1. 29/11/2016 BBC SPORT | Rugby Union | English | Woodrow powers Bees' bid
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Last Updated: Thursday, 11 March, 2004, 06:23 GMT
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Woodrow powers Bees' bid
By Bryn Palmer
Jonny Wilkinson was at
Newcastle's training ground
by eight o'clock one morning
last week to make an early
start on his kicking practice.
Mark Woodrow manages barely
an hour a week and has to
persuade his old club to turn
the floodlights on if he wants a
few extra penalty attempts.
But the Pertemps Bees fly­half is no less determined than
England's World Cup hero to be playing in next month's
Powergen Cup final.
While Wilkinson hopes his shoulder will have healed in time for
next month's showpiece, Woodrow could force him to choose
another comeback target.
The Bees ­ the old Birmingham/Solihull amalgamation ­ are
buzzing after causing the biggest Cup upset in the professional
era in a remarkable quarter­final.
Woodrow kicked six penalties in
a 28­24 win over English
champions Wasps, as the
National League One side
fought back from 19­6 down.
Wilkinson's Falcons are next in
Sunday's semi­final at Kingston
Park, with the prize a place at
Twickenham.
That Woodrow can even
contemplate running out at
'headquarters' proves the magic
of the Cup is alive and well.
The 23­year­old is a full­time
electrician who lives and works
in Bristol but finishes early on
Tuesdays and Thursdays so he can drive to Birmingham for
Bees training.
"I try to get up there by six so I can get as much kicking
practice as possible," he told BBC Sport.
"This week we will try to find any little weaknesses we can
exploit, the same as Newcastle will. The only difference is they
will have five days to do it ­ we will have three hours!"
Woodrow has largely played for the same Bristol club ­ Dings
Crusaders ­ in the South­West leagues since he was 10.
A season with Bath's Under­21s, and brief spells at Exeter and
Newbury came to nothing until he impressed in the County
Championship for Gloucestershire last year.
SEE ALSO
Bees fear Falcons sting
09 Mar 04 | English
Wilkinson eyes Cup target
08 Mar 04 | English
Bees handed Cup pay­out
04 Mar 04 | English
Wasps 24­28 Bees
29 Feb 04 | English
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Bees Rugby
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2. 29/11/2016 BBC SPORT | Rugby Union | English | Woodrow powers Bees' bid
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/english/3546131.stm 2/2
People are saying it can't
happen twice, but we have
nothing to lose
Mark Woodrow
Bees fear Falcons sting
That alerted Bees director of
rugby Phil Maynard, who
recruited Woodrow as an
understudy to former Scotland
fly­half Craig Chalmers.
But Chalmers has barely played since the new year with a
shoulder injury, allowing Woodrow to take centre stage.
He admits he would love to use the Bees' Cup run as a
springboard to a professional contract.
"Getting paid for something I love doing would be a dream for
me," Woodrow said. "It is something I have wanted ever since
I started playing rugby.
"Hopefully I might go that way with Birmingham if we become
a Premiership club. We have had a great season and I owe
them a lot for giving me this opportunity."
So have Wasps felt the full
force of the Bees' sting? Or are
the Falcons about to have their own wings clipped?
"After the first 10 minutes against Wasps we realised they
were just the same as us, and once we got in their faces they
started to make the same mistakes," Woodrow added.
"It was an amazing victory and people are saying it can't
happen twice, but we have nothing to lose.
"To repeat it against Newcastle would be out of this world. But
if we have the same attitude hopefully we can keep in touch
and take it all the way."
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