Police cop it from Old Boys

CHAMPAGNE TIME: The Old Selbornians team celebrate their hard-earned victory over Police in the final of the Border Rugby Super League. Old Selbornians came back from an 8-3 half-time deficit to beat Police 13-8 Picture: STEPHANIE LLOYD
CHAMPAGNE TIME: The Old Selbornians team celebrate their hard-earned victory over Police in the final of the Border Rugby Super League. Old Selbornians came back from an 8-3 half-time deficit to beat Police 13-8 Picture: STEPHANIE LLOYD
The Kempston Old Selbornians rugby club have  won the Border Rugby Super League –  going through the competition undefeated to match a feat they last  achieved more than 30 years ago.

Old Boys beat Police 13-8 in the Super League final at  Buffalo City Stadium on Saturday and in the  space of  a month, the East London club  have annexed two pieces of silverware, following  their being crowned  Flya Cup champions.

They have now been Super League champions  four times in a row.

In their  matches against Police, the results of which are usually unpredictable, Old Boys completely annihilated their foes in 2015 – winning all three of their encounters.

In the thrilling humdinger of a final    Saturday, Old Boys proved to be master tacticians.  Having been 8-3 down at half-time, they managed to bounce back in the second half  to win the match.

As for Police, as the dominant side in the first half, they should have created more chances to open up the points gap and gone  into the final stanza with a comfortable  lead – considering they had the wind behind them.

“Four or five years in a row, we have been winning this league, and that for me is testimony to  the quality in this group of players,” said a thrilled Old Boys coach, David McCallum.

“It was a competitive final that was always going to be tough –  but that I knew because of the way Police have been playing this year.

“We played very well although we had to tweak our game plan a little bit in the second half, and the boys did it and must enjoy this win because it is for them and the commitment they have shown since the year started,” he added.

“This is a special group of players – they are a winning side and deserving because of the hard work they put in during the season.”

McCallum also praised their opponents for giving them a run for their money, especially in the opening 40 minutes.

His counterpart, Devril  Boucher, who was visibly shattered by the loss, said their second-half performance was a big let-down.

“I knew it was going to be a bruising one but I must say my boys did not play the way I wanted them to play in the second half, which is where we lost the match,” said Boucher.

“We made some silly mistakes –  we should have gone for a territorial game to put pressure on our opponents.

“To be honest this loss is heartbreaking.”

Two players collected the  13 points for Old Boys.

Craig Shone scored  the only try and succeeding with  a penalty while   Dale Sabbagh contributed   a penalty and a conversion.

For runners-up Police, a  try came courtesy of Lonwabo Mtlama, and Sikhangele Mateza goaled   a penalty.

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