During this time where we will all have some free time to spend with family and loved ones I am sure a summary of the season would be appreciated. So here is my attempt. Grab a coffee.

After a great 2018/2019 season the boys spoke about our genuine belief to do something great in the upcoming season. The season before we were right up there but I don’t think the real mental edge was ready for the challenge. More emphasis was placed on player responsibility, getting out early and doing your ‘extras’ before training and making key decisions at the right time – making good players into great decision makers.

As usual we started about 3 weeks before any other club and there was no intention of touching a rugby ball for 2 months. All ready to go with last seasons squad we had a surge of local talent approaching the club (a first for Billingham) Kieran Clark bolstered the young front row, Conner Foley adding some energy into a competitive 9 spot, Lewis Roxby making his return in what turned out to be a massive plus, Nathan Myers had a job at home (that didn’t last long) Josh Murray joined later on and proved himself to be a brilliant player who missed the 2nd half of the season and lastly Jobe Roxby who has masses of potential joining his cousin. All joining from lower league itching for a chance to prove themselves. Exactly the sort of player and character we want at the club. All buying into the club ethos and social scene!

Later on in the season we would recruit 2 further brilliant talents, Anthony Jackson returning home after working away and playing for Sandal. Peter Youll made the short jump from West around Christmas and would have a great impact both on and off the pitch. Both great players who fit the style.

3 pre season games turned in to 1. DMP cried off the county cup final (leaving us to retain the cup) first up GHA from the Scottish premiership. A good run out and win at a cost, unfortunately we couldn’t face Tynedale in our last game. Leaving some without any game time.

Before the kick off to the season we lost 2 of the standout players from the season before, 2 players who walk into all the leagues teams Danny Dixon and Sean Richardson for the full season. A big loss.

What followed was the most remarkable run I can remember in a Billingham shirt 13 games 13 wins. I will go through each game individually giving a small summary picking some incredible highlights.

Wirral at home – 22/14 – a scrappy home win, we were rusty after pre season, any win is a good start.

Sandal at home – 43/20 – I think we caught Sandal at a good time, we look sharper and very clinical. Fronting up against a big pack.

Rossendale away – 22/43 – first ever win on the slope, our first game getting some knocks, a massive mental win for the young lads.

Lymm at Home – 46/6 – Power, Power and Power. Brilliant forward display backed up by a great defensive shift. Not many team stop a great attacking team from scoring. The next season ending injury Dano Finney with shoulder surgery required.

Blaydon away – 19/22 – the best defensive shift I have ever seen. 13 minutes of injury time in our 22m. Incredibly proud moment, missing some key players and having 6 players under 20 on the pitch at the end. The first of many knee injuries for me!

Morpeth at home – 33/10 – Red card and 14 men after 10 minutes. Bonus point win. Another game we refused to lose – can you see a pattern?

Ilkley Away – 7/41 – slow start but I have never seen 6 better tries scored in a single game, one for the backs to enjoy. A game where we made 6 changes for the week before.

Kirkby at home – 57/0 – a complete display? Following England beat NZ. Fitting I suppose.

Harrogate away – 12/19 – this game was a turning point for me and I think others, a heavy pitch against the best pack in the league our game management was brilliant. Making good players great decision makers? The next season ending injury Joe Evans, massive loss for the young team.

Carlisle home – 38/7 – Slow start against an impressive team which fell off as the season went on. Great finish to the game and great to see the team continue to be excited despite the winning run.

Macclesfield away – 17/22 – unbelievable shift, following on from the Harrogate game, a brilliant 80minutes of game management. Taking points when on offer and to be clapped off the pitch by both fans. Outsized but not outmatched.

Blackburn at home – 22/20 – Conner Foley with a broken hand. Sluggish and the start of missing players starting to hit both first and seconds. Jobe Roxby try after 80mins and a late conversion to win. Refusing to lose despite not performing.

Alnwick away – 6/13 – blowing a gale, missing some talented players. A real tussle and a huge win. 13 in 13. Seconds win on the adjacent pitch. Quiet bus on the way home ……

I can only describe the next 2 months as the most stressful in my life. The arrival of my premature twins. An extremely busy time at work, an injury crisis and a young team which didn’t know how to handle a row of losses. Those losses will now be seen as a steep learning curve for the lads and we can refer back to the pain and frustration it caused. We did come together and work through this and I am grateful to the support given to me by certain individuals.

Sandal away – 35/26 – 2 bonus points lost in the dying seconds, a much changed side kick started Sandals deserved surge to the top. Our first loss of the season! My next knee injury!

Rossendale at home – 12/27 – I listened to the game via a hospital bed, a poor performance. That drive had gone and the confidence was rocked. A couple of knocks to add to the long list. Only our 2nd loss at home in 2 seasons.

Lymm away – 23/20 – I tip my cap to the Lymm coaching team they did a number on us. Probably the 1 game I learnt form the most. I made the decision to give our attack re think. On their try line last play of the game. Billingham of 8 week ago would walk this over. Unfortunately not this time.

Blaydon at home – 5/24 As disappointing as it got, if there was a game we failed to turn up for this was it. That said we lost 2 players in the warm up and Dom Mcalorum for the season with a detached bicep. When it rains it pours as they say.

Morpeth Away 32/19– The game where we had 5 props in the pack and young talent Dylan Penny made his debut out of position, Pete Youlls first start ended up at 7! A bad day but one we were really fighting a losing battle.

Ilkley at Home – 53/0 – a confidence boost, we needed it. Players coming back into contention and we played some brilliant rugby.

Kirkby away – 12/21 – Away day battle in the wind. Back to that committed all out action performance at a very tough ground. A very pleasing win. Set us up nicely for the next.

Harrogate at Home – 20/18 – If it was going to end I am glad it did on this one. A brilliant game of rugby between 2 great teams. Our average age in the pack was 21. Try line defense again winning it. Passion and commitment – refusing to lose.

I really think if we had finished the rest of the games we would have gone unbeaten, that bite was back. It would have been an almighty achievement but we will never know. How good was it mixing it at the top though. The belief is there for next year now. Game management improvement, fantastic defensive (which probably caused all the knocks) and a refusal to lose. All huge plusses along with the young talent coming through.

I can only describe the Lions season as a crossroads, hampered by 1st team selection issues and a reliance on some young talent, Matty Westall touched on it but we should be proud of where we finished up. It was a tough season but we stuck at it and were in with a big chance of silverware. It think next year you will see a big improvement on an already successful season. A massive thanks goes to Matty Westall, a tireless volunteer with probably the hardest job in the club.

The mighty 3TM – a big step up made in style. 1 defeat at the start and you boys really showed wat we are all about. Pulled together and smashed it. Tomby has been grinning like a Cheshire cat, already a great team spirit I think Tomby added his value. Big things next year.

It’s a massive thankyou from me, the players have gave it their all and I will never forget that. How good can we be next year? There’s a host of talented colts coming up which will only make us stronger. Thanks to the support, the crowds have been as big as ever this year and the youth teams watching is exactly what we need. This club is built on youth and we need that integrated ‘one club; mentality.

When we get out of this lockdown we will have an HUGE knees up and our own lockdown in the club! Club dinner news to follow. Stay safe for however long this lasts. If in doubt talk, there’s plenty of people to listen.

#OSIOS