OTLEY 37 N0TTINGHAM 27

Otley find new cutting edge - Budget buys give Clegg's men extra dimension

By Sam Wheeler, Yorkshire Post

Five tries, and none where the scorer was obscured by a huge pile of bodies on top of him. Truly, a new era has begun at Otley.

Shorn of nine of last season's starting XV, Peter Clegg has been forced to change the direct approach that had made his side such an awkward proposition. Otley, a club from what is not much more than a village, had assembled a pack that could bully the biggest and best sides outside the Guinness Premiership.

Six of the nine leavers had top-flight experience, and a seventh, Jason Oakes, was recruited by Newcastle Falcons. With playing budget slashed by 30 per cent to a measly £250,000, Clegg had to cut back. In came three players from the bottom of National Two, two from Three North and one from North One, plus England A back-row Dan Hyde.

No more bullying. In previous years, one half suspected that Otley's forwards would knock-on deliberately, just to give themselves another opportunity to wreak havoc at the scrum. These days, the scrum is an exercise in damage limitation for a younger, smaller, less renowned front-row.

Little wonder that Otley were tipped to struggle, both by bookmakers, who gave them a 14-point start on the betting coupon against Nottingham, and by supporters, who stayed away in droves.

Those absent fans missed a treat. Otley Mark 2 were a joy to watch on Saturday, and they were sturdy too, although they betrayed their inexperience by letting a 37-8 stroll turn into a 37-27 scramble, courtesy of a rash of cards.

As coach Clegg pointed out, Otley's domination last season was rarely reflected on the scoreboard. Points were difficult to come by. This new side has pace by the bucketload, and they used it well.

"We lack experience and bulk, but we made up for it," said Clegg. "We cut them to death out wide."

As expected, Otley no longer hoard the ball lovingly in the tight exchanges. These underdogs can fight, but they recognise that their best bet is to run. Scrum-half Andy Brown zipped the ball away from contact.

There was barely a handling error from the hosts as they rampaged over for five tries inside 50 minutes, with a combination of aggression and verve. All five were claimed by new men of modest recent pedigree.

Danny Smith, brought in from Hull, scorched in for the first, from an exemplary move: a driven lineout, then a perfectly-executed three-quarter move, with a cut-out pass enabling Ian Shuttleworth to send the electric winger in.

Maifea Maifea – eclipsed on the 'great name' front by Nottingham's oxymoronic try-scorer Tyson Meek – dived in from a pass by fellow Harrogate refugee Brendon Back, following a charge-down from Shuttleworth. Maifea then demonstrated pace to complement his power by roaring home from 30 yards for the third try, benefiting from Rob Whatmuff's charge and Paul Williams's slick hands.

Nottingham, who have 12 full-time players, have designs on the upper echelons of the table. They were reeling but pulled back five points before half-time when Maifea was in the sin-bin for 'killing' the ball.

It was 20-8 at the break and supposedly fitter opponents would have fancied their chances, especially with Maifea banished and the impressive Hyde off the field as a 'precaution' for his injured knee.

However, within a minute of the restart, winger Steve Parsons, a third Harrogate alumnus, had scored an astonishing solo try, fending off four tacklers on a 25-yard run. Parsons was heavily involved in the fifth, storming infield to set up a move from which Maifea unselfishly put Smith over.

With Simon Binns adding 12 points, the lead seemed unassailable but the visitors pulled back two quick tries when replacement Matt Stockdale was in the sin-bin, and a third when Otley were down to 13 men after Maifea had received his second yellow for a high tackle.

At 37-27 with 10 minutes plus stoppage time remaining, the hosts were reeling and lacking a specialist No 9 following Brown's nasty ankle injury. Stockdale's return steadied the ship and the hosts held on gamely for a bonus-point win.

"We have not got depth in our squad," said Clegg, whose XV featured 11 Yorkshiremen – Leeds, Rotherham and Doncaster mustered 10 locals between them on Saturday. "I still see us as have-nots. But I'm delighted with that win."

Otley: Shuttleworth, Parsons, Whatmuff, Dench, Smith, Binns, Brown (Mooney 52), Livesey, Steele (Sayers 54), Fear (Walker 68), Back (Whitehead 77), Williams, Tiffany (Stockdale 54), Hyde (Bland 40), Maifea

Nottingham: Thompson (Wilson 52), Kay (Meek 36), Dodge, Molenaar, Jackson, Barlow (Stenhouse 67), Springall, Parr, Loney (Duffey 52), Hopkins, Morley (capt), Rouse, Corcoran, Wilkes (Raven 71), George

Referee: Greg Garner(RFU)

MATCH STATISTICS

Otley 37

Tries: Smith (2), Maifea (2), Parsons

Cons: Binns (3)

Pens: Binns (2)

Nottingham 27

Tries: Meek (2), Wilkes, Molenaar

Cons: Barlow, Stenhouse

Pens: Barlow

Click here for photos of the match

Oscar's Gamestar: Brendon Back

Click here for individual league records