For the second year in a row The Buccs faced Sheffield in the premiership final to decide who would be crowned the best second team in Yorkshire. The point of difference this year is Sheffield were unbeaten all the season as league leaders and had dominated most matches, the Buccs in the previous matches against Sheffield during the regular season had struggled with their unbelievable power and pace and the Sheffield team that turned up on Saturday at Pontefract’s, Moor Lane ground was man for man far bigger than the Buccs… however size, speed and strength can be seen but what’s in a players heart well that’s another story.

Sheffield kicked off and used the sun to their advantage with fly-half Sam Hassard uncharacteristically knocking on deep in the Buccs 22, from the scrum which the Buccs held up well, Sheffield used a number of battering drives towards the Buccs line and finally the pressure told! A try within two minutes of play and the conversation slotted for good measure 0 - 7 Sheffield. This early onslaught didn’t knock the Buccs and for the next quarter of the game they dominated play with brave carrying and smart rugby. After a number of penalties from Sheffield within their own half, the Buccs kicked to the corner and from the lineout they drove the huge Sheffield pack backwards with a superb driving maul and the honey badger himself hooker “Mad Brad Parker” dotted down with Jacob Edwards slotting the goal, 7 all. This rallied Sheffield who couldn’t believe this team of young upstarts had scored against them!! How dare they! Sheffield reverted to the power play and had huge men coming on the attack from all angles! The Buccs defended with ferocity and bravery but finally Sheffield’s power proved too much and they went over once again with their ten slotting the conversion 7 - 14. For all of Sheffield’s power play there seemed to be something in the Buccs today that simply wouldn’t let their bullying tactics define the match and from a great passage of play the ball reached number 8 Jack Walker’s hands in the far corner of the pitch and he dotted down untouched, unfortunately the conversion was a tough one and it drifted wide! 12 - 14 and five minutes of the half left to play. From the kick off back to the Buccs, they carried hard back into Sheffield’s half and after another stupid infringement by Sheffield, the Buccs were awarded a penalty in front of the sticks! Jacob Edwards slotted the penalty to take the Buccs 15 - 14 into the lead! The lead lasted less than 30 seconds as somehow Sheffield got the ball back from the restart and marched up the pitch and managed to score right on half time but missed the conversion! 15 - 19 going into the break.

The half time team talk was about keeping our discipline, don’t give away stupid penalties and matching them toe to toe! Basically get nasty & scrap for everything you’ve got.

The Buccs started the second half with a nice drop- kick up field but Sheffield started well with some great carries and the ball found its way to one of their speedster wingers who went on a superb run upfield, for the first time in the game the Buccs were missing tackles and Sheffield looked unstoppable, the winger cut a pass inside and their huge centre went over to start the second half just like they finished the first with a power play try! Conversion on the money again 15 - 26 to Sheffield. Was this to be telling? Was two quick tries before and after the break going to be the tries that finally broke the Buccs hearts?? No not today it wasn’t, not when you’ve lads like skipper Pete McGlynn, old warhorse Aidy Calvert and superb players like Will Dearing, Alfie Celella, and Alex Edwards taking it to Sheffield at every opportunity! Head Coach Ziggy Zgoda loves the Walter Payton quote “never die easy, fight for every inch” and today every Bucc was refusing to die easy and they were fighting for every inch on the pitch! The game went back and forth with both teams trying to batter each other into submission! From another run of play the Buccs were awarded a penalty and Sam Hassard kicked a glorious touch finder to give the Buccs another chance at a catch and drive lineout! Again the same thing happened, a superb catch and drive towards the Sheffield try line! Their huge pack once again buckling under the pressure and Aidy Calvert dotted down with Edwards once again slotting the conversion! 22 - 26 and all to play for! However this try did something to Sheffield that made them rally together and they were smashing any Buccs players in their path! From continued pressure in the Buccs half their ten put a brilliant cross field kick up for their winger and centre to go for! It alluded everybody but then bounced back into Sheffield hands quite fortuitously and they scored with the conversion kicked again 22 - 33 and ten minutes left! Coach Zgoda then decided with a bold move to take off his second row partnership of Dearing and Benn Wilson who alongside Harvey Robson in the first half had given the Buccs brilliant line out ball and go forward ball but Zgoda thought by playing five back row forwards together in the pack it could just give us an edge, genius or madness who knows but when you have players like Matt Jeffery, Jack Pinder, McGlynn, Walker and Calvert there’s always a chance something special may happen! Sheffield looked like a team who thought they had the game in the bag, there was hollering and whooping from the side line along with high fives and laughter there’s no way this small little team from East Yorkshire could beat us again in the dying minutes of the game?? But one thing you can’t truly coach is heart & belief, you can have size, power and all the other attributes! But that burning question that drives you on should always be….. HOW MUCH DO YOU WANT IT!! In those last glorious final minutes this crazy mob of characters showed everyone that day how much they wanted it! From a number of powerful drives near the half way line scrum half Alex Edwards did the old Hymers move of the inside flip pass near the ruck to Jack Walker to hit a truly peach of line, Walker went sprinting up field and with his new found speed went round the fullback and was hurtling towards the try-line, a superb cover tackle by Sheffields other speedster winger caught Walker just before the line but he turned and popped to his good mate winger Jeremy “Jez” Oboh who went diving over for the try!! In the bedlam and excitement of the try being scored, Sam Hassard had taken over kicking duties and knowing there was at best a minute or so left he took the conversion quickly hitting the outside of the post to miss the conversion! 27 - 33 and one minute to go! Sheffield kicked deep and the Buccs knew this was it, one dropped ball, one stupid penalty, one bad pass the game was gone! They threw the ball left to right, trying to find a gap in the Sheffield line! As the ball went wide and to the right to centre Josh Parker he threw a pass to winger Celella and for some crazy reason the Sheffield winger flew forward and deliberately knocked the ball on! Penalty to the Buccs, just inside Sheffield’s half! Up stepped Hassard again to drill the ball to the corner for the final play of the match! Hooker Parker hit his man Calvert but Sheffield had decided not to challenge in the air and tried to collapse the driving maul but somehow the Buccs managed to drive the maul and ball infield and were heading towards the posts and Sheffields try-line! The maul came down just before the Sheffield line, there was carries from prop Kami Tuvotu, flankers Pinder & Jeffery but all were stopped short but then the ball reached Jack Walker and with two Buccs players latched onto him he was smashed over the line to score! The sideline, the players, family members, coaching staff everyone went mental!! 32 - 33 with the kick to come and no time left! Hassard had the same kick in front of him that only a minute earlier he’d missed! But not this time he struck the ball sweetly and over it went! 34 - 33!!!

They’d done it! They refused to give up, they refused to give in! They wouldn’t be bullied, they wouldn’t back down and for the second time in two seasons the Buccs were champions of Yorkshire! The Premiership trophy was coming back to Brantingham Park or maybe Alfie Celella’s bedroom!

This Buccs squad will go down as the greatest Buccs squad of the modern generation! In three short years they’ve gone from nearly folding to winning three cup finals in three years and being the only Ionians second team EVER to win the Yorkshire Premiership twice and even more impressively back to back!

Up the Buccs

NEVER DIE EASY. WHY RUN OUT OF BOUNDS AND DIE EASY? MAKE THAT LINEBACKER PAY. IT CARRIES INTO ALL FACETS OF YOUR LIFE. IT'S OKAY TO LOSE, TO DIE, BUT DON'T DIE WITHOUT TRYING, WITHOUT GIVING IT YOUR BEST.
WALTER PAYTON 1953 - 1999