Tribute Somerset One: North Petherton 22, Burnham 9
BURNHAM suffered the heaviest of their four league defeats this season and failed to score a try for the first time as their bogey team undid them again on Saturday.
They conceded the double to Petherton, who had to win to keep their promotion hopes alive. Already promoted, Burnham will be champions as long as they win on Saturday at home to Martock.
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However, the bottom team had their first victory of the season last weekend, beating fellow strugglers Crewkerne, so Burnham will take nothing for granted against them.
The leaders' defeat was down to Petherton's excellent defence - they had used three successive training sessions to concentrate purely on playing against Burnham - but also to the leaders' own failure to finish off two or three great opportunities.
For the second time this season, Petherton's in-your-face commitment proved too much for Burnham. Their own indiscipline undid them also, as they conceded a string of penalties and had both Tom Hocking and Richard Muskett sin-binned.
The referee did them few favours, but he also yellow-carded home lock Simon Gingell and scrum-half Kevin Rybaruk. Overall, a Petherton win was the right result. They needed it more than Burnham and it showed.
In front of a crowd of more than 200 - it was Petherton's old players' reunion day - the home side could have been 9-3 ahead in the opening minutes, but full-back Tom Williams missed three kickable penalties downwind.
His opposite number Tim Piper landed his first attempt at goal on 13 minutes following a break by player-coach Elisi Vunipola. Then play was held up for five minutes as Burnham flanker Guy Cooke needed lengthy treatment after having been knocked out in a collision with team-mate Tevita.
He was replaced by Richard Welland. Petherton should have gone ahead after 22 minutes when Matt Brown took advantage of a Burnham overthrow at a line-out to run 50 metres, but a high tackle ended the attack.
From the resulting penalty to the corner, the home side drove the ball and flanker Andy Agar broke away to score on 23 minutes. Tom Williams converted.
Burnham missed a great chance for a try when winger John Griggs dropped the ball in acres of space. However, the referee had been playing advantage and Piper went for goal with his penalty, which hit the post.
On 31 minutes, Piper went over from a Vunipola pass, but it was adjudged marginally forward. Vunipola dropped a goal three minutes later and, as Pethy came under the cosh, Gingell was sin-binned.
Before half time, flanker Brian Webb looked a certain scorer for Burnham, but superb defence forced a knock-on just short of the line.
Early in the second half, Burnham playing down the slope, Piper put his side 9-7 ahead with a penalty after Vunipola had been tackled late by Matt Brown.
A series of penalties put Burnham under pressure and two minutes after Hocking had been sin-binned, Pethy scrum-half Kevin Rybaruk burst forward from a quickly-taken tap penalty to set up his second try for the chunky Agar. The conversion was missed.
Burnham's 56-year-old club chairman Gilly Hicks came on as a temporary front-row replacement for Hocking and, not surprisingly, their scrummage, which had been impressive, lost some of its drive.
Great kicking by Lloyd Williams kept Burnham pinned in their own 22 and when Vunipola held onto the ball in the tackle, Tom Williams stretched Petherton's lead to 15-9 with a penalty on 60 minutes.
With ten minutes left, Muskett became the third player sin-binned. Three minutes later, Petherton scored their third try when Burnham, with Hocking back, totally disrupted the home scrum, but failed to deal with the ball when it came out and Lloyd Williams sent Rybaruk over for Tom Williams to convert.
With Pethy now 13 points clear, Burnham at last tried to use their pacey backs, but lacked the composure to take advantage. They exerted considerable pressure and Rybaruk was yellow-carded in stoppage time, but they could not get over the home line.
Burnham are a team of many talents, but they have difficulty coping with teams full of grunt and aggression such as Petherton, who played well to their limited game-plan, aimed at stopping Vunipola running the show.
Scorers: North Petherton - Tries: Agar (2), Rybaruk. Con: T Williams 2. Pen: T Williams. Burnham - Pens: Piper 2. DG: Vunipola.
Teams: North Petherton - T Williams; B Williams, Foad, Havill, Archer; L Williams, Rybaruk; H Brown, Glanville, Kingston (blood rep Webber 30-38, rep Webber 58), Coles, Gingell, Agar, M Brown, Lees. Burnham - Piper; Griggs, Muskett, Gibb, Ford; Vunipola, Berry (rep Whitfield 49); Tevita, Hocking, McKen, House, Fear, Webb, Cooke (rep R Welland 15, Welland temp rep Hicks 46-56), Blake.
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