The Ospreys U18s overturned a 10-point deficit to claim victory over Blues South on Wednesday night.
- Trailing 0-10 at the interval, tries from Garin Lloyd and Dan Hiscocks brought the Ospreys back into the game to even the score
- Luke Scully’s crucial penalty with two minutes to play sealed the win for the Eyasses
Running out at a very wet and windy Morganstone Brewery Field, keeping hold of the ball in the slippery conditions proved difficult in the opening stages of the game, with neither side able to gain the upper hand.
The Ospreys showed hopes of opening the scores after a quick break from Tom Sly brought the prop just metres from the whitewash, only for a knock on in the Blues 22 to put the visitors back in possession.
It wasn’t until the 20th minute, that the Blues found their way into the Ospreys half, conjuring up a driving maul for the pack to crash over the line for the opening try. No conversion made it 0-5 to the visitors.
The Blues had momentum on their side and they didn’t waste much time in doubling their score with another try from the pack just minutes later to take their lead to 0-10.
With conditions becoming increasingly difficult, the home side struggled to protect the ball, putting the Blues back in control.
With a scrum in hand, the Blues struggled to gain any ground, and the Ospreys did well to turn them over and gain a penalty within kicking distance.
The weather proving to be quite a challene, the wind took the penalty just wide denying the Ospreys any points at the half time whistle.
Half Time Ospreys 0 - 10 Blues South
As the second half got underway, the Ospreys were making headway into the Blues half, a nice chip over the top from Tiaan Thomas Wheeler was well supported, only to be stopped in its tracks and driven into touch by the Blues.
But not wanting to come away empty handed from a strong position, the Ospreys managed to win the turn over and run the ball back into the Blues 22, Powering their way through the phases and protecting the ball well, a dive over the line by Garin Lloyd handed the Ospreys their first try of the game! The wind again meant the conversion was missed, leaving the score 5-10 with twenty minutes left to play.
As both sides looked to get the crucial next score, a nice pick up from Osprey hands and quick break from Dan Hiscocks saw him race from the halfway line to reach metres from the line. A slight touch from the Blues wasn't enough to bring him down, with the scrum-half just shrugging the tackler off before grounding the ball for the Ospreys second try.
Another missed conversion kept the scores even at 10-10 with five minutes left to play.
Coming off the bench, the Ospreys Luke Scully wasted no time in making his mark on the game. Breaking his way through the Blues defence into their half, a nice chip chase made good ground, and despite finding its way into Blues hands, pressure from the Ospreys sent it straight into touch. In a strong attacking position in the final five minutes, the Ospreys did well to keep hold of the ball as they worked through the phases.
After digging in deep, their's efforts were rewarded with a penalty in line with the posts. With the only successful kick of an awful night, Scully added the three points to take the Ospreys ahead for the first time in the game, and with only two minutes left on the clock.
However the Blues, weren’t throwing in the towel just yet as they attacked their way into the Ospreys half from the restart, the pack managed to turnover the ball to give the Blues the ball. However, a knock on from the Blues handed the Ospreys turnover ball to kick out at the final whistle.
Next up for the U18’s is a visit to take on the Blues North U18’s, next Wednesday 24th.
