Wizards bounce back

WARRINGTON Wizards bounced back from their first defeat of the season last weekend when they overcame a very dogged Bramley Buffaloes side in a hard fought Conference Three encounter, which was delayed for forty five minutes, due to the Wizards being caught up in multiple crashes on the M62.
The Wizards found themselves trailing with ten minutes remaining but a stunning three try burst in five minutes saw them pull away and gain a vital victory over a much improved Bramley side who have strengthened significantly over the past couple of weeks.
The opening quarter was littered with handling mistakes from both sides which meant that the game never really got started but on twenty two minutes the Wizards managed to break the deadlock when good work down the right saw the ball reach stand off Alan Reddecliff and his smart pass found winger Craig Middlemore who managed to break clear and race thirty metres to score wide out on the right. Full back Graham Healey landed the conversion but the Buffaloes hit back four minutes later when quick hands close to the line saw the ball reach substitute Craig Lingard and the player/coach squeezed over in the right corner.
On the half hour a fine barnstorming run by prop forward Christian Froggatt put the Wizards deep into the Bramley half and quick hands stretched the Buffaloes defensive line and substitute Ian Stephenson’s short ball found fellow substitute Mike Leicester who powered over at the side of the posts for his first ever Wizards try. Healey converted to stretch the lead to eight points but then right on the stroke of half time a kick straight from a scrum on his own forty metre line caught the Wizards flat footed and full back Corey Challenger reacted fastest to collect and score under the posts. Centre Simon Lindsay goaled to make the interval score 12-10 to the Wizards.
Six minutes into the second half fine work down the right by Wizards centre Paul Reynolds and second row Martyn Bradshaw saw them combine to put Middlemore over in the corner but the Buffaloes responded once again ten minutes later when a high kick from stand off Craig Lovelock was brilliantly plucked out of the air by winger Andrew Stanilan who scored on the right. Harrison converted to level the scores at 16-16.
On the hour the Buffaloes went in front for the first time when a smart pass from Lovelock found Harrison who crashed over at the side of the posts. Lindsay added the goal points to give his side a six point advantage but as the game entered the final stages a brilliant angled run from Wizards loose forward Paul Alcock saw him brush off three defenders to score on the left. Healey coolly slotted over the conversion to level the scores once again.
Almost immediately a long looping pass from Wizards substitute Warren Ayres was hacked on by centre Ryan Jones and a huge slice of fortune saw it cannon off a Buffaloes defender and into the arms of Alcock who raced thirty metres to score under the posts; Healey converted and then five minutes from time a high kick on the last tackle by Wizards debutant scrum half Danny Gregory was collected by Reynolds who scored out wide on the right to complete a very hard earned 32-22 win.
The Man of the Match was awarded to Wizards loose forward Paul Alcock; he was very well supported by substitutes Mike Leicester and Warren Ayres along with prop forward Dan Crampton.
After the game Assistant Coach Mike Grady said, “Bramley is always a tough place to go, and under the circumstances, with us having a nightmare journey over there, to come away with a win like that showed the character and togetherness we have as a unit. It was a bit of an arm wrestle for most of the game with the result in doubt until the final five minutes but fortunately we were able to pull away when it mattered and get the victory. There are obviously still things that need working and these will be addressed during the week.”

WIZARDS
Graham Healey, Craig Middlemore, Paul Reynolds, Ryan Jones, Christian Taylor, Alan Reddecliff, Danny Gregory, Dan Crampton, Hayden James, Christian Froggatt, Craig Woolvine, Martyn Bradshaw, Paul Alcock.
Subs:Warren Ayres, Ian Stephenson, Dan Stubbs, Mike Leicester.