OWEN Root hailed a fantastic second-half display as Rams rallied to secure a ninth straight National One victory in a 40-22 home success against Sedgley Park.
A nightmare first half-hour saw the hosts trail to a Warren Seals penalty and converted Rhys Henderson score, Rams emerging from their slumber as skipper Max Hayman went over from a maul.
Fraser Honey added the extras, but after Luke Graham was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on, Tigers moved further in front with a set-piece score of their own finished by Adam Mallinson.
Seals landed for 17-7, only for Rams to give themselves hope with a scrum penalty try with the final play of the opening 40 minutes.
Yet Bertie Barrett’s sensational solo score pushed Sedgley eight points clear five minutes after the break, Rams striking back through Nile Dacres and another powerful maul.
The introduction of props James Baker and Ioan Emanuel further turned the screw at scrum time, and Rams hit the front for the first time as Tom Vooght powered over from close range, Honey converting for 26-22.
Daylight arrived eight minutes from time as another ferocious scrum pushed Park back behind their line, No. 8 Robbie Stapley touching down, and Emanuel capped a fine cameo with his first try for the club with the final play, Honey twice more on target to complete the scoring.
Reflecting on the proverbial game of two halves, Root said: “It was great to see how the guys finished after a shaky start – the week off maybe hungover in the first half, but the clarity at the break and the way the boys worked out solutions came into fruition with our dominance towards the end of the game.
“One of the first things was to stop dropping the ball and keep some possession, and in the second half they were fantastic.”
Victory was underpinned by a brilliant effort from the pack, and the forwards coach continued: “The scrum has done some damage this year, it’s also come under pressure at times, but it was great to see it on fire.
“We value the fundamentals of the set-piece and the scrum particularly, so to see the dominance was very pleasing, albeit there are still areas to work on and we left a couple of tries out via the line-out – we’ll review it during the week and keep looking to improve.”
Second-half sub Baker moved level with Exeter Chiefs’ Richard Baxter as the second-most capped one-club player in professional or semi-pro rugby, the legend reaching 423, and Root beamed: “He’s phenomenal.
“He’s so professional in the way he looks after his body, how he prepares in the gym, follows the programmes and he’s got an understanding of the scrum which is second to none. I’ve personally never known anything like it.
“He’s 423 in, but hopefully there are a good number more games left to come.”
With another home game against Blackheath up next on Saturday (3pm), Root saved his final words for the Old Bath Road faithful, who helped create a feverish atmosphere in the closing stages.
He ended: “The crowd responded to what we started to put together and it’s important for us to understand there wasn’t much for them to get behind early on!
“But the intensity rose, as the evening drew in and the lights came on, playing in front of clubhouse corner was fantastic.
“We’re always grateful to the fans for their support – down in Plymouth I looked up and at one stage there was a corner which was completely Rams – and we can’t wait to have them back next week.”
By Richard Ashton
