By Brian Dick, Birmingham Post
May 4 2009

BIRMINGHAM & SOLIHULL 29 CAMBRIDGE 45 This anti-climactic occasion brought proof that those often-cited ‘top two inches’ referred to by the oval ball coaching community might just be as important as the amateur psychologists want us to believe. It was an afternoon when both teams played some pretty decent rugby, though not at the same time it should be noted. Indeed, while Cambridge performed well for the first hour Bees barely bothered to register an interest.

When the boot was on the other foot and the hosts were in the ascendancy in the last quarter, however, it was the visitors who were disinterested to the point of negligence.

In short had both teams been able to muster as much energy in defence as they did in attack, it could have been the perfect finale to the season.

As it was the fact promoted Bees had nothing to play for other than pride meant motivation was always going to be a nicety rather than a necessity. Their top two inches were stuck firmly in the clouds contemplating their weekend’s celebrations.

And so Cambridge piled into the National Two champions from the first minute in a scene reminiscent of a cat playing with a dead mouse.

The league’s runners up were clearly keen to prove the table is not an accurate representation of the respective clubs’ abilities. If all one had to offer as evidence were Saturday’s events, they would have had a case to argue.

But these were the first points Bees have dropped since before Christmas. To borrow a word from their own lexicon they have been ‘relentless’ in their pursuit of promotion and deserved both an afternoon off and the championship trophy presented by Sir Hal Miller afterwards.

While they have had their slips, in the first half of the season, they have kept their collective nasal passages close to the grindstone ever since. Twelve straight victories brought all 60 points on offer and if there is a quibble to be had with the league table it is that the three-point margin at the top doesn’t reflect the winners’ superiority.

Bees have played at a standard similar to National One this term and in the cup quarter-final with Leeds, which was lost on the last play of ten minutes added time, they nearly beat the very best of the lot.

Their players and their style of rugby are worthy of a place in next season’s Championship and I am not sure Cambridge can claim the same.

They have some very fine players, Luke Fielden and Ben Patston to name just two, but they do not have the quality or ambition of Russell Earnshaw’s XV.

All of which means Saturday afternoon was one best stored in the very darkest recesses of Earnshaw’s DVD collection. Should he wish to dissect his team’s display, and he certainly showed no desire on Saturday night, he will reflect that his pack quite simply didn’t work hard enough.

So often when scrum half Sam Brown found his supply line disrupted at the ruck, a string of forwards reluctantly waddled from their spots in the threequarter line to honour the commitments of their day jobs.

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Champion Bees unable to focus while celebrating

Discussion started by Unofficial Coventry Rugby (IP Logged), 04/05/2009 18:00

Unofficial Coventry Rugby
04/05/2009 18:00

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