Rugby Men Nags (Vets 40+)
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Fri 28 May 2021
Societe Generale Valley RFC
Rugby Men Nags (Vets 40+)
Yellow Carded: F Laine
29
12
Tigers
Flying Nags Bring Home Valley's Only Silverware for the  Season

Flying Nags Bring Home Valley's Only Silverware for the Season

Grant Beuzeval29 May 2021 - 03:56
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A star-studded performance by Valley's senior citizens brings home glory and vast soft-tissue injuries

Under a fat moon, the stars shone on King’s Park for the Valley Knackered Nags, competing in the Veterans 40+ League Grand Final for the only chance of silverware for the club in the 2020/21 season.

In the previous two matches, the Nags could barely muster 12 players but out of the woodwork they emerged for Alex “Badders” Baddeley’s testimonial match and suddenly there was a full fifteen players on the bench – a testament to Badders gravitational magnetism and the attraction to sipping cool beer from a trophy on a Friday night.

On debut for the Nags were Fats, Prav, Sonny, Reece, Leif, Seb, Stokesy and Slippery – all former premiership players – which certainly made a difference against a fired up Tigers side, who’d pipped Valley in round three by four tries to three.

Four terrific tries rained down on Tigers in the first half with Thibaut scorching down the left wing, Sonny “Poo Hands” Ruha latching onto a Fatz break and one-handed offload, Badders with a close range thrust that nobody was ever going to stop and Sebby also blazing in from 40.

24-0 at halftime and the great wizard, Colin Olsen, cautioned that rugby is a game of two halves. Right on cue, the Tigers struck back with two early tries in the second half and suddenly their orange and black stripy tails were waggling in the air. Badders grabbed that tail and flung the big cat to the ground with a few passionate, thundering tackles that helped turned the tide while Freddy got himself a piece of cheese for mistaking 2 metres for 10 metres and enjoying a ten minute break.


The 50+ club: Clarkie, Hambo, Harty, Olse, Boozer, Pat, Andre and Freddy

Tigers camped in the Nags 22 for most of the second half, knowing that one more score would put them back in contention but a turnover near the posts saw Juddy and Fats promote Harty and Thibaut down the far edge, ultimately ending in a 90 metre “coast to coast” try by Harty that finally put the game beyond doubt. Full time 29-12.

HKRU CEO, Robbie McRobbie was on hand to present the inaugural Vets League Trophy to the Nags skipper, formerly known as Badders. It was quite possibly a testimonial match for more than just Alex but what an apt send-off for a man, with wife Kay and kids present, that has bled red and black for Valley since 2006, served time on the Board and a recently minted Life Member. Thanks for everything Alex – best of luck for the journey home with the family.

And so, well into Saturday morning, our heroes relentlessly sipped cool beverages in the dark – nobody wanting to go home to reality and disbelieving wives and children who didn’t care too much to be triumphantly informed at 2am of the glorious exploits of this fine band of men and their exceptional achievements.

A final tip of the hat to Cloughy for putting this fine comp together and providing a very worthy platform for getting together with our old mates, creating new memories and good times.

Up the Nags.

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Match details

Match date

Fri 28 May 2021

Kickoff

19:30

Meet time

18:30
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Team Sponsors

Title Sponsor - Societe Generale