Bedford beat Barbarians in Mobbs Memorial Match
Mar
Bedford Blues 50 Barbarians 14
Championship club Bedford Blues exacted revenge for a 70 points mauling last season by trouncing the Barbarians in an entertaining Mobbs Memorial Match at Goldington Road this evening.
It was Bedford's first win since they took over the fixture from East Midlands in 2008 and was the result of outstanding team work against an invitation side who struggled to match them in the second half.
It was all square at 14-14 after a competitive first half but Bedford outplayed the Barbarians after the break, handling, off-loading and supporting superbly to run in six unanswered tries in the second period.
Former Northampton Saints number eight Ben Lewitt, Bedford's captain for the night, led by example with a try in each half, the second of which really broke the Barbarians' resistance.
His first levelled the scores on the stroke of half-time and rounded off a superb length-of-the-pitch attack after Bedford quickly turned defence into attack with a stunning break by winger Ian Davey.
Centre Brendan Burke capped an outstanding game by scoring Bedford's opener after 23 minutes but the Barbarians hit back with two tries in six minutes.
First Army and Builth Wells prop Melvyn Lewis, one of seven new Barbarians in the invitation club's starting pack, powered over with the hint of a sidestep.
Then Oxford University winger raced clear from deep inside his own half after he gathered a stray Bedford pass.
It was still a close contest when Bedford's replacement hooker Harry Allen crossed within a minute of coming on but the tries came thick and fast in the final quarter.
Lewitt got his second after a break by winger Corey Hircock, centre James Knight sliced through a disorganised defence and replacement scrum-half Will Chudley picked his way through from close range.
Full-back Duncan Taylor, who scored a hat-trick of tries in last Saturday's British & Irish Cup win over Aberavon, got on the scoresheet after featuring prominently in Bedford's better attacks and replacement winger Mark Kohler, on trial from Luton, brought up the half century with Bedford's eighth and last try.
The names Beaumont and Slemen on their team sheet failed to save the Barbarians from a rare defeat in this fixture. In this case it was Fylde number eight Sam Beaumont and Esher fly-half David Slemen rather than their famous fathers Bill and Mike who were on Barbarians duty.
Bill Beaumont and Mike Slemen, England and British Lions team-mates 30 years ago, were among a strong contingent of former internationals present for the 83rd Mobbs Memorial Match which honoured the memory of Lt Col Edgar Mobbs DSO who was killed leading an assault on an enemy machine gun post at Passchendale in July 1917.
The match also commemorated the 100th anniversary of Mobbs leading England to victory over France in Paris on March 3 1910 in his seventh and last international.
The match was preceded by a wreath-laying ceremony at the Bedford War Memorial in memory of the former East Midlands, Northampton, Olney and Bedford Modern School winger.
Bedford: 15 Duncan Taylor; 14 Corey Hircock, 13 Brendan Burke, 12 James Knight, 11 Ian Davey; 10 Brad Davies, 9 Darryl Veenendaal; 1 Marco Cecere, 2 Chris Locke, 3 Phil Boulton, 4 John Harlock, 5 Alex Rae, 6 Sacha Harding, 7 Brett Daynes, 8 Ben Lewitt (captain).
Replacements used: Harry Allen, Dan Seal, Harry Spencer, George Micans, Will Chudley, Liam Roberts, Mark Kohler.
Scorers. T: Lewitt 2, Burke, Allen, Knight, Chudley, Taylor, Kohler. C: Davies 5
Barbarians: 15 Jimmy Richards (Cambridge University); 14 Kurt Johnson (Coventry and Barbados), 13 Tal Selley (Tonmawr and Wales), 12 Rhodri Gomer-Davies (Newport Gwent Dragons), 11 Tim Catling (Oxford University); 10 David Slemen (Esher), 9 Ross Samson (Edinburgh); 1 Matt Long (Birmingham & Solihull), 2 Matt Dwyer (Worcester Warriors and Army), 3 Melvyn Lewis (Builth Wells and Army), 4 Howard Parr (Otley), 5 Nic Rouse (Nottingham), 6 Will Jones (Cambridge University), 7 John Dalziel (Melrose - captain), 8 Sam Beaumont (Fylde).
Replacements used: Duane Goodfield (Newport Gwent Dragons), Jon Dawson (Barnes), Mark Hopley (Northampton Saints), Andy Dalgleish (Henley), Lee Jones (Selkirk), James Brown (London Scottish), Tommy Bell (Sale Sharks).
Scorers. T: Lewis, Catling. C: Richards 2
Referee: Mr A Rowden (Berkshire)
Attendance: 1,205
