Disappointing start to season for Maidenhead

Saturday 5th September 2009

The first game of the season and newly promoted Maidenhead were hoping for a good start. The fact that they didn't get it was down to themselves and nobody else.

An early try, characteristic of last season, started things off well, when from a good kick ahead, Charlie Jarnett kicked on and gathered the ball to flop over for a try by the posts. The conversion by Alex Menard put Maidenhead 7 - 0 up with only a few minutes gone. Unfortunately the seeds of Maidenhead's defeat were already beginning to show with too much poor and ineffectual kicking.

Shortly afterwards a Maidenhead penalty attempt was missed and for the next 15 minutes or so the game became very scrappy with both sides making too many mistakes.

But Maidenhead were gradually getting their act together. The defensive tackling was better, the line-outs were working well and in the set scrums they were getting the shove on.

Then an excellent backs' move with a missed pass to Ed (the neck) Poulding who went over by the posts. The conversion made it 14 - 0 to Maidenhead and everything seemed to be going to plan.

The back row were working well, Windsor got a yellow card for persistently infringing at the breakdown, but the Maidenhead backs were very static with poor passing and kicking allowing the Windsor backs, who were coming up very quickly, to push them well back behind the gain line time and time again.

Then a few minutes from the end of the first half a badly missed tackle in the midfield let Windsor in by the posts for a converted try.

Maidenhead replied with a penalty to make it 17 - 7 to Maidenhead at half-time.

At the beginning of the second half Maidenhead nearly scored when a short kick ahead was hacked on and only a knock-on with the try line open foiled them. Then the wheels started to come off.

Windsor kicked a penalty. 17 - 10 to Maidenhead, but the seeds were starting to turn into 'green shoots' with more aimless kicking away of good ball and as consequence most of the play was now in the Maidenhead half. There were some glimmers of light, a good run by St. John Ford, some good drives by the forwards, who were at least holding their own, but a dropped pass in front of the Windsor posts scuppered a try scoring chance. Windsor then did the same when after a breakaway the ball was passed forwards with the line in reach.

Eventually the Windsor pressure told and they scored a simple try when one of their centres ran through a big gap in the Maidenhead midfield defence to score near the posts. That made the score 17 all.

Maidenhead then managed to exert some sustained pressure with most notably a good driving run by Piers Morgan, continued by Michael Anthony, which nearly put Richie Brummitt over in the corner and a few minutes later Piers Morgan was bundled into the corner flag.

Could Maidenhead snatch victory? No they couldn't. If anything they snatched defeat when a dreadful kick ahead, when attacking on the Windsor 22 metre line, gave the ball to Windsor who proceeded to run the ball back into Maidenhead's 22 where they camped for the remaining few minutes of the game. And then almost inevitably a simple backs' move by Windsor found a yawning gap in the Maidenhead mid-field defence and a try under the posts sealed the win for them 17 - 24.

Maidenhead have lost some key players over the summer break but even so they should have won this game.

Man of the Match : Wouter de Jager