UON men’s rugby union maintain their 100% record for the season with a 21-7 win against Harper Adams on Wednesday.
It was a tight affair between the two sides as Harper Adams had the majority of possession but the Bears proved that quality over quantity will win you games of rugby.
UON got the game off to a fast start with a penalty scored by fly-half Evan Wyatt, then followed by Jacob Salonga crossing the line but dropped the ball.
The Bears remained dominant through the first 20 minutes, as winger Sam Cowan scored his second try of the season after receiving a high kick and beating his opposing man to the try-line. Wyatt missed the conversion with the score 8-0.
The conditions then changed for the worse and that was mirrored in the quality of rugby on display, resulting in many knock-ons and a halt in the scoring for the first half.
The rain continued to rain throughout the second half which saw a delay in the point-scoring until the 55th minute, where Evan Wyatt scored his second penalty of the match to extend the score to 11-0.
Ten minutes later, freshman Callum Thom broke the Harper Adams defence to dot the ball down for the Bears’ second try of the match to further the score to 18-0.
65' TRY TIME!
The Bears go over again. A break down the left-hand side, and it's a second try. Not converted this time. pic.twitter.com/mvKWWTsux6— Under The UON Posts (@UTUONP) October 18, 2023
From then on, the match became very scrappy with knock-ons and penalties galore for both teams, leading to Wyatt scoring his third penalty of the match.
Harper Adams were knocking on the door for the final ten minutes, causing UON to concede penalty after penalty, until they finally gave away a penalty try in the final play of the match to see the visitors finally get on the scoresheet.
Overall, the match was incredibly scrappy as the conditions played their part in the affair, but the Bears prevailed to take themselves to two wins out of two matches.
Next week, UON are back on the road, this time to Worcester as they look to keep their winning streak going.