Midlands 5 East (South) League St Ives Bulls 24 Oundle 22 A SUPERB rearguard action from St Ives Bulls helped them to secure a vital win in this pulsating rugby union encounter. Bulls took to the field looking to maintain their winning home form so far t

Midlands 5 East (South) League

St Ives Bulls 24 Oundle 22

A SUPERB rearguard action from St Ives Bulls helped them to secure a vital win in this pulsating rugby union encounter.

Bulls took to the field looking to maintain their winning home form so far this season and welcomed Jason Price and James Yeomans back into the team.

In keeping with the atmosphere of a derby tussle, the first 20 minutes were keenly-contested without either side threatening much in the way of scoring.

As the half wore on, Saints began to break down the visiting defence from set-pieces, with Marc Sands unlucky to see a chance snuffed out after a pass was adjudged to be forward.

However, it was not long before St Ives took the lead, with Ollie Moorhouse scoring an intercepted try under the posts, with Adam Clark adding the conversion.

The dominant Bulls pack earned the home side their next score, with Steve Burke benefiting from some strong forward play, although Clark was unable to add the extra points with the boot.

Moorhouse bagged his second try of the game, streaking through a gap in the home defence created by some good pressure from the home side's backs. Clark this time added the conversion.

After conceding three tries, Oundle suddenly woke up and scored a converted try of their own shortly before the interval to make the score 19-7 at half-time.

The home side were under the cosh for much of the second half but did manage to extend their lead through Marc Sands before the onslaught began.

The visitors proceeded to batter the home defence, scoring three tries but, thankfully for the Bulls, the visiting kicker was off target and the hosts clung on for victory.

St Ives' captain Ross Thompson said: "We always knew that this would be a tough game, and despite the team not firing on all cylinders we managed to slug out the victory we needed.

"We can now put 2006 behind us and look forward to 2007 and many more victories."

Meanwhile, St Ives II lost 15-5 at home to Oundle despite a try from Tim Lumley-Good and an excellent performance from Andy Dolby.

n St Ives Bulls are celebrating striking a deal with timber engineering specialists David Smith St Ives Ltd, of whom Sales & Marketing Director Jeremy English plays centre for the Old Bulls side.

Mr English said: "David Smith Ltd has been established as a leading employer in St Ives for more than 40 years and we are pleased to be sponsors of our local rugby team.

"The club offers a very friendly atmosphere to all of its members and we are delighted to assist them to keep rugby at the forefront of St Ives' sporting calendar.