ELY crashed out of the Junior Vase on Saturday despite a late flurry of tries that almost saw them steal the win.

Ely Tigers 19

Vigo 22

EDF Junior Vase

ELY crashed out of the Junior Vase on Saturday despite a late flurry of tries that almost saw them steal the win.

Two tries in a frantic closing 20 minutes brought Ely to within a whisker of the win, but their comeback was curtailed by the final whistle that came with Ely closing in on an unlikely win.

The game was an even affair for the opening 10 minutes with Vigo showing no ill effects from the two-hour coach trip up from snow bound Kent as they played the game with a physical forward-orientated style.

Ely met their opponents head-on and were able to counter on Vigo mistakes and turnovers. As the game approached the half-way point however, Vigo began to settle and their ability to garner quick ball paid dividends as they turned their building momentum into a try.

Vigo continued to put pressure on the hosts with a series of close drives and inside passes and a second try followed shortly after.

Ely were not entirely overawed though, and they used a rare passage of possession to good effect to send outside centre Sam Benzie crashing into the corner for a try.

The second half was a more closely contested affair up front, but the dominant Vigo scrum ensured it was the visitors who woud draw first blood.

Vigo then stretched their lead with another try as Ely’s defence lapsed. Ely were quick to brush off the setback though, never and as Vigo’s challenge began to fade they redoubled their efforts in attack.

Lee Coulson was on hand midway through the half to score under the posts and an increasingly tired looking Vigo, were almost powerless to resist as John Dibb crashed over the line again to bring the score to 19-22. Much to the ire of the home crowd though, the minutes ran out on Ely’s comeback and the final whistle blew shortly after.

Ely Standard man of the match: Dan Coulson