Category: 1st XV

HARPENDEN 7 CANTERBURY 52

by David Haigh

Canterbury cantered to victory in this second pre-season friendly, scoring eight tries and dominating their Regional level rivals from the start. Their overwhelming superiority at the set pieces left Harpenden struggling to get into the game and by half time the city side were thirty three points ahead. The biggest value for a 25 strong squad was to get game time and give experience to some younger players and it was one of them, wing Max Campbell, who claimed the opening try from a Frank Reynolds cross kick. Persistent ran did not dampen Canterbury’s ambition and four more tries before the break were all the result of positive rugby. Reynolds counter attack and Eoin O’Donoghue’s burst brought the first of two touchdowns for centre Frank Morgan. His second was created from a well rehearsed lineout move. Close quarter forward power and a catch and drive were both finished by Number Eight Tyler Oliver. Canterbury rang the changes for a second half that was not as tidy as what had gone before. They failed to put the finishing touches to some good attacking positions but still found three good tries to celebrate. Presley Farrance’s break made one for Aiden Moss and the pace of Garry Jones saw him round off the day with the last two touchdowns. Reynolds, in good form with the boot, landed six conversions, while an out gunned Harpenden broke away to earn a penalty try in the final minute.

HENLEY HAWKS 36 CANTERBURY 35

by David Haigh

The tries flowed, the result went Henley’s way by the barest of margins and Canterbury showed huge resilience to snatch two valuable league points from the final play of the match. Henley’s late score threatened to rob the city of anything and that would have been a serious injustice in a game that was always in the balance. But as the clock ticked into the eighty minute zone they launched one last offensive and Harvey Furneaux put in the essential finishing burst for his second try of the afternoon. Canterbury’s biggest regret will be their failure to put away their first half chances when their scrum was on top and they spent plenty of time on the front foot. A poor start saw them concede a try in the first minute as Hawk’s Guy Rawsthorne completed Alex Hayton’s break and it was the hosts greater ability to finish the job that earned them a 17-8 lead by the break. A Frank Reynolds penalty goal, won by the front row, put Canterbury on the scoreboard but five minute later Hawks hit them with a catch and drive touchdown from Tom Emery. The city side’s lack of accuracy frustrated them although there was plenty to admire about the one try they did manage. With the ball swept wide Will Hilton was on Garry Jones’ shoulder to take his pass and make the score. Hawks matched that after Ryan Crowley’s chip kick led to some clever angles and handling for Rawsthorn’s second touchdown, converted by Max Titchener. Then came a second half that underlined that you cannot afford to pass up those earlier opportunities in this tough National 2 East division. Canterbury started well with a Furneaux try in the first minute, went on to capture the lead twice and outscored Henley overall. It was not quite enough. The accuracy of Reynolds boot was an important feature, with two further penalty goals and three conversions, starting with the Furneaux score. But in a fascinating contest Hawks were always a danger. Crowley slid a kick behind the visiting defence and won the race for the touchdown before Will Waddington hit the line hard for a converted try which edged Canterbury into the lead for the first time. George Wood’s corner flag try and Titchener’s conversion rubbed that out before Reynolds’ final penalty goal, on 68 minutes, made it a one-point game. It was Dave Manning’s late try for Henley and Mitchener’s conversion that seemed to have wrecked Canterbury’s afternoon, but this side now has a bit of old fashioned ‘bottle’ and it deservedly rescued them here.

Canterbury; W.Hilton (repl T.Best), G.Jones (repl P.Farrance), F .Morgan, W.Waddington, A.Orris, F.Reynolds, P.Farrance (repl B.Cooper), C.Macmillan (repl D.Huntley), E.O.Donoghue (repl N.Morris,), W.Lusher, W.Hunt (repl T.Mackenzie), J.De Vries, C.Murray, H.Furneaux, J.Stephen

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Images may be subject to copyright – Phillipa Hilton

OLD ALBANIAN 38 CANTERBURY 23

by David Haigh

This was a hugely disappointing performance from a Canterbury side that went into this game on the back of two convincing victories. After overturning an eleven point Albanian lead in the first half, discipline and focus deserted them and they lost to a team who scored six tries, were more assured and gave little away in defence. There were patches of good rugby from the city side but lack of ideas, handling errors and a failure of concentration raised serious questions about the way they approach their final three games of the season, all of them tough assignments. A Frank Reynolds penalty goal won an early lead but by the fifteenth minute they found themselves trailing. Albanian hooker Charlie Fleckney claimed two tries, both converted by Sam Jones, as the home side worked the phases for the first and exploited a catch and drive for the second. Canterbury’s response was to produce their best spell of the match before throwing all the good work away. Pressure built and points came from a second Reynolds penalty goal and his easy conversion when Alfie Orris finished off a series of close quarter drives. A knock on denied them another try but when Albanians Andrew Nurse was yellow carded Reynolds penalty nudged his side back into the lead. Faced with fourteen players it was a good time to strike again, but it was the hosts who did the damage. In a game littered with penalties Canterbury conceded two in quick succession which cost them tries. A clever lineout ploy left them flat footed as Haydn Barnes marched through a huge gap and back chat to the referee, a minute before half time, cost another seven points. Barnes, from a catch and drive, was the scorer again and Jones converted to make it 26-16 at the break. At the start of the second half the city side failed to come away with anything when camped on the Albanian line, kicked a ball out of their own scrum and conceded a fifth try. A missed tackle saw Nurse skate away for a score converted by Jones and it was back to playing catch up for Canterbury. They showed plenty of attacking intent but much of it was predictable and the home defence swallowed them up. Space was eventually made for Orris in the 66th minute and Reynolds kick from wide out was good. But a yellow card for Eoin O’Donohgue was another blow and Albanians finished their successful day with a late touchdown from Aaqil Attah. For Canterbury there were good contributions from Jesse De Vries and Cameron Murray but, as a team, they have plenty to reflect on if they are to retain their seventh place in National 2 East.

Canterbury: W.Waddington, G.Jones, F.Morgan, T.Best, A.Orris, F.Reynolds, P.Farrance, E.Lusher, N/Morris, D.Herriott, S.Kerry, J.De Vries, C.Murray, E.O’Donoghue, J.Stephens, Replacements: C.Macmillan, B.Cooper, W.Hunt, B.Law, T.Mackenzie

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Images may be subject to copyright – Phillipa Hilton