martin came blind to draw the Brods winger in and put wing George Leach in for the simplest of tries. Rob Pound converted to give Tigers a 24 – 5 half time lead.
Tigers continued their domination at the start of the second half putting the Brods line under so much pressure that they were forced to give away a succession of penalties. Tigers opted for scrums at all of these and eventually scored when Matt Walker came into the line as an extra man to complete his hat trick. By now the team was rampant with the pack tying in the defence and quick recyling of the ball allowing the backs to sparkle. Eugene Martin was next on the scoreboard with a little shimmy and 3 metre sprint to the line. Captain Rob Pound set up the next two tries. The first came with a quick transfer of the ball to give wing Wayne Warren a bit of space. He kicked over the defence, chased and gathered, and passed inside to Matt Walker for his fourth try. Then a Pound reverse pass to lock Neil Shaw allowed him to use his strength to force his way over.
Although Brods were defending manfully and mounted occasional attacks they got little relief from the pressure. An enveloping tackle by centre John Storey, who had caused problems for the Brods midfield all afternoon, dispossessed his opposite number. The ball was moved to Matt Walker in space who drew the full back before giving the scoring pass to Wayne Warren. Right on the final whistle replacement wing Tim Bowman got in at the corner. With Rob Pound converting four of the second half tries the final score was 62 – 5, Tigers biggest win for some seasons.
Jack Hennings at 8, Neil Shaw at lock and debut boy Peter Walker were outstanding in the forwards while the back three of Walker, Warren and Leach were given quality ball to exploit their pace to devastating effect.
Tigers 3rd XV Mauled by Mansfield IIIs
Mansfield 47 - Sheffield Tigers 7
The 3rd XVs first away game of the season was marred by a lack of player availability, so they travelled with just twelve players and without a Hooker, Scrum-half or Fly-half.
Hooker was ably filled by a spare Ripon Rhino’s player (sorry I never got his name, but thanks anyway).
The gaps in Tigers defence were exploited to the full by Mansfields fly-half using a kick and chase tactic, giving Tiger's full back Sam Kay a very busy time and Mansfield a 35-0 lead at half time.
After half time Mansfields backs continued to use the acres of space and their backs scored twice more, their only conversion of the day came at this time. Mansfields confidence was high so they tried to driving it up the middle but only to meet some real quality tackling and mauling from the Tigers pack. Tigers had dug deep, this sterling defence and some penetrating backs running, started to create chances for Tigers and finally after some sustained pressure from Tigers driving in and popping the ball out quickly, back row Mick Sumner crashed through to score Tigers try in the very last minute which was converted by Richard Joel.
It was an excellent second half performance by the whole team, showing Tigers 3rds will never quit till 'the fat lady sings'.
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11/09/04 - Tigers 1st XV “Settle” North Ribblesdale in Yorkshire League 2 Victory
North Ribblesdale 17 - Sheffield Tigers 29
Tigers lost the toss and kicked off with a strong breeze at their backs. An early drive by the Ribblesdale pack saw their stand off make an excellent clean outside break and finish to score a converted try under the posts. Tigers were not despondent and came back with a period of good pressure resulting in a missed penalty attempt by Rob Pound and a good attack that saw winger George Leach held up over the line. Matt Walker was tackled just short of the line and then debutant John Hennings stole a line out ball to cross for an unconverted try to make the score 5-7. Tigers pack were coming more into the game and after a kick to the corner a forward rumble saw John Ashley score and Rob Pound kick an excellent conversion to give Tigers a deserved 12-7 lead. Shortly afterwards Ribblesdale conceded a kickable penalty and Rob Pound extended Tigers lead to 15-7. Tigers continued to put pressure on the home forwards and a strong run from 5 metres saw John Ashley score again and Rob Pound converted to increase the lead to 22-7. North Ribblesdale responded with a period of pressure. Several good tackles were needed to prevent them scoring and a disallowed try by the referee ensured that the half time remained 22-7 in Tigers favour.
At half time Owen Evans replaced the injured George Leach. Ribblesdale had the wind in their favour and now had their best spell of the match. Fortunately several Tigers mistakes went unpunished until a ball was recycled by the Ribblesdale pack and passed down their backs for the full back to score a converted try to narrow the scores to 22-14. The game had now become a tense affair that even told on the Ribblesdale standoff as he missed an easy penalty attempt to narrow the gap to a single score. Eugene Martin then made an excellent break and the pack responded by taking a ball against the head enabling Matt Wood to pick up from number eight and score in the corner. Rob Pound converted from the touch line with what will be one of the best kicks of the season to restore Tigers 15 point advantage. A further try was on its way when the referee penalised Tigers backs for crossing and despite strong pressure from the home team Tigers defence stood firm allowing Ribblesdale only a further penalty to make the final score 29-17.
This was an excellent win against a team who are one of the strongest in the league having only just missed out on promotion last season and having played in the Powergen Vase final at Twickenham. The Tigers forwards were more than a match for the Ribblesdale pack but the penalty count of 20 cannot be repeated if Tigers are to come out on top in future tight games.
Tigers 2nd XV Hit Half Century against brave Harrogate III/Vets
Sheffield Tigers 50 - Harrogate III/Vets 13
Tigers kicked off into a strong wind against a mixed Harrogate III/Vets side. Harrogate took an early lead with a penalty under the posts but sustained pressure from the Tigers forwards released Tim Bowman who with a man outside, dummied his way through to score wide out. Richard Butler missed a difficult conversion into the wind. Tigers were winning the bulk of the possession and quickly scored 2 more tries under the posts by Alex Fraser. The first followed good interplay between the backs and the second came from a mazy run by Gus Honeywell and a deft flip pass. Richard Butler converted both tries to give Tigers a 19-3 lead. Tigers backs had too much pace for Harrogate and once Phil Smith burst through the centre from fullback his touchdown under the posts was a formality. The try was converted by Richard Butler. Harrogate came back at Tigers through their forwards and gained another penalty for offside which their flyhalf easily kicked to make the score 19-6. Tigers attacked from the kick-off and quick passing put Tim Bowman into space to run at the Harrogate defenders. He set off on a weaving run, sold two dummies and scored near the posts. Richard Butler converted the try to extend Tigers lead to 31-6. Harrogate again came back at Tigers but after a period of pressure turned over the ball and Tigers worked an overlap to send Daffyd Evans in at the corner. A difficult conversion was missed by Richard Butler leaving the score at 36-6. As half-time approached, Tigers were again under pressure and a slick reverse pass from the Harrogate flyhalf split the defence to sent their second-row through to score under the posts. The try was converted to give a 36-13 half-time score.
Tigers started the second-half with the wind behind them but found it hard to overcome a resolute Harrogate defence. Harrogate began to gain more possession and Tigers were finding it harder to get any good ball. Midway through the half, Tigers forwards drove away from a lineout and released quick ball to the backs where a switch in the centre put substitute fullback Karl Sockett through a gap to score under the posts. Richard Butlers conversion made the score 43-13. With the continuity of play being disrupted by a string of substitutions from both sides, Tigers created one final score by working an overlap to put Karl Sockett over and the conversion from Richard Butler made the final score 50-13.
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04/09/04 - Tigers 1st XV Solid Start to Season in Opening League Fixture at Home to Knottingley
Sheffield Tigers 49 - Knottingley 0
Pre-season training having gone very well, Tigers were eagerly awaiting getting onto the pitch and into the League season. They were forced into a last minute threequarter line reshuffle when stand-off Eugene Martin pulled a calf muscle in the pre-match warm up. Rob Pound moved in from centre to stand-off and set up the first score after only 3 minutes when he put a beautifully weighted kick behind the Knottingley defence for winger George Leach to touch down for an unconverted try. Although Tigers were dominating position and possession, early season mistakes meant there was no further score until the half hour mark when Rob Pound kicked a long range penalty. From the restart Tigers put pressure on the Knottingley line and from a 5 metre scrum were on course for a pushover try when a Knottingley player came offside and kicked the ball out of the scrum. From a quick tap penalty flanker Doug Trivella burst over in the corner for a second unconverted try. On the stroke of half time Trivella looked like he was in for another try but was held up on the line, leaving the half time score 13 – 0 in Tigers’ favour.
Tigers stretched their lead after 5 minutes of the second half when Rob Pound kicked his second penalty. Tigers were beginning to click as a team and after a turnover ball Rob Pound made a half break and popped the ball up to new hooker, Harry Toews, for his first try for the Club. Another newcomer, prop John Ashley who had been prominent throughout, was instrumental in creating the next try when he made a powerful run from a turnover ruck and quickly recycled the ball for winger Wayne Warren to finish. By now Tigers were getting into their stride and Knottingley were under severe pressure. Following a series of forward drives on their line the ball came out to centre John Storey who scored under the posts. The final two tries came in similar fashion when full back Matt Walker showed his pace on the counter attack, having fielded deep kicks, and good support from the pack allowed Harry Toews to score twice to complete his debut hat trick. Rob Pound converted the last 4 tries to make the final score 49-0.
This match confirmed the team’s potential but it may take a few more games before they are fully in their stride. Particularly pleasing was the solid defence with the back row of Doug Trivella, Matt Wood and newcomer Dan Kelly being prominent with some big tackles round the fringes. The defensive line was only broken 3 times throughout the match and the cover defence coped comfortably with the threat.
Tigers 3rd XV Edged out by Castle College
Sheffield Tigers 10 - Castle College 12
The warm up game for the 3rd XV against Castle College was played in unaccustomed sunshine but with the usual inter club good humour and banter. Tigers 3rd’s fielded new players and several others out of position. Eddie O’Neil the illustrious 3rd's Captain was missing in this first game due to an injured hamstring picked up while playing poker in the World Fire-Fighters games.
It was a characteristic close contest between the two teams with only break away tries separating them.
The game was played in 4 twenty minute quarters with Castle College scoring in the 2nd and 3rd quarters both from open play.
Tigers unusual three quarter line up, Tim Williams (normally a back row) at scrum-half and Richard Joel (full back) stepping in to Eddie’s fly-half boots, did a fine job keeping the link between forwards and backs, most of the time. Richard Joel kicked one penalty and converted Tiger’s only try by the outside centre Rory (another back row out of position).
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