Gloucester Claw their way past Northampton in Dramatic Style

Gloucester Rugby 14 - 12 Northampton Saints

Premiership Cup Pool 3 - Matchday 3

Friday 9th November 2018

Gloucester Rugby have beaten Northampton Saints In match day 3 of the Premiership Cup, after Billy Twelvetrees’s 80th Minute conversion gifted the Cherry and Whites a lifeline in the tournament, and a 14-12 win.

Both sides pay their respects to those who died during WW1 with a moment of silence before the kick off.

Gloucester left it right to the last chance on Friday night, as the swirling winds and heavy rain made the contest a real ‘forwards game’. Both sides opted to stick it up their jumpers and run hard to gain yards. It was second rower Gerbandt Grobler’s pick and go effort, after the clock went to red, that levelled the match and gave Twelvetrees the chance to kick the two extra points for the win.

Kingsholm that evening welcomed back scrum half Willi Heinz, as he returned from injury, and debutant Jaco Kreil gained a warm reception as he was impactful on the openside flank.

Willi Heinz effectively controlled the play at scrum half upon his return.

When asked about the importance of squad depth in domestic competitions Heinz said how "The coaches and management had managed the side well, giving some younger and really talented guys some good opportunities in the past few weeks".

Gloucester’s brash confidence was apparent from the offset, as despite the conditions, Twelvetrees pulled off a through the leg pass close to his try line which brightened up a miserable evening.

Gloucester were far more expressive in their play early in the game.

The showboating was short lived though, as only 5 minutes later, Northampton full back George Furbank breaks the Cherrie’s game line and draws the last man, before setting up centre Piers Francis to slide in for the opening score. Fly half James Grayson fell victim to the elements as a relatively routine conversion was lost in the wind and dragged wide.

Man of the Match winner Matt Banahan spurred on a Gloucester comeback as he read and intercepted a pass on the half way line, before turning on the gas and outpacing the Saints defenders. Twelvetrees converted and Gloucester lead 7-5 in the 21st minute.

Matt Banahan's try was a turning point in the match.

The difficult conditions caused many unforced errors, such as Furbank, who knocked on a high ball, yet received no sympathy from the soaking Shed End.

The second half started promisingly with a second try for the East Midlands side, as Cobus Reinach expertly timed his run, to win the race to a chipped ball over the top of the Gloucester defensive line, before showing off his football skills and diving on the ball over the whitewash. Grayson slotted off the tee to make the score 7-12.

However, all the talking points came from the dramatic conclusion. Gloucester’s fans were beginning to become frustrated, as they expected a second loss in their Premiership Cup campaign which would take their chances of advancing from pool 3 out of their hands.

Kingsholm erupted when the TMO ruled Grobler’s grounding as a try, and even more so when their reliable number 12 secured the win.

Winger Ollie Thorley discussed the importance of Gloucester's team cohesion "Those guys haven't played in two weeks, it's like a real game to merge everyone back together, we didn't hit the heights that we wanted to but the good thing is that we still won, it shows that the comradery is still there and strong, which we never had doubted"

When asked about how Gloucester are taking this hard-fought win into the next game, the South African said how “It was important to blow the cobwebs away this week, this should be good for us going forward, It’s even a bigger game next week, (Leicester Tigers)”.

Gerbrandt Grobler (right) was the impact of the bench that Gloucester were looking for.