Match Preview

Exeter Chiefs v Sedgeley Park 

After last Saturdays heroic, nail biting last minute victory over Bedford the Chiefs return to the comforts of Sandy Park this week to entertain Sedgley Park (no relation!) who were themselves cruelly robbed of a victory last time out by a Coventry try 4 minutes into added time.

The Bedford result was vital to the Chiefs promotion hopes and the way they earned it, digging deep and fighting until the bitter end says a lot about the amazing spirit the squad has. Another win this Saturdays is essential but it wont be easy against the Park Lane outfit who will be licking their wounds after the Coventry game.

The Tigers hail from a suburb of Manchester and were formed in 1932 in, of all places, a temperance bar, (rumours that Tony Rowe is considering introducing a similar bar after the last Members meeting have been denied by the club). They played most of their matches at junior level until a meteoric rise through the leagues in the late 90’s and early noughties saw them reach National League level in 2001 where they have remained, either in NL1 or NL2 ever since.

They made a promising start to this season and were actually top of the table after winning their first 2 games, including a high scoring away match after the long trek to, er, Manchester, but have since lost their last three games, the last two narrowly at 3rd placed Nottingham and last weeks heartbreaker against Cov. They are currently in 11th place in the league having amassed 10 points so far, the same as Albion & The Pirates. The Tigers are likely to make the journey south without top scorer Phil Jones who missed the Coventry game due to concussion received during the loss at Nottingham the previous Sunday. Their top try scorer, Paul Wilcock has managed 5 tries already this season so will need to be watched carefully. Rather disappointingly I have discovered this week that the Tigers hooker is actually Jonny Roddam and not the ex Sex Pistols frontman as I at first thought.

The Chiefs, as P-Diddy likes to do, will probably make a few changes to try and keep the squad fresh but will certainly not be taking Sedgley Park lightly as they have already shown themselves to be tough opponents this season. Hopefully the Chiefs will be able to play some more champagne rugby as they did in the last home game against Moseley. A win is a must and a bonus point desperately needed to make sure we don’t fall further behind Leeds in the chase for the top. The lads need all the support they can get in every match they play and its up to us, the supporters, to give them all the encouragement they deserve so dust off your Oggy’s, whip out your Tomahawks, oil up your vocal chords and mosey on down to Sandy Park this Saturday afternoon to cheer the Chiefs on.

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