Category: 1st XV

DORKING 42 CANTERBURY 22

by David Haigh

In the lead up to this game Canterbury Head Coach Matt Corker challenged his squad to show they were capable of matching the top clubs in National 2 East. At third placed Dorking they failed to make their case against a side whose greater sharpness and accuracy produced seven tries. That try count was bettered only by eight yellow cards dished out by an official who was a stickler for the letter of the law but the flow of the game often suffered in consequence and it was Canterbury who paid the greater price on the scoreboard. After a bright start and a Frank Reynolds penalty goal, tries from Fraser Mosley and Jonny Ellis, and a Henry Anscombe conversion, gave Dorking the lead but a burst by Alex Evans and a corner flag try for Cameron Murray pegged them back. Then came yellow cards in quick succession for Jamie Stephens and Shay Kerry and the home side cashed in on penalties and superior numbers with tries from wing Will Sanders and lock Jasper King. Before half time it was Dorking’s turn to see yellow but any Canterbury chances were squandered as they were turned over in good positions and trailed by fifteen points at the break. The march to the sin bin soon got under way in the second half and with Tyler Oliver and Alfie Orris doing time Dorking began to pull away. The back division, crisp and certain in using possession provided by a mobile pack, did the damage with tries for scrum half George Jackson and centre Tom Howe before the final quarter. By comparison, Canterbury’s efforts to spread the attack looked clunky and in the 67th minute Dorking Number Eight Finn Osborne crowned an impressive display with his side’s seventh try. The hosts were handed the last two of those annoying yellow cards and the city side were able to register late, face saving scores through a penalty try and an overlap opportunity taken by Nathan Morris, converted beautifully by Reynolds. An Anscombe’s penalty goal completed Dorking’s points haul but had he produced a better day with the boot the victory would have been even more emphatic.

Canterbury; W.Waddington, G.Jones, F.Morgan, T.Best, A.Orris (repl B.Law), F.Reynolds, T.Williams (repl B.Cooper), E.Lusher E.O’Donoghue (repl N.Morris), D.Herriott (repl D.Huntley), S.Kerry, J.Stephens, A.Evans (repl T.Mackenzie), C.Murray, T.Oliver

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Images may be subject to copyright – Phillipa Hilton

CANTERBURY 36 WORTHING RAIDERS 33

by David Haigh

A try from skipper Jamie Stephens in the final minute gave a resilient Canterbury the maximum spoils. It was a dramatic end to a game in which neither side established proper control and lacked basic discipline which was reflected in seven yellow cards. Before the late Stephens winner eight tries had been equally shared but Raiders were in the lead for long periods. It was the dominance of the Canterbury scrum that kept them in check and played a key part in the victory. A Frank Reynolds penalty goal put the city side in front, a lead they never regained until the 68th minute. Worthing gave themselves a platform with two tries, the first a catch and drive score from Jack Lake and the second by centre Harrison Sims who enjoyed the missed tackles on his way to the line. Tom Derrick had an easy conversion. It was past the half hour mark before Canterbury broke Raiders stranglehold on territory. The back division were not in great shape but when a penalty brought a catch and drive chance the forwards obliged through a score from Alex Evans. It took Raiders just two minutes to reply as more poor defending handed Derrick a try which he converted. Before half time the city scrummagers came to the rescue, shunting Raiders over their own line where Evans pounced again. Reynolds slotted the goal but it still left Canterbury four points behind. The visitors pushed further ahead in the second half with a close range try from prop Ben Featherstone and a Derrick conversion but in the final quarter Canterbury stirred. Forward pressure brought a close range finish for Shay Kerry and there was now a renewed pace in their attacks. The most fluent effort of the day from the city backs gave wing Garry Jones the chance to break and send Frank Morgan clear for the converted try which won back the lead. Any good feeling might have evaporated five minutes before the end. With Tom Best in the sin bin – no sympathy from the officials on his 300th appearance – Worthing’s catch and drive finished by Sims could have been a clincher. But Canterbury do not give up easily, building intense pressure which produced a flurry of yellow cards for Raiders, and when Stephens planted the ball against a post in that last act they could celebrate the win, scruffy as it was.
Canterbury: W.Waddington, G.Jones, F.Morgan (repl B.Law) T.Best, A.Orris, F.Reynolds, T.Williams (rep B.Cooper), E.Lusher, N.Morris (repl S.Rogers), D.Herriott (repl D.Huntley), S.Kerry, J.Stephens, A.Evans (repl C.Murray), E.O’Donoghue, T.Oliver.

WIMBLEDON 36 CANTERBURY 52

by David Haigh

Canterbury are proving to be the traveling men of National 2 East as they registered their fifth win on the road in a breathless affair which produced fourteen tries. As one of only three games in the league to survive the January freeze the action was red hot from the start and it was lowly Wimbledon, shock winners at Canterbury earlier this season, who struck the early blows and gave notice that once again they were going to be a handful. After going fourteen points behind in the first eight minutes to two converted tries by scrum half Tim Ridler the city side got a handle on things but at the end of a frantic first half, in which both sides scored four tries, they were still two points behind. It was the third quarter that proved pivotal to Canterbury’s success in an impressive spell which brought three tries and opened a decisive nineteen point lead. After those early warnings from a side that thrives on attack, Canterbury started to exploit Wimbledon’s defensive shortcomings. They opened gaps in mid-field to telling effect and tries by Eoin O’Donoghue, two from Will Waddington plus a Frank Reynolds conversion edged them into the lead. The city side were, however, guilty of giving up ball in contact and the hosts turned that possession into tries for Brad Fincham and their clever fly half Ed Morgan who added another conversion. It was a neat off-load from Reynolds to guide Jesse De Vries over between the posts for a converted try that narrowed the gap three minutes before the break When Canterbury came out for the second half they decided enough was enough. Four minutes in and wing Garry Jones, always looking for work, peeled off the side of a maul to touch down and soon got a second try. It was the best of the day as Canterbury stole a lineout in their own 22 metre area, spread the ball wide and Jones finished a move that went the length of the field. Scrum half Ben Cooper, with his second touch after coming off the bench, got the seventh try as Wimbledon were split open and with three Reynolds conversions the city side were in control. They were detained briefly with a score from home wing Tom Pozniak and late in the game, as Canterbury eased down, Wimbledon added a try by Devlin Hope from a fine driving maul. Before that score Alfie Orris sent three defenders bouncing off him as he, together with Reynolds’ sixth conversion, completed a five point Canterbury haul.

Canterbury: W.Waddington, G.Jones, F.Morgan, T.Best, A.Orris, F.Reynolds, T.Williams, E.Lusher, N.Morris, D.Herriott, J.De Vries, J.Stephens, A.Evans, C.Murray, T.Oliver. Replacements: E. O’Donoghue, D.Huntley, B.Law, B.Cooper, S.Rogers

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Images may be subject to copyright – Phillipa Hilton

CANTERBURY 34 ESHER 36

by David Haigh

In a top quality game, full of pace and intensity, Canterbury pushed the National 2 East league leaders all the way before missing out in the late stages. They held the lead until the final quarter when a yellow card hit them hard as Esher made the next ten minutes count with two crucial tries to extend their winning run to nine. The disappointment for the city club was tempered by two richly deserved bonus points after a penalty try in the 74th minute brought them back into contention and had the visitors holding on for a nervous victory. For a Canterbury squad missing five injured regulars from their pack the pre-match signs might not have been promising but they took the game to Esher from the start. There was a confidence about them which was rewarded through quick hands and a break by Aiden Moss who sent Tom Wiliiams clear to the posts. Frank Reynolds, immaculate with his goal kicking throughout, converted. Esher, who are not top of the pile without reason and prompted by clever scrum half Pierre Thompson, soon began to probe. The back row combination of Harry Chamberlain and Cam Wilkins ended with Wilkins touching down, but Canterbury refused to be overshadowed. They continued to attack in style and it brought them two tries from centre Tom Best. Eoin O’Donoghue’s off-load and Best’s strength made the first and skillful work by Will Waddington set up the second. With Reynolds’ conversions pushing Canterbury further ahead Esher had work to do and before half time they responded with a catch and drive score from Andy Hamilton and a try for wing Ben Robbins. With Sam Morley landing two conversions they were still behind at the break and five minutes into the second half Reynolds gave the city side another three points from a penalty goal. Injuries were starting to disrupt Canterbury and their lead vanished as the visitors drew level through a try from left wing James Botterill, but a second penalty goal from the reliable Reynolds kept this intriguing contest in the balance. Then came the yellow card for Dan Huntley as the city side repelled a driving maul. Within a minute, prop Theo Skoumbourdis scored from a catch and drive and Botterill found space to squeezed in at the corner for a score which Morley converted from wide out. In the closing ten minutes Canterbury’s power at the maul won them seven points from the penalty try and the team were still throwing themselves into the attack at the close of a game that was a cracking advertisement for National League rugby.
Canterbury: A.Moss, G.Jones, W.Waddington, T.Best, A.Orris, F.Reynolds, T.Williams, E.Lusher, N.Morris, D.Herriott, J.De Vries, J.Stephens, J.Dengate, E.O’Donoghue, T.Oliver. Replacements: A.Evans, D.Huntley, B.Cooper, F.Morgan, A.Davies

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Images may be subject to copyright – Phillipa Hilton

Bury St Edmunds 33 Canterbury 14

by Andy Rogers

This was another frustrating performance from the City side. If the game was only played between the respective 22 metre areas you could argue Canterbury were more than a match for their hosts. But when it came to converting pressure and territory into points there was only one side in it.
Bury, orchestrated by their influential fly half Ben Penfold and the powerful running from their threequarters, always threatened when in possession.
Buoyed by their recent good run Canterbury started brightly but it was Bury who opened the scoring when after an interception and quickly taken tap penalty flanker Mat Bursey drove over in the corner.
Things got worse when Canterbury slept at another quick penalty and Bury No8 Ruaraidh Williams completed the job.
Trailing by twelve points this only told part of the story. Canterbury were playing some attractive rugby, always competitive and clearly having the edge in the scrums, this despite the early loss to injury of tight head Will McColl. Twice Canterbury were held up over the line from attacking lineouts.
So it was no surprise when it finally took a trademark Nathan Morris catch and drive, converted by Frank Reynolds, that brought them back in the game.
Optimism was to be short lived though, because having effectively soaked up Bury pressure a loose exit kick allowed the home side to hit back with hooker Archie Bourne going in under the posts to complete the first half scoring and open up a 19-7  lead.
The second half was much of the same. Canterbury had more than their fair share of possession but errors and poor handling at critical times would be their undoing. Whilst the scrummage continued to dominate there was still hope. Here front rowers Adam Malik and Dan Huntley, both promoted from the successful Pilgrims, were to make their first team debuts from the bench.
Just when needed however the Canterbury lineout started to badly misfire. Four promising attacking opportunities were butchered either stolen or given as not straight.
Bury would go on to show how it should be done. Absorbing Canterbury pressure and with limited possession they would go on to score two further tries.
Between these, prop Elliot Lusher touched down under the posts after good work from flanker Jake Dengate.  Reynolds’ conversion narrowed the gap to twelve points before the home side rounded things off with a final try. So Canterbury left without a point but with a point to prove in how to turn pressure into scores before next weeks testing home game against league leader Esher.

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Images may be subject to copyright – Phillipa Hilton