Sat 12 Mar 2022, 14:30
On Saturday 12th March North Dorset welcomed second-placed Blandford to Slaughtergate for a top of the table clash and the annual contest for the Badger Cup.
The game took place with high gusting winds which troubled both sides' kickers throughout the match. Blandford came out of the traps at high speed and, for the 1st 15 minutes, kept Dorset trapped in their half but due to a tremendous defensive performance from the home side were unable to convert this into points. Dorset countered this by pressurising the Blandford line enabling Tom Spinney to crash over for an unconverted try, followed by Sam Jones converting a penalty to make it 8-0. The game then continued ebb and flow until Dorset brought the halftime score to 15-0 through a try by Charlie Jobling converted by Sam Jones.
Blandford began the 2nd half with an excellent attacking move passing through lots of hands, only for the last pass to go astray. A let-off for Dorset, who immediately responded with a series of their attacks leading to a try from Brandon Ward converted by Sam Jones 22-0. This provoked a reaction from Blandford, who scored a converted try 22-7, followed swiftly by an unconverted try 22-12. Dorset's reply to this was to raise their game, and Captain Adam Trevis ran straight through the Blandford defence to score an unconverted try 27-12. That was followed shortly by Tom Spinney bulldozing his way to claim his 2nd, unconverted, 32-12. This was the final score, and the large crowd of spectators applauded both teams off the pitch, having enjoyed a very entertaining game.
North Dorset need 5 points from their remaining three league matches to secure the league title, and The Badger Cup remains in its pride of place at North Dorset.
