CHRISTMAS came early in Minehead! The Barbarians, playing with total commitment, stormed to a 43-20 home win over 100 per cent leaders Clevedon in Counties Two Somerset South, a whirlwind start setting the team up for a bonus point win.

The Barbarians scored within one minute; Willes caught the kick-off and stormed forward, the ball came free, Milton and Senior moved it up the slope, Gower kicked ahead, and Day won the race to score! Only minutes later Day added a second. The ball was carried hard by Edwards and Allerton, and with Milton guiding his team, the handling quality was excellent, giving a yard of space to Day who sprinted past his marker, and cut back to the posts for Milton to convert.

Twenty points up, and the visitors had hardly touched the ball, but now Clevedon started to get into their stride and compete against the Barbarians. However, a lineout take by Buckingham sent Allerton, and then White, crashing into the Clevedon defence. Milton changed the play back up the slope to Beaver and Day, and as it came back again, Gower stepped through a gap and beat three tackles to score at the posts.

Points down, Clevedon’s problems were exacerbated when they lost a player to the “Sin Bin” for foul play.

A penalty kicked by Milton after some great carries by Coleman, Claydon, and Swann, kept the scoreboard moving. Then a powerful drive off the back of a scrum by Edwards took his team back into attack, but they could not extend their lead.

A league topping team was never going to stay out of the game for long, and Clevedon pounced when the ball went to ground in mid-field, their centre racing to score a converted try from half way. Now came a period of Clevedon pressure, and the Barbarians had to work very hard in defence. A penalty gave the visitors a chance to gain another three points.

However, there was still time for Minehead to grab another try before the break. A lineout take and drive gave Claydon a chance to carry, and Milton and Gower combined to give Chinn space, and he sped into the corner, followed by a magnificent Milton conversion.

Unsurprisingly, Clevedon came back strongly in the second half, forcing Minehead into desperate defence. The defensive commitment conceded a number of penalties which kept Minehead trapped in their 22. Eventually the visitors gained reward from a driven lineout maul which produced a second try.

The pressure continued and it was not long until the Barbarians conceded again. Another drive at the line was stopped but an excellent cross-kick found the Clevedon wing who scored. Now the home crowd was becoming nervous!

To boost their energy, Minehead sent on Lock, Roberts, and Ruddenklau from the bench, and the game swung back towards the Barbarians in the later stages. The indefatigable Hawker at scrum half was constantly at the breakdown helping Milton dictate the play.

Eventually the Barbarians’ efforts told, repeated carries and elusive running took them into the 22 and Allerton’s pass sent Claydon storming to the line. With time running out the visitors defence pressure broke. Beaver charged down a kick, hacked on and won the race to the line.

A great performance by the team, but the Man of the Match award went to Jacob Gower.

Bryan Stevens