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Canterbury Pack Late Punch
CANTERBURY 42 DORKING 35
by David Haigh
Two tries in the closing ten minutes from a rampaging Canterbury pack finally settled a pulsating game in which the result always hung in the balance. This victory guarantees the city club will end the National 2 East campaign in fourth place, their highest position for three seasons. It also extinguished Dorking’s hopes of taking the league title which now goes to Kent side Tonbridge Juddians. A magnificent crowd at the Marine Travel Ground had plenty to entertain them with some outstanding individual tries among the ten shared by the teams, the lead changing hands four times and a final home appearance for retiring Canterbury stalwarts Tom Best and Danny Herriott. In a cagey opening quarter, two Frank Reynolds penalty goals and a converted Frank Morgan try built a thirteen point lead. The try came from a Dorking handling error with Harry Sloan kicking the loose ball on to set up the score. That stirred the visitors and a powerful finish from lock Jasper King and the first of Henry Anscombe’s five conversions sparked the tit for tat nature of what followed. Next, came a great score from city full back Aiden Moss who returned a clearance kick by skewering every defender in a 45 metre run to the posts. Reynolds again obliged but by half time Dorking had crept into a single point lead. They made a catch and drive position pay with a try from Callum Watson and, two minutes before the break, full back Max Coyle matched Moss’s effort with a brilliant run and finish. There was further trouble for Canterbury after the restart when Dorking worked blind side space for wing Bryan Hotston’s try. Reynolds third penalty goal shaved three points off the visitors lead after Dorking skipper Will Scholes’ was handed a yellow card, a subtle shift in the the balance of pack power gave Canterbury fresh momentum and opened the way for Sloan’s try from a close quarter lineout. That brought an immediate response as Anscombe grabbed Dorking’s fifth touchdown to restore a five point lead, but then came the decisive late stages when Canterbury’s forwards took control. On 71 minutes a driving maul carried Tyler Oliver over the line, Reynolds converted, and with three minutes remaining they did a repeat performance as Eoin O’Donoghue’s try closed out an absorbing match.
Canterbury: A.Moss, F.Morgan, H.Sloan, W.Waddington, G.Jones, F.Reynolds, T.Williams, D.Huntley, E.O’Donoghue, O.Frostick, J.De Vries, J.Stephens, C.Thomas, C.McGovern, T.Oliver. Replacements: H.Kenny, D.Herriott, C.Macmillan, T.Best, W.Calder
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