Category: Match Preview

Will Waddington returns to the squad after injury and replaces Sam Sterling who has been given a three match ban after his red card in the Barnes game.
Last week Barnes showed why they are third in the league. Another slow start and we were four tries down at half time. We can not give good teams a lead of this size and after two good scores early in the second half we showed that we were able to fight our way back. This was stopped in its tracks by errors in possession and ill discipline and the final scoreline left us feeling that we hadn’t given a good account of ourselves.
With five games to go we have talked about how we want to feel at the end of the season and the players are united in wanting to be proud of their performances and finishing the season on a high.
Saturday brings a milestone for one of our players and it will be great to see our captain, Jamie Stephens, run out for his 100th performance. I first met Jamie when I arrived in Canterbury and was coaching at the Langton. To see him progress from school rugby, to breaking into the first team and then to become the youngest first team captain has been a pleasure to be a part of. His achievements, in such a short time, are testament to his hard work and strong character. We are very lucky to have him as a key part of our club and whatever he decides to go on to achieve I know he will attack it in the same manner. It’s also a good excuse for us to all buy him a beer as well!.

Mett Corker, Head Coach

One of the league’s in-form sides come to the Marine Travel Ground and Barnes will provide a test of our resilience. A calf injury rules out Will Waddington so Charlie Kingsman takes the full back slot. Sam Rogers makes a welcome return to the squad after a long battle to regain fitness and is named among the replacements together with Tom Halliday. Head Coach Matt Corker writes: “We’ve had some tough Saturdays this season, where the score lines were not what we wanted but the Saturday result, regardless of the close margin was enormously disappointing. When I have reviewed the wins against Tonbridge, Worthing and Sevenoaks we look like a very different team when compared to the one who played Rochford, even though personnel are almost identical. Currently we thrive on the test that the teams above offer but we know that successful league campaigns are also about being able to win games that earn less attention. Credit must go to Rochford who won the physical battle. I will not share our missed tackle number as it is something we are all embarrassed by but it has given us a very simple focus for Barnes this weekend. Barnes have some powerful runners and play to those strengths, and we are very aware that this is something that we need to deal with. I have no doubt that all players that represent Canterbury are proud to wear the shirt, we as a group didn’t do it justice last week and Saturday is an opportunity for us to rectify that.”

A ham string strain rules out Tristan King from Saturday’s contest.   Harvey Furbneaux takes the vacant place in the back row where Tyler Oliver returns from injury in the Number Eight shirt.  Skipper Jamie Stephens moves to the second row as Jessie De Vries is unfit.  Tom Best,  who missed the victory at Tonbridge Juddians, is named among the replacements together with Alex Evans.  Head Coach Matt Corker writes: “If I zoom out to look at the last block of three games, there have been two great performances and one which is an important lesson for us. I believe that the games against Worthing and Tonbridge have shown what this team is capable of when we are at our best. The intensity that we showed, and the level of work that we were prepared to go through for each other defined the performances, as well as being what underpinned our success. The thorn on the rose was the Saturday we spent away at Dorking, which is the lesson that we can not afford to forget. We are privileged to play in a very competitive league and we have learnt what happens when we are not at our best. Sevenoaks were worthy winners when we visited them earlier in the season, and I have no doubt that this weekend’s fixture will be another strongly contested affair.”

Having taken over as leaders of Counties Kent 2 the Pilgrims travel to Westcombe Park seeking to keep their title push on track.  They face a pivotal game next Friday evening at The Marine Travel Ground when they meet third placed Dover in a re-arranged fixture which was postponed during December’s cold weather snap.

Tonbridge Juddians v Canterbury

This was the game that should have been the pre-Christmas ‘derby’ but the weather intervened. After last week’s low key performance, there are changes to the squad. Injury and work commitments rule out Tyler Oliver and Tom Best but there is a return for centre Sam Sterling who has recovered from the bug that has affected a number of the senior squad.    Long term injury absentee Charlie Kingsman makes the replacements bench, ironically against the same opposition when he sustained serious thumb damage.

Head Coach Matt Corker writes: “One of the reasons I love rugby is because regardless of how complicated we make it, in essence, it is a simple game. Last week we did not match Dorking physically so we conceded 50 points. The game is great at giving you simple feedback. We are a proud team, representing a proud club and we know we have a responsibility to do the shirt justice every time we have the privilege of putting it on. During the Covid season, we produced a statement of why we play at Canterbury RFC, and the reason that we all collectively come to Canterbury is because we are “Creating an Environment to be proud of”. I believe this to be true and if we want to be an environment to be proud of we need to show how much it means to us to be a part of that.

“The shining light from the weekend was the Pilgrims win against Sevenoaks. A great performance in an entertaining game takes them to the top of the league for the first time this season. They have a good run of games ahead with some big clashes on the horizon as we enter the business end of the season.”

Dorking v Canterbury

Leading into the game last weekend we talked about creating rugby memories, and the best ones being when you win. I think the players put in a performance to be proud of and did just that. Across the team we raised the bar and the belief the lads showed to fight back from a considerable deficit is a marker of a strong team. It was also a herculean effort off the field by so many people to ensure the game was played and relocate everything necessary to the Langton 4G. Its only through the hedge but that doesn’t make it any easier!

Our challenge this week is to back up last week’s performance with an even better one against Dorking. Our focus is to keep building on our strengths and I have challenged the players to bring their own energy and focus. Dorking are also at the top end of the league, and after winning by a score in the final play of the game at Merton Lane I am looking forward to another close contest.

The Pilgrims are having a great season in their first year in Counties 2 Kent. They sit second in the league and have a top of the table clash with Sevenoaks 2’s and the Marine Travel ground this weekend. Kick off is at 3pm and if you want to see a great game of rugby, I can guarantee it will be worth a watch as two teams fight it out to be top of the pile

Matt Corker, Head Coach

CANTERBURY V WORTHING

There are changes to the squad which played at Blackheath. Prop Danny Herriott has a quad strain so is ruled  out. Cameron Macmillan moves to tight head and Eoin O’Donoghue, after a strong performance last week, starts at hooker. Tyler Oliver has recovered from his thumb injury so starts at Number 8 and it is hoped Elliot Lusher will be back among the replacements pending a late fitness test. .

 In the backs Lewis Hollidge returns in the place of Ross Gladdish and the familiar face of Sam Sterling makes his first appearance of the season on the bench.

Head Coach Matt Corer writes  “It might sound like I’m clutching at straws when talking about positives after conceding 40 points and losing, but in the huddle after Saturday’s game the players had some great learnings. To draw the second half 12-12 gave the players confidence that when we stick to the plan and use our strengths we are a match for anybody. The challenge for us is to take our performance from the second half and play like that from the first minute. The other big lesson was that from Blackheath’s four visits to our 22 in the first half they left with four converted tries; we had nearly as many chances but left empty handed. The focus this week is how we can turn those lessons into a better outcome. The players have been really committed to training and we have two strong teams selected with the Pilgrims also having an important encounter. I’m looking forward to another great weekend of rugby.”

A few forced changes this week unfortunately. Tyler Oliver has a thumb injury, no fracture but will be out for between 1-3 weeks depending how it responds. Jamie Stephens moves to Number 8 and Harvey Furneaux comes on to the bench. Part of Lewis Hollidge’s loan agreement was for him not to play against Blackheath, therefor he is unavailable. Ross Gladdish starts at 13 with Vaughn Meredith joining the replacements. Cam McMillan starts at hooker after a good performance last week. Nathan Morris moves to the bench as he is managing an ankle injury.

Last week was exactly how we wanted to start the new year. I think it’s important to acknowledge that Westcliff are on a difficult part of their journey and their players battled hard for 80 minutes. All clubs go through difficult periods, and I want to wish them all the best for the rest of the season. From my perspective, I was really pleased to see the way the players performed and how their hard work keeping fit over Christmas had paid off. Three weeks without a game is a challenge and the players managed to pick up where we left off. Another positive from the weekend was seeing Will Waddington be acknowledged for his consistently strong performances by being awarded NCA National 2 East player of the week.

This weekend poses quite a different challenge for us as we face Blackheath who are sitting at the top of the table. When they visited us at home we were humbled, conceding 57 points and our focus this week has been on giving a much better account of ourselves. We have a good understanding of what our strengths are and we know if we commit to these we are a very good team, we just have to be brave enough to show it.

Matt Corker, Head Coach

Today’s game against Henley Hawks is to go ahead following a pitch inspection on Friday. Kick-off 3pm.  The Canterbury squad will be without captain Jamie Stephens who was injured in the Guernsey match. Jamie must now undergo return to play concussion protocols and is ruled out for a minimum of two weeks. Tom Best will lead a side which sees Tom Halliday start at centre and Jake Dengate in the back row.  Newcomer Ross Gladdish is named among the replacements.