Burntwood put the bite on Wolves

Ben Holt, captain Luke Rookyard and Adam Black all crossed for Burntwood as they saw off their visitors 24-22.

Coach Graham Shelley was buoyed by his team’s showing, in particular their work in the defensive half of the pitch.

“It was a really tight, gritty performance, a brilliant defensive display,” said Shelley. “Wolverhampton are a dangerous side with the ball in hand, a tough opponent but we were superb and solid in defence.

“They had a much heavier pack than us, and the first couple of scrums, they smashed us. But after that, we held our own and I couldn’t fault us defensively.”

Head coach Shelley was pleased by his team’s fast start and the way in which they took the game to their opponents.

“We were quick out of the blocks and it definitely set the tone for our win,” said Shelley. “We capitalised on their slow start with some great attacking play.

“The first try came from an interception and we just went on from there. We looked threatening every time we went forward and after 20-odd minutes, we led 17-0.”

Wolverhampton rallied to level the scores 17-17 at half-time. However, Shelley was pleased with how his team reacted and dug deep for the victory.

“We knew they would come back at us, they are a very good rugby side, especially when they have ball in hand,” said Shelley. “Wolverhampton woke up and it was all square at the break. But, it was very pleasing that we pushed on and were the next team to score. We stuck to our defensive pattern, to our game plan and fully deserved the win.”

Shelley is not getting carried away by Saturday’s win and knows his team face a big challenge this season.

“Of course we are pleased with the start we have made, but we are taking nothing for granted,” said Shelley. “It’s the highest level that we have played, we have been here before. We won the first game that time around and ended up relegated, so we won’t get ahead of ourselves.

Brentwood scrum-half Brett Taylor kicked nine points with three conversions and a penalty.