Bedford Blues continued their fine early season form, securing their fifth straight win in Champ Rugby with a battling 20-8 triumph over Caldy on Friday night in brutal conditions at Goldington Road.
Will Maisey scored 15 of the 20 Bedford points, while a late Lucas Titherington try with the clock in the red secured an attritional but vital victory as Bedford Blues – temporarily at least – rise to second in the table.
Caldy lost their first eight league fixtures of the 2024/25 season, but have started this campaign in far better fashion, matching the Blues’ record of four wins in six, with both sides locked on 23 points before the start of this clash.
Last Friday’s win against London Scottish at the Richmond Athletic Ground was excellent preparation for the difficult conditions provided by Storm Claudia, although the Goldington Road faithful were out in force regardless to witness a fifth straight triumph.
Read: Bedford Blues score fourth straight win with scrappy victory over London Scottish
A penalty apiece
Bedford began well and were in the ascendency early thanks in large to a high tackle on Lucas Titherington, but solid Caldy defence held them up on two separate occasions within the first ten minutes with the try line in Blues’ sights.
A wonderful 50:22 from Charlie Hyde gave the visitors their first hope of a score, before their lineout was intercepted, and it wasn’t long before the scoreboard was troubled for the opening time via the boot of Will Maisey, as Bedford led 3-0 after 20 minutes.
Kieran Wilkinson responded in kind with a penalty from a similar position at the other end, but opportunities for attractive rugby were predictably few and far between, with mistakes trumping quality throughout the first period.
More Blues pressure in the far corner amounted to nothing on the half hour mark, and the score remained at 3-3 when a second Maisey penalty slipped past the posts.
It was the last notable act of an attritional half as the two sides went in deadlocked.
Maisey and Wilkinson share most of the points
The Blues had dominated large swathes of the first period, spending much more time in Caldy territory than vice versa, and the first ten minutes followed a similar pattern only for Bedford to spill the ball multiple times from promising positions.
Mercifully, the pouring rain had relented, and with it came the encounter’s first try on 51 minutes.
A strong scrum gave Alex Day the chance to go down the blindside, and he popped a pass to Maisey who forced his way over the line despite being wrapped by two orange shirts, going on to convert his own try to give Bedford a vital 10-3 lead.
A further penalty was slotted home by Maisey to extend the advantage to 13-3, but Caldy hit back almost immediately with their first try of the game as the heavens opened again; Wilkinson sprinting clear into the corner to reduce the deficit to five.
The score remained at 13-8 as the Goldington Road clock wore down; Caldy unable to make any inroads to Blues territory, and when Dean Adamson was taken out in the air by an orange shirt with ninety seconds remaining, the win looked secure.
With Caldy needing to run the ball and the clock in the red, the icing was put on a long, hard slog of a rugby match as Lucas Titherington intercepted a pass ten metres out to run in the clincher, confirming a 20-8 victory for the Blues.
Not many in Goldington Road would have expected a fluent, flair-filled performance from either side, but over 2,100 fans – and their umbrellas – were happy to see the Blues grind out another win as their Champ Rugby campaign gathers even more pace.
Elsewhere on Friday night, there were two other low scoring games, as Chinnor squeezed past London Scottish 22-20, while Richmond gained a big Hartpury scalp with a 17-12 victory in the capital.
Most of the rest of the division play on Saturday, although there is a tantalising clash on Sunday (16 November) as Ealing host Doncaster Knights, commentated by Bedford’s own Sam Roberts on Clubber TV.
The Blues now have a well-earned weekend off after seven consecutive weeks to begin the season, and resume Champ Rugby affairs in a fortnight’s time, again on a Friday night, as Mike Rayer’s side travel to Nottingham on 28 November.
Bedford Blues return to home action on Saturday 6 December as they welcome Cambridge to Goldington Road.
