MATCH PREVIEW
Oundle are a good side and very few would argue otherwise. They are well resourced, experienced and on Saturday only two of their twenty hadn’t played in the Championship or higher. In contrast, nine of our match-day squad were twenty-two or younger, with an average age just over twenty-four. Even with those contrasting profiles, I came away feeling we had more than enough opportunities to win the game and proud of the way the players applied themselves. The pressure the top teams apply is different and Oundle exposed cracks in our defence that we are determined to eradicate. That said, we scored three excellent tries and the real disappointment was leaving empty-handed for the first time this season.
Reflecting on September, we have scored an average of 30.5 points per game — more than enough to secure four wins. In our three losses, however, we have conceded an average of 35 points and that is why we sit with only one win on the board. We’ve dug into this thoroughly during the week and we know tightening our defensive output is the key to turning results around.
This weekend we welcome Havant to the Marine Travel Ground. They are a side who play an attacking brand of rugby similar to our own. This is their third season in National 2 East and in our last meeting they edged a close contest 28–21. We know we must show improvements in the areas we’ve focused on this week if we are to secure our first home win of the season.
The Pilgrims finally had their long-awaited first game last week, away to Tonbridge Juddians 2nd XV. The match was unfortunately ended early due to the referee injuring himself, but enough rugby had been played for the result to stand and the lads returned home with a 21–21 draw. For a young group in their first outing it was a strong start to their campaigns: as a result the Pilgrims take on Beccehamians with a high-quality side full of high-quality players. With both teams playing at the Marine Travel Groun it’s a Saturday not to miss.
MATT CORKER, HEAD COACH