Author: David Haigh

Big Improvement

Posted on | by David Haigh

What a difference a week makes. I was so pleased for the players that within a week they turned the disappointment of Sevenoaks into such a strong performance on Saturday. I obviously love a good lineout maul, and to see it produce five tries and really apply pressure on Tonbridge, was something I really enjoyed. I don’t think Nathan Morris minded getting on the score sheet four times either! There are still a few things for us to tighten up on, but we spoke in the week about getting the job done and the players did that without question.
Looking forward to the weekend, Esher will provide another strong test. Following their season in National 1, they will be keen to return at the first time of asking and have a squad to do so. We are stronger than the last time we played in Esher, and I can’t wait to see the players show what they are capable of. For supporters traveling to Esher please note that the entrance fee is £15

Matt Corker, Head Coach

Canterbury’s Crushing Win

Posted on | by David Haigh

CANTERBURY 45 TONBRIDGE JUDDIANS 19

by David Haigh

On a stifling September day it was Canterbury who ran hottest as they crushed Juddians in this feisty Kent derby. The player who applied the heat to the visitors was hooker Nathan Morris who scored four of his side’s seven tries as a dominant pack turned catch and drive opportunities into match winning points. The first Morris score came after only three minutes and by the end of the first quarter Canterbury had secured a four try bonus point and were 26 points ahead. Frank Reynolds’ towering kick into the sun, spilled by the visitors, set up the second try, scored by centre Lewis Hollidge, before Morris twice went to work again in those expertly marshaled mauls. Playing catch up rugby so early in the game set Juddians a serious challenge but they responded with two tries in a four minute spell. Sam Evans opened space for Alex Brown for the first and then lock Perry Parker had his own driving maul moment and Evans converted. It was only a temporary loss of grip for a determined Canterbury and when captain Jamie Stephens took the same route to the line as Morris and Reynolds landed his fourth conversion the city side went into the break 33-12 ahead. A Juddians team looking for salvation made a good start to the second half with a try for hooker Will Holling, and an Evans conversion, but It proved to be their last shot. Canterbury stretched away again as Aiden Moss put a fine finishing touch to some incisive handling, Reynolds adding the extras, and that man Morris was driven over for his fourth on 53 minutes. There was still a twist to the Canterbury tale in the later stages when they were hit by a flurry of cards, one of them a red for lock Shay Kerry. Reduced to defending with twelve men they dug in magnificently to deny Juddians the consolation of a losing bonus point,

Canterbury: A.Moss, F.Morgan, G.Jones, L.Hollidge, A.Orris, F.Reynolds, T.Williams, W.McColl, N.Morris, D.Herriott. S.Kerry, J.Stephens, S.Rogers, C.Murray. Replacements: P.Holland, E.O.Donoghue, H. Furneaux, P.Farrance, T.Best

View match photos

v Tonbridge Juddians - 9 Sept 2023

Images may be subject to copyright – Phillipa Hilton

ANOTHER DERBY DAY

Posted on | by David Haigh

Canterbury v Tonbridge Juddians

Last week was not the start we were looking for. Two defensive errors cost us 14 points, added to a handful of converted penalties and we ended one point behind. Alfie Orris’s fantastic solo effort at the death nearly snatched it for us but when reviewing the vast quantity of possession we had in the attacking 22, we were nowhere near clinical enough. We created some great line breaks and built pressure but came up with errors at crucial times. We had some very honest words in the post match huddle and changes have been made for this weekend to give other members of the squad a chance to show what they can bring.

Any fixture against Tonbridge always has an extra degree of excitement due to the local rivalry. We will be looking to fix the wrongs of last week and get our season started this Saturday.

Pilgrims Take Control

Posted on | by David Haigh

SEVENOAKS 2ND 5 CANTERBURY PILGRIMS 17

Twenty three players travelled to Sevenoaks, trying to make a new side gel. With changes throughout the game it was not an easy task for Head Coach, Jon Foster, but with some help from the injured First team player Will Waddington, this was achieved. The players however did not always do what they have been asked to do! From the kick off, the visitors made an error that nearly let Oaks in for a try. Dan Huntley, Sonny Trew-Neville and Tom Halliday’s combination nearly gave Pilgrims the lead and more excellent attacking play seemed likely to result in a score, but not to be. Brad Law tried a little grubber kick and chase, still no luck. A couple of penalties, a few line outs, Pilgrims camped in the opposition twenty two, but still no score. Then on 14 minutes, after a great kick and chase by Halliday, and the resulting scrum, Pilgrims got the ball wide to Max Campbell to speed over but Brad failed with his conversion.Jesse De Vries and Freddie Holland-Oliver came on for Dan Huntley and Will Hunt. It should have opened the flood gates, but Sevenoaks were made of sterner stuff. They proceeded to make it difficult for a talented Canterbury side, so much so, after 30 minutes, a missed tackle saw the home side run through to score, but fail to convert. Half-Time arrived with the sides locked 5-5.An excellent team talk by captain, Ben Cooper, and the introduction of Harry Andrews, Tom Mackenzie and Michael Fankah saw the Pilgrims take back control in the second half, but they could not take advantage of all their possession! Knock-ons, poor passing and a lack of patience meant that after 20 minutes it was still level, and all to play for. Even the return after two years recovering from serious injuries of Will Hunt, Seb Clark and Gus Lister was not enough, but they all got through the game without any problems. There was more frustration when Lister broke free, got the ball to Harry Andrews, but when a try was there for the taking, he knocked on! Then Cameron Macmillan, player of the match, peeled of the back of a rolling maul for an unconverted score. More pressure built, Trew-Neville went over and Lister converted.

The final result was correct, but the Pilgrims have much to work on over the next two weeks before they start the league campaign against Beccehamian on Saturday 16th September at The Marine Travel ground. Come along and watch their quest to win in an all Ist XV team league.

CANTERBURY MISS THEIR CHANCES

Posted on | by David Haigh

SEVENOAKS 23 CANTERBURY 22

by David Haigh

The story of this Kent derby on the opening day of the National 2 league season was an all too familiar one for Canterbury. They had the lions share of possession and territory, outscored Oaks by three tries to two but still finished on the wrong end of the scoreline. In the end it was the accuracy of Ben Adams’ goal kicking, three penalties and two conversions, that made the difference but the city side’s ability to squander their assets was the real key. There were echoes of last season’s problems as they failed to make use of their early dominance and Adams booted Oaks into the lead with two penalty goals in the space of three minutes. Frank Reynolds pulled one back but it was not until after a lengthy delay for an unfortunate injury to Sevenoaks fly half Tom Simmonds that Canterbury found a try. The pack’s driving forced a penalty try but it came with a price tag. The referee issued yellow cards to both sides, one to Harvey Furneaux, and restarted the game with a penalty to Oaks. Adams duly obliged from the half way mark and Canterbury reached the break only one point ahead. That should have been an irrelevance given the city side’s domination of the second half but they self destructed. Handling errors, missed overlaps and a back division’s lateral and predictable running played into the grateful arms of a solid home defence. A calm head was missing and all this poor work was punished when mistakes handed Oaks chances to score two tries. Unlike Canterbury they made the most of them. A dropped pass and ball booted upfield saw the home side produce line out ball and a smart move for centre Barney Stone to score. Back went Canterbury and they at last created space for wing Alfie Orris’s unconverted touchdown. That took them within a point but a second error dented their hopes. Full back Lewis Hollidge’s clearance was charged down and Oaks swooped again through Stone. A shocked Canterbury continued to press and after grabbing a third try, scored by replacement Jack Weaver and converted by Reynolds, they seemed poised to snatch the win as Orris broke clear in the last minute. He was stopped a yard short, a penalty was conceded and the side were left to reflect on their own shortcomings.

Canterbury: L.Hollidge, M.Dayes, G.Jones, T.Best, A.Orris, F.Reynolds, P.Farrance, P.Holland, N.Morris, D.Herriott, C.Murray, J.Stephens, S.Rogers, H.Furneaux T.Oliver, Replacements, E.O’Donoghue, W.MColl, S.Kerry, T.Williams, J.Weaver

Match preview v Sevenoaks

READY FOR SEVENOAKS

Posted on | by David Haigh

We are back! To think it was four months since our last league game doesn’t seem possible, but lots of work has been going into the team to prepare them for this campaign, and as they say: time flies when your having fun! One of our focuses has been to get the players in better physical shape than last season. Sam Sterling and Tristan King have been taking a section of all sessions to help the players develop their speed and conditioning. This is to complement the squad gym sessions that they run and programme in CT PT. We will find out tomorrow how well this has gone, but from my perspective the players have been working extremely hard in every session and I believe they have become more comfortable operating at a higher intensity for longer.

The new players that Taff Gwilliam and I have brought in have increased the competition for every shirt in the 1st XV and Pilgrims. Most of the new players are already beginning to look like part of the furniture and Alex Veale and I had lots of difficult conversations on Wednesday with very good players who haven’t made the 1st XV this week. I feel like this is an indication of a strong and healthy squad and has moved our environment forward and those players who narrowly missed out have the chance to further their case in the Pilgrims friendly game at Sevenoaks.

That brings me to the weekend. We were very disappointed with our performance in this fixture last season, and we felt that we did not give a good account of ourselves. All our work through the summer has been leading up to this point and the players are raring to go, the preparation is finished, its game time

Matt Corker

Full time v Balckheath

SQUAD IMPRESS AT BLACKHEATH

Posted on | by David Haigh

BLACKHEATH 21 CANTERBURY 54

This victory will have given Canterbury a massive preseason boost of confidence ahead of next Saturday’s opening league game at Sevenoaks. Playing a brand of fast, open rugby they swept aside the National Division One club with six of their eight tries coming in the second half. After trailing by nine points at half time the city side dominated possession and territory for the next forty minutes as their pack took total charge and a vibrant back division made the most of its opportunities. Canterbury made an early statement with the Friday night game’s opening try; wing Alfie Orris’s made the important yards and Lewis Hollidge finished off. Blackheath, with their strongest combination on show, were made to work for everything by a city side which brought physicality and skill to their game. Penalties gave the home side the chances to score three forward-oriented tries but the city side replied with a second after turning over a kick-off and Orris splitting the defence. Both sides made changes at the break but it was the Canterbury bench that proved far stronger as they brought high powered scrummaging and ball carrying which Blckheath could not match. The tries that followed featured effective driving close to the line, swift and accurate handling by the backs and a clear focus from every player. Tom Williams (2), Orris, Luke Webber and Frank Morgan were among those who crossed the line and Frank Reynolds accuracy from the kicking tee saw him land seven conversions to cap the squad’s impressive performance.

Canterbury v London welsh

Corker Sees His Side Learn

Posted on | by David Haigh

CANTERBURY 43 LONDON WELSH 17

by David Haigh

Head Coach Matt Corker’s take on this pre-season friendly against the club he once captained was that his Canterbury side had learned a lot about themselves in a seven try victory. There was plenty to encourage him in the performance of a squad which was missing several front line contenders as they took an early grip on the game, saw off a second half rally from Welsh and finished strongly. Among those who will have caught Corker’s eye were centre Garry Jones, whose powerful burst opened the scoring with a try after three minutes; the ball carrying of young prop Will McColl and a lively contribution from scrum half Presley Farance. Although they operate at a level below the city club London Welsh were no pushovers but the number of times they fell foul of the new tackle laws gave Canterbury plenty of opportunities as they established a nineteen point lead in the first half. They exploited one of many penalties to create a simple overlap for wing Morgan Dayes while Farances’s probing around the scrum and some good handling sent Tyler Oliver over for a third touchdown. Two conversions from Frank Reynolds and committed defence when Welsh threatened kept the lead comfortable and more slick work by the threequarters extended it a minute after the break. Flanker Harvey Furneaux finished the move. It was a cushion that led to a drop in concentration in the Canterbury ranks and the Welsh, always positive with the ball in hand, showed good running lines and off-loading skills to claw back two tries, one of them converted. There might have been more trouble for the city side when Frank Morgan was yellow carded but instead Number Eight Oliver, another player in good form, stole an interception and strode away unopposed for his second try. Forward power proved too much for Welsh in the late stages and a driving maul and close quarter efficiency brought two tries for Pierce Holland and conversions from Reynolds. Welsh had the last word with a final minute try but overall Canterbury will have been quietly satisfied.

Canterbury: J.Weaver, M.Dayes, G.Jones, T.Best, F.Morgan, F.Reynolds, P.Farance, W.McColl, N.Morris, D.Herriott. W.Hunt, J.Stephens, A.Evans, H.Furneaux, T.Oliver. Replacements: P Holland, B.Dunkerley, M.Fankah, L.Webber, S.Rogers, T.Williams, A.Geddes

Canterbury Pilgrims had their first pre-season outing and came away with a 29-17 home victory over London Welsh 2nd.

Friday Night Light vs Tunbridge Juddians

FRIDAY NIGHT’S ACTION

Posted on | by David Haigh

CANTERBURY 21 TONBRDGE JUDDIANS 26

This was a high tempo pre-season work out for both clubs with TJs edging a game played in four 20-minute sessions and expanded squads being rotated to give everyone one a taste of the action. Although billed as a friendly there was no shortage of competitive edge and the result was in the balance right to the final play. Tries from new boys Alfie Orris and Mo Pangarker, both converted by Frank Reynolds, gave Canterbury the best of the first session. Wingman Orris beat his marker in impressive style while Pangarker brought a powerful finish to some solid forward pressure. The visitors cut the lead with a converted try and by the end of the second session were four points ahead, neat work from their back division then a missed tackle yielding two tries. Canterbury were then guilty of conceding penalties and paid the price as they fell further behind to TJs fourth score, a converted touchdown. The city side hit back hard as the forwards built up a head of steam to set up a sniping try by scrum half Tom Williams, Reynolds adding the goal points, and they dominated the closing stages. In the last minute a knock-on with the line beckoning denied them an equaliser they probably deserved.

Kent RFU Volunteer of the year Awards

Awards For Chris and Ian

Posted on | by David Haigh

Two Canterbury volunteers have been named as winners in this year’s Kent RFU Volunteer Awards. First Team 4th Official Chris Fullbrook took the Match Official Award and our Wheelchair Rugby Chairman, Ian Lloyd, the Social Inclusion category. Chris and Ian came out on top from a field of 60 nominations from 27 clubs in the County. The winners were announced at the Awards evening at Sheppey Rugby Club on June 29th.

“I think very justifiable awards for two people who put an enormous amount of time and effort into CRFC and Hellfire alike” said club chairman Giles Hilton.