Deacons step things up & worry TJ’s 3’s.

Deacons step things up & worry TJ’s 3’s.

The sun came out for the last of the 171 weekends in Jan ‘26 as we welcomed TJ’s 3’s to the MTG. Being the only team playing at home we were excited to be back home but knew our opponents would be formidable. It’s been a tricky January where we’ve played the top 3 teams in our league on consecutive weekends. Such a tough schedule brings its own challenges has & we lost a few of our key players to injuries.

Calling up our teammates from across the Zingari, wider club, uni and Colts we fielded another team filled with youth, experience & greying hair and even had some subs to call on.
To our delight the ever capable Jake Upward & Dan Head were available in the back line alongside Herbie Bowler to bolster some serious talent in the pack with Milo Kubicki, Rueben Kerr, Freddie Philpot and Aidan Demery all making appearances for everybody’s favourite Canterbury team.

Losing the toss Canterbury received the kick off playing uphill on the Orchard pitch and started with good intentions. After a number of phases TJ’s got to show us what they had in their arsenal. They tested us across the pitch in the face of some fierce defending by the City boys, tackling hard and shutting down the TJ’s runners. After a prolonged period camped on the Deacons 5m line TJ’s struck first despite the defensive heroics.
It didn’t take long before the visitors found some space on the opposite wing and darted in for a second try, this time converted.

Chasing the restart the Deacons set about making sure TJ’s didn’t have it all their own way with some great carries from the forwards & strong presses against the counter attacks. The game was tougher than a Wetherspoons steak, so much so Oli Toms destroyed his boots through his blistering pace.
Following a strong Canterbury scrum and Dylan Coyle whipping the ball around for some phase play, Milo Kubicki spotted the gap and barrelled through fending off some defenders & setting up an easy conversion for Dan Head’s ever reliable boot.
We were off the mark at 7-12 and not much of the half left.

Sadly the next 12 minutes did not go in our favour. Fatigue set in, we lost some of the communication, focus and confidence that had seen us pull ourselves back into the game. TJ’s ran in a couple of quick, easy tries.

The half time Haribo was in dire need as the whistle went and we headed to the break 7-31 down. A few personnel changes on the cards – Piers Weigh had to stand down due to injury having had a superb game, Connor Langley joined at flanker and young superstar Kirk Taylor moved to fullback.

With Dylan & Herbie trading places we were ready for the second half. Unfortunately we didn’t realise it had already started and TJ’s seized the chance to score once more. Bugger.

So off we went again, chasing another restart worried it was history repeating itself, TJ’s with the wind in their sails and still with most of the half to go.
But once again, as with most of this seasons games the Deacons clicked & worked together. Freddie Philpot was instrumental in so many attacking runs (he also played in 3 different positions by the end of the game) & he deserved to score powering over the line.
Jake Upward & Dan Head controlled the defensive line and the attacking moves and once again the big man Milo got his second with some impressive footwork.

With Dan putting away the extras we found realised the scoreboard was at 21-31 & it was game on! TJ’s were rattled & set about pressuring us to try and find a crack in our defense. With tiring bodies & an empty bench they crossed our line once more but another missed kick saw us trail by 15 points with plenty of time remaining.

With a period where both teams made as many mistakes as each other, up stepped Freddie again tearing into the try area and stopping just short of between the posts to allow a simple conversion. Remarkably now 28-36 and the Deacons were chasing a massive comeback. With a converted try in it & 6 or 7 minutes on the clock (yeah, 6/7……) we were within range.

TJ’s were shook. They came back strong using territory and a well rehearsed set piece to their advantage. A strong rolling maul which (accidentally) collapsed leading to a penalty meant TJ’s were eventually able to cross our line again to take the score to 28-41.

We thought we were still in it, and wanted more. When the final whistle went we all celebrated, 2nd in the league had beaten 2nd from bottom. But the Deacons re-discovered their form & went to the sheds full of pride.

Back on St Valentines Day away to Leigh, lovers (hope it’s not a massacre!)

MOTM x2 – Carter Jefferys for work rate & Jake Upward for intensity

Tries –
Milo Kubicki x 2
Freddie Philpot x 2
Conv – Dan Head x 4