TabTV: Floodlit Cup Final

An impromptu TabTV team wandered down to Maiden Castle to watch the College Floodlit Cup Final on the Rubber Crumb. Castle, widely regarded as underdogs with little chance of causing an upset, came up against an unbeaten, but depleted, John Snow side.

After a tight, scrappy and physical first half the teams went into half time neck and neck at 6-6 with two penalties a piece. That said, Castle had all the momentum and looked far hungrier for the win than a perplexed and uncharacteristically lacklustre John Snow side, whose talented back line underperformed noticeably before the break.

The second half looked to continue in the same vein until the referee, quite fairly, sent Castle openside flanker, Jared Bambridge (who, other than the card, played out of his skin), to the sin-bin for taking a player out off the ball. With an extra man, John Snow smelt blood and took the game to a Castle side who, despite maintaining a fiery and robust defence, quickly lost their discipline and composure.

Despite losing defensive rock and fly-half, Jamie Miller, who was blind sided by what was easily the biggest hit of the match, a clinical kicking performance from Stockton scrum-half, Lewis Khuler, allowed John Snow to pull away. A persevering and passionate Castle side put together a late surge but failed to overcome an increasingly comfortable Snow team who eventually secured the victory. Without a try scored, the final score was 15-6 to Snow, who made history by becoming the first Stockton side to win the Floodlit Cup and will be looking forward to the opportunity to secure the double and finish an unbeaten season in style by finishing at the top of the College Premiership.

Charlie Gardiner-Hill quickly caught some informal words with Tab ‘Man of the Match’, Lewis Khuler, who struggled for words, a disappointed but sportsmanlike chat with Castle lock Mike Yorke and some strategy review with Castle’s Master-in-College.