Author: 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

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 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.

The club has announced major additions to the senior squad for the 2023/24 season. They include two players from the championship winning Kent County side, wing Alfie Orris and back row/second row specialist Mo Pangarker who both join from the Medway club along with scrum half Cullen Daly who has County and International age group experience.
Four more arrivals are prop forward Pierce Holland and wing Morgan Dayes from Championship club Ampthill, former Leeds Tykes centre Brad Law and centre/wing Garry Jones from Australian side UCS.
Lewis Hollidge, who was on loan from Blackheath last season, has moved to Canterbury on a permanent basis covering both centre and fly half positions. “The signings bring both improved depth and healthy competition for places”. said Director of Rugby Taff Gwiliam.
The club is also bolstering the Pilgrims team which was promoted to Counties Kent One. Joining the senior ranks are five players graduating from Canterbury’s highly successful Colts side together with Kent Under 20s recruits Sonny Trew-Neville and Harrison Fermor from the Whitstable and Vigo clubs respectively. Canterbury will also welcome back forwards Seb Clark and Will Hunt who return after recovering from long term injuries.
“We have made some exciting additions to our team to go with nearly the complete squad from last season,“ said Head Coach Matt Corker. “The continuity, in combination with the new signings, will give us greater competition and it is great that we have attracted local talent, as well as those from further afield. It is a sign of the strength of our youth programme that we again have five colts graduating to our First and Pilgrims squad.”