Tamworth Overcome Gritty Sutton Eventually

Sutton Coldfield were the visitors to Wiggy Park at the weekend for another local derby with Tamworth looking for a similar outcome to the last time the teams met earlier in the season when they came away from the Roger Smoldon ground with all 5 points in the bag.
After a couple of weeks off for the festive period they could have probably been forgiven for being a little ring rusty but this proved not to be the case as they started like a steam train piling loads of pressure on the Sutton defensive line and it took just two minutes for them to convert pressure into points scrum half Xavier Hill finishing off a slick move 5-0
The home side’s pressure continued as Sutton struggled to contain them legally and resorted to bending the rules further than the referee liked conceding two penalties in quick succession which the trusty right peg of Danny Norton slotted between the uprights 11-0
Tamworth’s barnstorming start to the game continued further when Leighton Norton exploited a huge gap in the Sutton defences to score a nice try. His brother Danny added the extra two points from the tee and the hosts had stormed into an 18-0 lead with less than a quarter of the game gone.
A combination of Sutton Rallying well and Tamworth trying to force the issue with some dubious and unnecessary offloads not going to hand the tie was completely turned on its head either side of the break with three unanswered try’s from the visitors giving them a single point lead 18-19 rocking Tamworth and leaving them facing defeat in a game where they were once in total control which only goes to show that if you take your foot off the gas at this level no matter the league position of your opposition you will be punished.
With some words of wisdom coming from the touchline along with a couple of sets of fresh legs from the bench Tamworth set about repairing the damage and when Sutton knocked the ball on just five metres out from their own line the pack went to work at the resultant scrum powering Sutton backwards over the line Kit Smith getting the final touch on a whole pack effort. Norton converted and Tamworth were back in front 25-19.
With four minutes left on the clock the game was still balanced on a knife edge and could still go either way but it was Tamworth who delivered the killer blow when they were awarded another five metre scrum it looked as if the pack had created a carbon copy of the previous try when they surged towards the try line the referee awarded a penalty advantage but as it looked like they must score the ball squirted free. But Smiths alertness and quick thinking saw him take a quick tap penalty before the Sutton defence could reorganise and he crashed over to put the game beyond Sutton’s reach Norton added the final two points of the day to make the final score 32-19 to the hosts but after their lightening start they made heavy going of it and will look to be more ruthless when they make the trip to Nottingham to face another struggling side Mellish next time out.
Final Score
Tamworth 32
Sutton Coldfield 19