Match Story Board: Westcombe Park v HRFC (L34-20)
Venue: Goddington Lane
Crowd: Approx 150
Weather: Damp, and Cold
Havant Rugby Football Club
westcome Park RFC
Match images are now available at:
https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p462128469
First Impressions
Match Summary: Described as a 'must win' by the coaching staff, the boys clearly needed to exercise their demons after their visit to Guernsey last week. Following what would have been a fairly intensive training week putting right those quick fixes and establishing a proper level of coherency, they were probably well regrouped but this game was never going to be a gimme - it was going to be hard against a side that seems to be generating some momentum but we always stood a chance of getting some return on a decent performance. Damp and cold, negligible wind - it was clear the boys had arrived in a focussed mood and the first half was a clear demonstration of their solid defensive commitment. Westcombe Park with what looked like a bigger scrum, generated some expansive phase play, playing to the corners and looking to saturate and breach the defence, but Havant held firm for most of the time. Indeed their defensive shift in the first half was very impressive, both on our own line and deep in the opposition red zone, with the only real challenge being presented by the WP 6 and 8 who were clearly strong and capable runners, who carried well, breaking tackles as they went and routinely seemed to provide the target for the WP support runners in attack. While both teams were level at half time (10-10), the balance of play was probably aligned to the WP output, who seemed to be penetrating further on their attacks only to be denied by our impressive defensive effort. The positive takeaway - we looked to be in control, hadn't suffered any injuries and might now be able to turn up the pace in the second half.
Second half was somewhat different, not with standing an early Havant penalty to take the lead (10-13), WP continued to build on their first half performance and were making Havant work hard to live with them. What scraps of possession we got were intermittent and largely too far from the WP red zone to enable any real momentum to build. Approaching the end of the 3rd quarter, Joel got a card for a high tackle, and this seemed to create the space that WP needed to kick into gear. They quickly got another converted try (17-13) and looked set to turn up the pace. Happily Havant survived the JK 10min absence unscathed, but for a penalty (20-13). ... and then like many of the games in this league, there was suddenly a burst of WP try scoring, our defence was stretched and through good support running, WP scored twice in relatively quick succession. (34-13). What had looked like a Losing Bonus Point performance suddenly looked very bleak - Happily in the dying minutes of the game, and probably one of our very few attacking approaches to their line, Alfie Wainscoat managed to get over after a passing move and underlined the potential that this squad has got. L34-20 - No points and a few handbags for out troubles!
Clearly as the coaches will have already identified, if we can't routinely dominate every stage of our first phase possession then we are denying ourselves a proper attacking platform and committing to having to live off scraps from defensive spillage or turnovers. The reality of today's output seemed to highlight there is still some work to do in our lineout and while the scrum did well to hold its own against some big lumps - we probably weren't seeing the quality of 1st phase possession we needed to give our backs a chance to properly exploit their opponents. In a similar manner while our backrow did very containing a lively and robust WP threat for most of the time - we weren't really able to really replicate any regular threat in any meaningful manner.
A Solid performance defensively which the boys should take heart from, but for second half loss of focus we might have been more competitive throughout the second half and prevented WP getting their tails up and effectively exploiting their pace.
1. Damp and Cold .. Playing in red to ensure no clash with any WP strip
2. Early exchanges were physical and tough...
3. Damp conditions made the ball slippery and possession changed hands numerous times as players mishandled..
4. Scoring efforts were largely balanced in the first half - Haz Young Burrowing deep to get under the WP Lumps for Havant..
5. Second half - saw a slight change in WP intensity and more opportunities from their better runners being developed. Havant held their ground for most of the time ...bar one short window in the last 10 mins..
6. Consolation try by Alfie W who muscled his way over the line in the dying moments.
7. This is a tight group and there'll be some honest reflection this coming week as they work out how to overcome the challenges they are currently facing.
Next Job: Canterbury (Hooks Lane)
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Match Story Board: HRFC v Worthing (W22-19)
Venue: Hooks Lane
Crowd: Approx 1100
Weather: Damp, Windy and Cold
Havant Rugby Football Club
Worthing Rugby
Match images are now available at:
https://www.zenfolio.com/windandsurfimages/e2/p646897924
First Impressions
Context:
- Attritional season to date, havant currently have 22 Senior players unavailable .
- Table position seems to offer no context to the NAT2E games being delivered
- Every game in this league generates a competitive fixture and there really are no easy games...
Match Summary: What should have been a fixture with Havant carrying momentum into the contest, looked very different. Certainly not a bottom of the table contender fighting for their life against a mid-table consolidator. Instead we had a lively well-balanced fixture that for the first 15 mins left both sides level, however by 16 min, Havant had generated suitable field position and were able to mount a series of attacking phases, subsequently stretching the defence and passing wide round the edge to put Ben Griffen over. Havant continued to apply pressure and with a penalty close to the posts elected to convert rather than really maximise their ascendancy. While clearly not the wrong decision...we were in the ascendency, we had plenty of time on the clock, our lineout was functioning and the risk created by not achieving a score was relative and minimal - but this could have been the trigger to put pressure on the opposition. Perhaps it was an underlying indicator that we were actually fragile in some areas, that selection had been difficult and that we were now limping into the christmas break as quick as we could get there. As it was a simple 3 points is difficult to argue with .. as long as you can maintain the momentum and regain field position... we couldn't and for the rest of the 2nd Quarter - Worthing seemed to gain all the momentum, while their lively outside backs began creating more opportunities around the park and they even managed to apply pressure such that we succumbed to a card (Jacob Knight) and by the end of the half were 8-12 down. Hmmm!
So it was good to see a rejuvenated and fired-up Havant come out second half and immediately set to work putting the opposition to the sword. We were now playing with greater intensity and by 44 had put Ben Griffen over for his second try, with the balance of play shifting back to Havant after that difficult period in the 1st half. For the next 10 mins it looked like we had the upper hand, (... and table position would have presumed something similar! ), not long after we saw Jack Phillips going over in a corner following some great footwork after a simple handling move down the line and then converting (22-12). Pressure continued to develop and it looked like Havant had finally found their groove and were about to finish Worthing off. Worthing even lost a man for pulling a maul down (63') and this was another clear flagged indication to encourage us to turn the knife and go for the kill, yet after a succession of some 4 standard approaches to the corner ready for a catch and drive, Worthing had still managed to keep us out... subsequently turning the ball over to play away up field, again the worthing back 4 were looking threatening and ready to run from anywhere on the pitch, particularly their 13. Sure enough having survived the Havant onslaught, Worthing managed to consolidate and re-established field position, finally scoring ('79) far out on the stand side. All credit to their kicker who subsequently converted against the wind bringing the game to a relative knife edge for the last remaining minutes. What followed was a nervous last few minutes of play, with Worthing largely in control of the ball - before the ref finally brought the derby excitement to a close. As ever the excitement of the day boiled over in the post-match celebrations as the players mingled, where upon the ref had to do some more blowing of his whistle!
... And with that we all looked forward to the New Year and hopefully a return of the rest of the missing senior squad. Festive Greetings & Happy New Year!
1. Wet windy and damp but everyone seemed excited for the game..
2. Havant initiated the early scores
3. Only for Worthing to comeback into the game when we took a Yellow Card.
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4. Second half saw a rejuvenated Havant show solid attacking endeavour to establish a good lead...
5. ...Only for Worthing to recover, reconsolidate, score and make it a nervous last 5 mins.
7. While Havant said Cheerio to a Dylan Lawley and Kelton Newy
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Match Story Board: HRFC v Dorking (L25-28)
Venue: Hooks Lane
Crowd: Approx 500
Weather: Storm Darragh Wet, Windy and Cold
Havant Rugby Football Club
Dorking RFC
Match images are now available at:
First Impressions
First Half: Despite the ongoing stormy conditions (Darragh) sweeping through the lane and creating difficult playing conditions, this looked like two relatively even balanced teams testing each other out in the early stages. Although on paper this was top of the table versus bottom of mid-table, to my mind Havant started well, and seemed to be offering the referee what he wanted to see and were ineffect gaining the benefits and field position accordingly. That said, perhaps while acknowledging Dorking's prowess, we potentially gave them too much respect and when presented with early penalty opportunities chose to take the easy points, instead of perhaps looking to take more early risk by developing the opportunities for bigger scores with an outline aim of grabbing control of the game. To my mind we looked strong in the scrum, and clearly had opportunities to scrummage close to their line, with a good solid purple while our 9 was in the Sin Bin, but instead of applying heavier pressure on on one of their weaknesses, we chose either to take points or to kick to the corner. While clearly not wrong, this was early in the game when the relative scoreline pressures are still diluted by the timeline available and hence missed opportunities are less impacting. Regrettably our lineout looked less robust, and as such the four excursions we developed deep into their the red zone (via hard earned midfield penalties), effectively came to nothing because we were too reliant on our lineout to deliver, and it clearly wasn't a failsafe mechanism. For me the 10 minute carding of their Hooker was possibly a marker to take the opportunity to put their scrum under more pressure - but instead we chose to play through the lineout and got nothing in return. As such we probably didn't maximise our scoring opportunities in the first half (only two penalities), while Dorking who had started relatively passively with a penalty kick, began generating play with more confidence and flow, subsequently gaining field position in our red zone and before delivering a well executed cross-field kick to their winger, who having beat our fullback to the catch, shimmied pass the cover tackles to score. To my mind Dorking were ahead, but we had probably had the better opportunities.
Halftime: HRFC 6 Dorking 11
Second Half: Havant came out firing better than they had finished the forst half, we looked to be playing on the front foot which was putting Dorking under some pressure. Our bench were now value and heavy hitters were carrying well creating good continuity and possession. Both defences remained relatively strong and coherent, and field position was largely still being generated by outcomes of the the referees whistle. A high tackle by their 5 subsequently won Dorking a yellow card, which then allowed Havant to play with a bit more space and some more possession. We quickly exploited having more bulk on the park with a bundled forwards try by Haz Young (11-11), they maintained the lead with a converted penalty, before our backs subsequently broke through in broken play - Joel eventually offloading to Ben Griffen (MoM) to slide over in the corner (18-11). The real clincher came at 69'mins, when Alfie Wainscoat was bundled over next to the posts (25-14). With less than 10 to play - To my mind we were now in control and should have been able to switch to a more defensive stance to protect our lead. Instead we allowed Dorking to generate opportunities by kicking deep and letting them run at us from deep field - it was only now that you could sense they looked dangerous in attack. With deep penetrating runs and good inter-play, they were starting to find holes in our defence. Inevitably, our structure was not fully watertight and at 77min they created a well worked try, breaking through the weak tackles to bring the score back to 25-21. Again a more resilient defensive posture would perhaps have held out against anymore attacks in the limited time available, but having relinquished possession they once again seemingly kicked up a gear to create overlaps, before subsequently beating the final 1 on 1 to score. (25-28).
Full Time: HRFC 25 Dorking 28
Match Summary:
A game we probably could/should have won - where early opportunities to seize control were overlooked because we were probably giving the opposition too much respect. The subsequent 25-14 lead should have been enough to let us close the game down and defend lead up to the final whistle, but this was a good opposition side that are leading the charge at the top of the table and they weren't going to lie down, even when playing into the wind. Their last 10 mins highlighted their ability to play at pace and to generate attacking opportunities when given time and space on the park. As ever - we would probably have taken this result without complaint earlier in the season, but having now consolidated and looked at the relative competition in this league - I sense we are not far off the pace or capability and should therefore expect to be finishing these games when having generated leads like today. As ever - if we're not winning we must be learning and we'll be better next time we meet them. #upthehill
1. Large Captains Lunch Crowd assembled to see another #nat2e spectacle at the Lane.
2. Early exchanges seemed to fit with the Referees vision and we clearly benefitted from a number of penalties awarded enable better field position.
3. Solid Field position allowed Havant to mount a number of attacking opportunities.... but to no avail.
4. Regrettably our lineout was not the constant failsafe mechanism today, giving the opposition the ball back and allowing them to mount attacks from anywhere on the field.
5. We stayed in touch with Dorking through converted penalties, instead perhaps of looking to apply more positive pressure and seizing control of the game. Losing Ben Holt to a card didnt help our cause but was balanced by the relative loss of their Hooker to a Card in the first half.
6. Second half we looked to be firinbg better and continued to build pressure on the opposition.
7. the pressure was converted to field position and eventually generated real space, allowing us to attack and score.
8. Our Scrum looked strong almost dominant throughout the day and in my opinion was a strength we could have employed more.
9. Dorking Coaching staff looked on passively at 25-14 down ... would their team be able to claw back the difference in time?
10. Two well worked scores recovered the deficit and Dorking regained the lead to take the victory in the last 2 minutes.
11. Moral of the story: If you don't take your scoring opportunities the opposition will punish you when they get a chance! #missedopportunity
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Match Story Board: Oxford Quins v HRFC(17-22)
Venue: Horspath Sports Complex
Crowd: Approx 150
Weather: Storm Bert: Wet, Windy and Cold
Havant Rugby Football Club
Oxford Harlequins
Match images are now available at:
https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p373795032
First Impressions
First Half:
1. 'Storm Bert' was setting the conditions this week and Horspath Sports complex was definitely getting no reprise! Moderate to heavy rain and a strong wind blowing diagonally across the pitch meant that it would likely be a game of two halves and whoever could control or contain the conditions might stand a chance of playing the better rugby. Those hardened weatherproofed travelling faithful were ready for a game of 'shove it up your jumper' and judging by the conditions it would be a brave team that tried something else. As such it was probably going to be very stop/start, with lots of scrums and if the kicking wasn't well controlled - there would be a fair few lineouts as well! Thankfully at Quins you are on an AGP and so the track was as we were accustomed to - firm underfoot, if a little greasy! Havant were to play against the wind in the first half and as expected were immediately put under pressure by Quins, who right from the off, looked to want to box kick us back into our own red zone and then let us make mistakes under the high ball.. and so it began! ...Well it would have but the first kick over-ran the deadball area giving a good indication to all sides just how influential the wind was going to be as we reset in the middle for a scrum.
2. As expected the first period was full of short passes and hard carries and heavy contact once the wind had been calibrated, Quins pushed us deep into our own half and tried to keep us there. From there it was a staged pattern of continuous possession with multiple runners off the 9 or 10, carrying hard into the havant defence. Consequently the first 20 mins was spent largely defending our own red zone, beating back wave after wave of Quins runners, as they looked to exploit any defensive weaknesses. In effect Quins had the measure of the early possession and consequently took advantage of having the ball, gaining field position and then battering our defence. Happily our structures held firm and we were able to meet each wave of the attacks with a good solid response, finally winning a penalty, which allowed us to clear our red zone and shift the play back up towards the halfway... but the first half atmosphere had been set and it was definitely going to be a struggle to overcome the prevailing conditions. The continuous rain was also making handling difficult and when coupled with the swirling winds, made coping with any high ball a difficult task ... more than once the ball seemed to be bouncing around in the air as attempted catches and fumbles all failed to control it.
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3. That said Havant did slowly acclimatise to the game in the first period and eventually built a series of phases that bought us deeper into the Quins half and subsequently into their Red Zone, putting the Quins defence under some pressure. Surprisingly in the difficult conditions and against the odds, we were able to make some significant gains and at 22' mins following a series of continuous possession and close quarter pressure, Cam Boa crossed the line, subsequently sliding over to secure the first score. Joel Knight lined up ready to convert kicking into the wind, but it was apparent he would need an assistant to steady the ball - with assistant in tow, the kick was duly converted. Perhaps against the flow of the game - Havant 0-7 (22'). The downwind response from Quins was immediate and direct, having planted a good restart down the pitch, they set about marshalling us back towards our own tryline again. Once again their options focussed primarily on a simple series of heavy battering runs off short passes, close to the preceeding breakdown... and it wasnt all Quins forwards, their backs routinely took their turn, all getting involved particularly the two tall rangy centres providing some very direct carries. Clearly it was route 1 rugby and the aim was to work our defence hard at the breakdowns, such that we would narrow and begin to leave space outwide. Sure enough 4 mins later our defence had narrowed and Quins scored their first try - a well developed series of phase-play that ultimately manipulated the defence, before shipping the ball wide to the right wing, who managed to get to the line. (7-7) (30')
4. It was a similar profile for the next Quins try - they played the ball into our half and then chasing their kick, put us back under pressure as we tried not to make mistakes. The dice were firmly loaded and today was obviously going to be a day of fumbles and drops - it was simply a matter of making sure the resultant scrums were in a place where you could attack from. One notable havant highlight of the first period was Ben Griffen (15), who definitely earned his keep today, demonstrating real proficiency under the regular high balls, and although some under significant pressure from the chasing Quins, seemingly maintained an air of calm confidence, linking well with his support players or indeed the clearance kicker depending on the situation. Inevitably he was going to be busy as the majority of the game was being played in the air and on the wind, and sure enough Quins pushed everything into the air eventually following a fumble, they secured a scrum in our Redzone. On 30' mins following phases off that scrum, their 10 slipped passed the defensive cover and dabbed it down for another score close to the posts. (14-7) (30'). And so the pressure continued to build as Quins reapplied the same kick and chase profile with Havant seemingly unable to be anything other than reactive to the situation. The next play ended up close to our line, where in the defensive mellee... Joel Knight was adjudged to have committed a late tackle, as we fought to regain control of the ball, subsequently he won a Yellow and 10 mins in the bin. Quins took the easy penalty. 17-7 (36'). Although a man down, happily our defensive posture remained solid and was good enough to cover the next 4 mins comfortably absorbing the pressure until the relief of half time and the subsequent change of direction.
Halftime: Oxford Quins 17 HRFC 7
Second Half:
5. As highlighted before .. this was always going to be a game of two halves, and the team that could control / contain the conditions would probably be able to play the better rugby. So we were definitely looking forward to the second half with the wind more to our backs, where we could play the ball more comfortably into the opposition half knowing just how that would impact them. Shortly after the restart, with Joel having rejoined the party from the bin, Quins themselves won a yellow card for a high shot on Ben Holt (9) - Havant could now apply a bit more pressure and consequently secured better field position to attack using a similar Route 1 posture like Quins had. That said, notwithstanding the pressure, the Oxford defence held firm and for much of the time they even retained possession, although were more limited on their attacking options other than playing through the phases and slowly getting the heavy gang to march them up the field.
6. Indeed it's probably fair to say, that Havant didnt really secure any scoring opportunities in the second half until 62', when a scrum close to Quins line provided a good solid attacking opportunity. From the scrum the backrow carried into the Quins defence, recycled and subsequently Alfie Wainscoat, who had carried hard and well all game, managed to get over on the line on the far side of the pitch. Once again joel with the support of an assistant steadying hand, slotted the conversion with relative ease and assurity. At this point Havant looked to be gaining the ascendency, although obviously still not generating our normal gameplan due to the extreme weather conditions, but they were now achieving better pressure with well developed phase play, the forwards were coping with the pressure and with the relatively easy field position gains was generating more opportunities to exploit. As the play developed, so we saw a nice linkage between 8 & 9 developing, with 9 running wide from the scrum into space before receiving the pass from Alfie at 8 - this allowed Ben more time away from the Quins backrow, while spotting the gaps and it proved to be extremely effective as he broke through the Quins defence a number of times, having found the gap to attack.
8. Having regained the initiative and with play developing nicely for Havant, another foray into the red zone allowed havant to despatch the ball to the backs (one of only a few times today) and with the Quins defence now pressing hard, rather than pass Joel Knight elected to poke a loverly grubber kick in behind them for Ben Griffen to collect, carry and score. The Conversion this time - was missed. 17-19 (73') however Havant had the lead.
9. With their Lead now gone, once Quins looked to regain possession quickly, with the touchline support urging them to regain field position, they set about attacking the gaps in the Havant defence. If one thing stood out today from the Havant POV, it was that wherever the play was, our backrow were always there or thereabouts and close enough together to be covered by the proverbial 'coaches blanket', digging out and doing the donkey work - A really strong performance and they worked tirelessly thoroughout the game to provide the solid defensive containment ..or when we were in possession, to be on hand to carry hard #superb. On 75' - Havant were awarded another penalty, whereupon joel did the honours, now stretching the lead to a 5 point margin - not safe but in this wind that was a healthy position. From that point on, it was simply a matter of containing the Quins attacks, keeping them pushed back in their own half (using the wind) and letting the clock run down. With very little stoppage time - the afternoon activities were drawn to a close and after a quick huddle the boys sought shelter!
Summary: A really key game for Havant - particularly after the disappointment last week. We obviously do need to focus on these pre-christmas games in order to consolidate a better points tally that allows us some breathing space from the bottom of the table, ready for the start of the new year. We know there will be no easy games in this league, and this was no different ...but for the most part today, we looked assured and confident of our capability and our performance was what was required on the day. We played well, against a well-drilled capable side, who on their day have clearly not been constrained by the weather and produced some good results. Clearly the weather conditions set the tone for the day, but we adapted to them and our second half performance was well measured - perhaps if Quins had kicked deeper into our half when they had the wind, we might well have had to recover from a bigger score margin.
Our performance overall was patient, measured and largely accurate, but again we suffered a yellow card near halftime, which regardless of whether we deserved it or not, is always going to be an opportunity for the opposition to exploit the space we were leaving on the park - as it was today, Quins only managed 3 points during the lean sin-bin period - but some teams in this league will definitely put us to the sword when we give them that extra space. Playing rugby without the ball is a tough ask, happily our defence fired well today - the boys were clearly up for it, they looked connected and kept the opposition under pressure. Perhaps it was actually easier to do the defending without the pressure of having to hold the ball. As previously highlighted our backrow worked tirelessly and particularly when looking at the images, they seemed to be everywhere!
A good win, and a really important away victory - we now need to make sure we can finish the year securing as many points as we can to ensure we are clear of the fracas at bottom of the table and any subsequent 'fight to the death' amongst the would-be relegation contenders doesn't impact us.
Next Job: Dorking (Hooks Lane)
PS: ...I;m off to try to dry out this camera gear!
Full Time: Oxford Quins 17 HRFC 22
Match Image slideshow:
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Match Story Board: HRFC v Henley Hawks (L28-36)
Venue: Hooks Lane
Crowd: Approx 800
Weather: Overcast / Cold / Calm
Havant Rugby Football Club
Henley Hawks
Match images are now available at:
https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p816796963
First Impressions
First Half:
1. On a cold winters day at the Lane, another bumper crowd bolstered by the Former Players Association, after a good solid lunch time session, greeted both teams onto the pitch. They were not disappointed - A fast start from Havant highlighted some great attacking play and eventually after concerted phase play in the red zone saw our pressure win a penalty, converted by Joel. This was followed by more of the same pace and intensity, eventually seeing Dylan Read race away to the corner to the first try of the game, the conversion was missed (8-0). Henley seemed a little stunned by the start of proceedings.
2. After 10 mins it was clear Henley were still struggling to get out of their half as Havant maintained their momentum, pressing hard and winning another penalty, Joel Knight slotting the kick, (11-0). But it was clear that Henley had clearly got some pace and power on the park, they just needed to get it into action and as the game evolved it slowly started to have an influence on the outcome.... and as the first period progressed, so Henley slowly started to generate more coherency of play, developing some nice handling interplay while looking to stretch our defences out wide. Happily our defence remained solid, but it was a definitive marker that the opposition could present a real threat that was going to need to be managed.
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3. The half continued ... but as with all games in this league, if you start to switch off or begin to relax - you will get punished, and this was no different. No sooner had we restarted after our converted penalty kick, Henley were attacking deep in our own half, applying real pressure in our Red Zone. While the defence held, it wasn't long before their increased attacking flow started to generate some real space, and our defence was being stretched. Henley finally managed to wear us down and subsequently get over for their first try (11-7).
4. As the first half progressed, so it became clear that Henley were now becoming the more dominant attacking force, our own 'go forward' posture had diminished, somewhat impacted by the loss of dylan read to injury, but it was mainly Henley kicking into gear that was the problem. They were now developing solid phase plays, recycling well and shipping the ball quickly to the edges, looking to attack any gaps we left. In a similar manner as the pressure was being applied, so we were probably guilty of succumbing to the more technical type infringements, as the ref seemed to be constantly blowing for penalties against us and marching us back into our own half - it was clear, if we had had an early Purple Patch.. well that was now over and Henley were clearly starting to get the upper hand and dominate the balance of play.
5. Almost on cue, 28' mins in, with loose play in the middle of the park, the Henley Centre collected the ball and made a nice solo break, jinking through our defence only to find he had actually run away from his own support too, ... whereupon, committed to going it alone - he did .. subsequently beating our last remaining defender to the line and scoring a nice try. While this was a quality try, I sense it was probably also helped by some less than adequate tackling when we had the chance to stop him - with the conversion, Henley took the lead (11-14) and as the score suggests, finished the first half the more dominant side.
Halftime: HRFC 11 Henley Hawks 14
Second Half:
6. While clearly still in touch with Henley at 11-14 down, after the restart Havant were soon put under some early pressure with Henley camped in our Red Zone. Good solid gritty chop tackle defence killed a number of attacks, but the Ref felt we were still infringing and following a Yellow card (Ben Holt), Henley quickly exploited the extra man and their backrow (7) crossed the line out wide. The conversion was subsequently missed (11-19). Still in touch, but now playing with a man down ... and mindful that we needed to tighten up!
7. Happily, with memories of Bury probably still fresh in our minds, the next period was largely well managed, both in attack and defence, although henley did break through requiring a good cover tackle by Jack Phillips to stop a dead cert try. The subsequent follow-on play did allow us to regain field position and after some solid exit work we won a penalty, enabling a kick to the corner before delivering a well-executed lineout, where the ensuing contest/grappling match had numerous sub-plots.. but eventually Archie Cleeve drove over for the try with some help from the posse. Joel Knight provided the extras with the conversion and we were back at a one point game 18-19. (54')
8. From the restart and somewhat reinvigorated from the successful score, we were able to collect and establish field position again, exerting more pressure on the Henley Defence, before finally winning another penalty (60') for our efforts. Again kicking to the corner, we positioned ourselves some 15m out, presumably ready for a successful lineout catch and drive but after a competed period of close-quarter phase play, we finally shifted the ball to the backs whereupon Jacob Knight put in a well-aimed cross-field kick to our very own 'Windandsurf Images' Sponsored Player (Harry Carr), who skilfully scooped up the ball while fighting his way passed his man to get over the line for the Havant try. Although out wide and on the touchline, this was then non-chantlently converted by Joel (25-19), who was striking the ball so cleanly throughout the day. The Home Crowd were now becoming noisy and had clearly started to believe we could take this game.
9. Min 68' and another Henley infringement gives us yet another kickable Penalty opportunity, with Joel Knight making no mistake from just outside the Henley 22m - extending the lead to a two score margin. (28-19). The balance of play had swung to our favour - and this lead would normally be sufficient for a team to relax a bit, but Henley were still very much in the game and alive to their chances and if anything we continued to feel under pressure. As had been demonstrated much of the afternoon, we were up against a mature side with some clever attacking talent in their backline, and not withstanding now being behind again... with the clock running away, Henley set about generating good solid phased approach work before patiently crafting a good score scoring opportunity to put their wing over in the corner - thankfully for the home crowd emotions, they missed the conversion (28-24) on 74' mins ...we still had our lead but a nail biting last few moments of play to endure.
10. At this point the flow of the game definitely seemed to switch again ...and after the restart Henley now in the ascendency, began exerting more pressure as they firmly camped inside our Red zone. Hats off to the Havant boys, who once again bravely defended every phase of attack close to the line, real gritty defence with bodies being put firmly on the line...Indeed this type of defensive set would normally have been highlighted in any post match report as the key match winning accolade, however it was obviously not be this time! Following an infringement at the 5m lineout, Havant were awarded another yellow card (Ross Parkins) and once again Henley set about exploiting our defence, attacking the line and then stretching the ball wide, inevitably giving us too much of a challenge to handle that close to the line - the Henley try was finally scored in the corner by their winger, again the conversion was missed. 28-29 (80').
Henley now had the lead, but we still had the all important Losing Bonus Point ...and the clock was passed the 80' with just some minor stoppages to play.
11. Now we've obviously been here before this season (most recently at Barnes), where the response to suddenly going behind just as the clock is counting down is totally instinctive - obviously there's a desire to get the ball back in play quickly, win the restart and play the ball into their half using attacking pace and flair to regain the lead - or at least thats the theoretical plan. Perhaps we now need to be more strategic in our tactical time management at this point - when we're under pressure to push the ball around quickly, mistakes will undoubtedly happen - in this case we did restart, they collected and box-kicked back into our half, we collected safely and responded by trying to generate an attacking situation... but our attack faltered and we ended up spilling the ball in contact, only to present an opportunity for the Henley backs to attack our dishevelled defence and the mis-match in front of them (scrambling players trying to re-establish a coherent defensive posture), and once they had got through the half-tackle of the scrambled defence, the Henley centre scooted away down the field finally linking up with their 17 year old youngster (9) who scored under the posts (28-36). The end result - regrettably a definitive League loss ...and no Losing Bonus Point.
I'm Not sure anyone really believed we ever had full control of this game at any point, even when we were leading. Although we did have some purple patches, Henley demonstrated a solid mature game plan built around their talent and skillsets, one that didn't take too many risks and one that generally only played rugby in our half, based on establishing proper field position with down-field kicking. Nothing too sexy - but clearly one that works for them! What was really clear, was the overarching inference of the penalty infringements throughout the game - clearly the referee felt the balance of infringements, in the first half, were being caused by Havant and not withstanding a good early period putting Henley under some proper pressure, we seemed to be achieving a continuous penalty count for a long while and were clearly put on the back foot by the incessant penalties. The game is obviously hard enough without putting ourselves under additional pressure and in doing this, we probably allowed the Henley to regain their footing in this game, such that they could regain momentum and finally snatch the win.
Notwithstanding the huge disappointment of losing this fixture in the last moments, this was still a really good entertaining hard fought game of competitive rugby ...against the 4th placed side in this league. They had to work hard to score a number of good quality tries today and although we were comfortably leading at one point, in all honesty, it was probably against the true flow of play. Clearly we did really well in the second half to regain the lead, and having achieved it, my sense (.. and hope) was the quality of our squad should probably have been able to survive the last 10 mins... and thereby hold-on to take a key win. For me - this is the learning point to take away. Sadly we weren't able to choke the game, once we had got two scores ahead, instead we allowed Henley to come back at us generating some significant pressure, and eventually score the winning try on full time to steal the game - the subsequent loss of the losing bonus point, is as discussed earlier, was probably more to do with our own instinctive 'kneejerk' playing reaction to the sudden loss, where the tactical decision making might not fully align with the strategic requirement (ie maintaining league table position) - all that stuff about scoreline/ timeline and Risk and when to play expansive rugby and when to keep it tight and to accept the scoreline and protect your bonus point - we might want to review this area, as I sense these bonus points will become so important further down the line, when everyone is subsequently fighting for their points.
... But with ALL that said.. IMHO.. we are definitely moving in the right direction and while obviously we still have some rough edges to sort out, we have consolidated sufficiently at this level such that we are now generating a solid competitive output against the strongest opposition on a weekly basis - all from within our existing extended senior squad. This is a huge achievement to make this step, and the real test will be whether we can do it sustainably across the whole length of the season. Never before has the need for a strong 'Dolphins' outfit been more important - I sense the challenge might now be to maintain and maximise player availability as we move towards the crucial and more crunchy 'downhill' phase of the season (in both leagues! ) -The future's still rosy and Christmas is coming up quick - but we need to Stay fit! Next Job: Oxford Harlequins (A) #upthehill
Full Time: HRFC 28 Henley Hawks 36
Match Image slideshow:
https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p816796963
Match Story Board: Bury St Edmunds v HRFC (W49-53)
Venue: The Haberden, Southgate Sports Ground
Crowd: Approx 500
Weather: Overcast / Cold
Havant Rugby Football Club
Bury St Edmund RFC
Match images are now available at:
https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p673073150
First Impressions
First Half:
1. An evenly balanced start with both sides probing the defences, Havant initiated the scoring with a converted catch and drive) but both sides looked fairly well matched and it seemed like the afternoon would be a 'nip and tuck' type affair, with no significant dominance apparent other than perhaps some real quality highlighted in the Bury backs early on, demonstrating their clever ball skills around the park (0-7).
2. Both sides maintained relative parity (3-7) until a subsequent Yellow Card at 17' broke the equality (Ben Holt - not 10 yards after another penalty) and completely shifted the match balance, allowing Bury to begin exposing/exploiting the gaps in our defence, effectively isolating the defensive edge, and then stretching us well beyond our capacity / attacking with relative ease (10-7).
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3. With only limited possession... and now a man down, Havant struggled to generate any meaningful 'Go Forward' ball. Meanwhile Bury kicked up into another gear and we were clearly struggling to handle them - very quickly it started to look like it was going to be a very long afternoon as the opposition scoring opportunities began to mount up. The worried Havant faces around the ground were clearly beginning to wonder just how bad this might become, as the Bury Backs kicked into life, opening up holes to create opportunities and seemingly scoring with relative ease - within 20 mins a sizeable scoreline was already on the board (36-7).
4. Finally there was a shift in our luck(?) - Bury got a Yellow card for a High shot and with less of them on the park and a bit of extra space, Havant could start to regain some composure before generating some meaningful Phase play. In time regaining field position and ultimately finishing off a scoring opportunity out wide with a driving maul (Steve Jenkinson) (36-12) - notwithstanding our reply, Bury still finished the half in the ascendency putting a penalty over to keep the pressure on (39-12).
Halftime: Bury St Edmunds 39 HRFC 12
Second Half:
5. All change! After a bit of blunt 'Changing room direction' to help refocus the minds, Fresh legs were brought on and Havant came out early for the next half complete with a new Frontrow, including the return of Sean Shephard. This game had 'obviously' already got away from us - but this was now a game of damage control and was going to need a complete mental reset (back to basics) and a more proactive response to handling Bury, while trying to keep the score to a respectable level.
The Second half got underway and the early initial bury attacks looked like they had started where they had left off ..and it was going to be 'more of the same' for the next 40 mins.... happily from a Havant perspective, things appeared to be different, even the floodlights seemed brighter - our defence remained solid, we were more resilient at the breakdown, we were competing 50/50 balls and indeed even able to recover the ball, and by applying the basics we subsequently developed field position, eventually sliding into a more normal rhythm that would allow us to play our game.
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6. Now seemingly playing with more intensity and pace... and some confidence (..there was obviously nothing to lose!), Havant were generating a much quicker speed of recycle ball and Bury seemed to be struggling to establish their normal steady defensive set. We looked to be holding onto possession better and our offload inter-play was beginning to make real impact. Not withstanding the disproportionate scoreline - this definitely looked better...maybe there was a credible chance of generating some scoring opportunities ...and possibly (just a hope!) getting a bonus point for our (now improved) efforts. Finally after some concerted pressure, Havant got to the line and scored a well earned try (Ross Parkin) with Joel K converting (39-19). Obviously still no parity, but just nice for the travelling support to see that the game wasn't all one sided!
7. Once Play restarted, we came again - rebuilding our field position and establishing good solid phase play to manipulate the defence. After a short while, we had generated enough space on the edge for Dylan Read to collect the wide pass and sprint over. Believe it or not, that was the 4 Try Bonus Point in the bag! (39-24). Bury were looking a little shell-shocked that we hadn't died away ...and you could see our lads were just starting to believe in themselves. Bury’s Restart and again our reconstituted basics allowed us to build proficiently creating space outside allowing Jack Phillips to go over in the corner. The losing bonus point was now a credible 'possibility' (39-29) and it was clear our bench were having a significant impact - the frontrow carrying well, while the likes of Jamo was able to run hard at the opposition and punching 'Tuilangii' sized holes in the now unsettled Bury defence.
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8. Notwithstanding our resurgence ...the game was obviously not all one way traffic - and BSE backs were still posing a significant threat whenever they collected our loose kicks - Bury maintained pressure wherever they could slotting a penalty when given the chance (42-29). With memories of the first half Rout were still foremost in our minds, we continued to carefully build steady pressure before Bury collected another Yellow Card for a High Shot - and once again the relative balance of attack shifted to Havant's favour, such that we were able to get another try but not the conversion (42-34) ... still not at the losing bonus point yet.
The game continued with the BSE backs threatening any loose ball in broken play and sadly we still hadn’t cured our defensive edge, giving them a way through to score a well-earned try in the bottom corner. At this point the BSE crowd looked to settle back into the relative comfort that their 'Bury Boys' were back in control as their fly Half slots a great conversion (49-34)
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9. At this point fatigue and scoreline reality normally kicks in ....but it seemed none of the travellers were lying down and there was still plenty of Havant Dog left yet. Patient phase play, quick recycling and we generated another well worked try in the far corner - still rebuilding our hopes for that losing bonus point (49-41). Another card and the balance shifts in havant’s favour whereupon we work the ball towards the corner, and get another score. This is better - the Losing Bonus Point is now definitely an option (49-46), the Bury players are querying the scoreline and becoming unsettled, noting that Havant are now in with a chance of the losing bonus point. We miss the conversion - but Bury know the momentum is firmly back with us.
10. ...My sense is most Havant supporters would have been cheering the miraculous recovery to secure 2 bonus points away from home ...and would have probably in all honesty have left this end of darkest Suffolk content that it had not been a wasted journey....But it would appear the lads hadn’t read the script. Another restart, more possession and patient phase play and then another Bury Yellow on the 80', offered a penalty in their 22 out wide. Game on! Having already secured 2 bonus points and clearly riding on a wave of game momentum - we now had more players in-hand on the pitch... and the clock was running down - we go to the corner for the win with a catch and drive! #brave #credibledecision
Bury looked stunned - whereupon we simply had to execute a flawless lineout (in hindsight, a somewhat brave call, considering our lineout had been a bit 'hit and miss' most of the afternoon!) and conduct a standard 'catch and drive' towards the line - but in this case Bury countered well, fighting hard to defend their win and there really was nothing doing - so the ball is recycled into the backs - letting our heavy gang reposition themselves ready to carry on the next phases. Sure enough our midfield carry well into defensive traffic, retain possession and set up the next breakdown, and after a number of pre-cursor carries, Luka Shplka collects and heads over the line with a little help from his friends, to put the icing on the cake! The final conversion goes over W49-53 and the clock is dead and that's a 5 point league win. #whowouldvethought
Definitely a game of two Halves and 5 well-earned league points - not a bad return for such a long drive up here #upthehill #fullspectrumofemotions #BZ
Read the official club match report for all the detail.
Full Time: Bury 49 HRFC 53
Extras:
Not sure anyone really knows what happened here - Its obvious that Rugby at this level is now dominated by process and procedure, and consequently the subsequent loss of a player can have a significant disruptive action on those finely tuned processes. The subsequent loss of Ben Holt (yellow) clearly impacted our coherence and effectively helped open the door for BSE to exploit, quickly putting 4 tries over in a 15 min period - similar to how Guernsey raiders had punished our mistakes earlier this season. In a similar manner, our second half change in intensity and pace coupled with their subsequent loss of players to cards, had a similar effect on their processes, mainly their defensive ability to counter our attacks - that said even when they were men down, their backs remained a very credible threat who could exploit any loose ball from anywhere on the park - probably the best set we have seen to date on today's showing.
As we keep reminding ourselves, there are no easy games at this level and based on the first half performance - we would probably have been happy to just take away a single bonus point today, as the second half regain and build in confidence was something we just weren't expecting! It was great to witness and great for the team - as the match progressed, so too did the team belief and confidence across the 20 man squad. Everyone was playing their part, there were no exceptions - and looking at the mountain they have just climbed to take this victory - this won't have gone unnoticed across the league! 102 points in any game is odd... but even more so when you consider it was a 'fight back' from a standing start at 39-12 at HT.
Not counting any chickens just yet! - While obviously there's some significant work to be done to resolve / prevent the 'initial meltdown' that got us into this position - based on the quality of this fight back, the muscle memory now built into this team and the confidence generated across the squad to be able to compete at this level - my sense is the coaching team will be happy (as much as they can be) that we are now much better acclimatised to this level of competition and should expect a good solid competitive run-up (league points accumulation) to consolidate a mid-table position by Christmas. #upthehill
Match Image slideshow:
https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p673073150
Next Job: Henley (Hooks Lane)
https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p499983565 πΈ
Match Story Board: HRFC v Old Albanian (W37-29)
Match Image slideshow:
Touchline Opinion:
- Always billed as a pivotal fixture and a key result, OA now firmly situated in the core mid-table group above us will consequently feature in our targeted 'must win/ must secure points' fixtures. Today's 5pt win will have been a good tonic for the coaches, who probably ..after lots of relative platitudes and sage advice from 'the great and the good' about how we were doing in the first phase of the season, have effectively seen their team deliver a good solid standard of rugby against solid opposition, only to trip-up in small functional areas and then be severely punished. One thing for certain - playing rugby at this level can be ruthless! π³
- Going into this fixture with a record of 2W/5L does not really highlight how this team have been performing (most havant games have been against the top of the table types), but is probably more an indication that our total match performance, at this level, is still in development and we haven't yet acquired all the necessary skillsets to shut a game down when in control. The need to play the percentage game is never more real, and unlike the relative looser freedoms of last season, we probably now have to be more conservative in our game-play and manage the timeline/ scoreline risks better.
- Worth having a look at Adam King's Senior Round-up on Fb for the detail, but in my humble my opinion - although we generated a good solid first half output, HT 19-10, the two side’s abilities were probably never very far apart and even though our ability to further extend the lead in the early second half period appeared to indicate that we were starting to get the measure of them (29-10), it didn't last! When OA suddenly woke up and delivered 3 tries on the bounce in a 15min period, it was pretty clear that we hadn't really worked out how to contain them ... in fact the speed of change was a shock and somewhat silenced our home crowd as we arrived at 29-29 (shades of 'Shock and Awe') with 10 mins to play …
- ...happily, and not withstanding the OA resurgent effort, our resilience didn't desert us and having survived the onslaught we were able to patiently re-generate field position and threaten their line again; the very prominent Jack Phillips subsequently pouncing on a loose ball after a structured attack to nab an important nerve-settling try to re-establish the lead, (34-29) followed by a quick Captain's penalty to make it a two score finish (FT37-29) and deny the opposition a losing bonus point.. and with that, the afternoon entertainment was complete!
Midfield Defence was being tested right from the off. |
Set Piece functioned well and delivered good 1st phase possession |
Strong carries featured throughout
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Airborne Defence
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- ** Special mention to the OA Fullback (Alex Noot 15) for his solo try effort from 70m out, running through approx 4 or even 5(?) havant tackle opportunities was quite something to watch, both with his footwork, change of direction and pace, backed up by sheer bloody mindedness to get through the havant defensive traffic and get it over the line. Superb to watch! (Obvs not superb for us! π) #hatsofftoyou π**
Applause for the Home Crowd Support
- A 'Win's a Win', and this one secured a much needed league 5pts - the coaches should be rightly proud of their squad's performance this week; while there's not much change on the table, this was undoubtedly a highly competitive fixture and required a mature team performance to secure the win and maximise the points - we are clearly going to need more of the same next month, with plenty of similar mid-table, closely balanced games ahead of us. #stillnoeasygames! While no doubt quietly celebrating, I'm pretty certain our analysts will also soon be hard at work reviewing the video to identify our definitive weaknesses and understand the associated symptoms, such that we can shore up our fragilities ready for the next league phase and our bid to consolidate in the mid-table area.
- Next job will obviously be restoring the squad's fitness/ regrouping / maybe rethinking some of the tactical approaches and game planning and then getting ready to go again for the next round of important league fixtures in Nov. (Bury/ Henley/ Oxford Quins) #upthehill
HRFC Most Capped Player - Steve Cruddas handing over his mantle to Joel Knight
Next Job: Bury St Edmunds
Havant Rugby Football Club
Old Albanian RFC
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https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p579611231 πΈ
Match Storyboard:
Touchline Opinion
- Barnes v HRFC (L33-21) ππ As highlighted in Adam King's regular Senior Round-up, this was another competitive game, against a strong well-drilled side, where the emotional heartache of competitive league rugby was well and truly played out.. and we probably only lost in the dying moments.
- A solid first half had us in the lead, but it was clear after the break that Barnes had another gear to go to, quickly regaining the lead by turning up the pressure. Happily we didn't capitulate, we simply adjusted, regaining parity with two good long shot penalties,
- Clearly we weren't out of the woods, as the well drilled Barnes scored again and with only limited time left to play, we needed a pretty direct response to regain. Building towards the corner we applied significant pressure, they got a card, and we delivered a well-executed 'catch and drive' to secure a converted try (19-21)... and for most of the 'Hampshire Ramblers' enjoying the London Autumnal sun - that would have been enough to call it a day! ππ...
- Sadly the clock didn't stop, the game continued and we subsequently couldn't protect our own field position and were forced deep, subsequently having to take a try line drop-out which allowed Barnes to collect and apply real pressure in our Red Zone. They're a good side, obviously one that came second in this league last year, and they know how to take their chances - which they did well, satisfying the ref that their driving maul (apparently pulled down by us) was close enough to be awarded a penalty try.
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- So now at L26-21 and the clock on its last few dying moments, we could have come away with a losing BP ... but in the rush for a quick restart, knowing time was about to die, our mindset was probably still pressing hard for that win we had just lost control of ... and sadly an inevitable loose wide pass, an easy interception and the damage was made worse - FT33-21 and no BP. π
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- A great shame after what looked like a good solid managed performance that had evolved to cope with the threat handling a strong side, and indeed was good enough to take a hard fought win. Maybe no win this time, but the analysis will show lots of positives with minimal shortfalls - we are still only talking fine margins, as this was yet another fixture that really could have gone a different way. Still early in the season, but the focus is clearly to start converting these limited opportunities into winning points ...and if we can't win, we need to secure the BP on offer. #IMHO #upthehill
Havant Rugby Football Club
Barnes Rugby Club
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Match slideshow available below:
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stepping back in time - https://windandsurfimages.zenfolio.com/p243022854.
Slightly musty, dimly lit and just the remnants of last nights sweaty training session hanging in the air amongst the dust - this was definitely a step back in time, to a period when we had a wealth of British boxing legends. From the graffiti on the walls to the legacy posters and advertisement hoardings, when the Kray Twins headed the bill all the way through to the British champions of the 70s and 80s, there really was no doubting the quality and prestige of combatant sport that went on in this old converted bath house. Its certainly not a museum but a proper working gym - fantastic venue.
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This was a more interesting one...
Standard Easyjet trip out to South of France. All the delights of a Tour party abroad! #sailorsandmarines
The training Ground just outside the Dockyard with our accommodation. No complaints.
Big day arrives - and we're at the Toulon stadium having completed all our preps - there is an expectant atmosphere. As ever the dockyard siren blasts at the end of the working day and the French Navy stop work and march expectantly down to the stadium to cheer on their team. They've been told this is 'Le Crunch' - This is their Army Navy - and they expect Le Battle of Trafalgar! Needless to say - we understand the challenge, the history, the atmosphere that can be generated in this cauldron and the limitations of playing away - but the boys are up for the challenge. Why wouldn't they be?
Nice professional changing rooms and all the normal accoutrements prior to 'Le Crunch'. No French funnies yet .. but there's bound to be a few.
The pre-match Formalities - RN 1SL and his counter part exchange niceties and entente cordiale ...anthems and handshakes and a quiet muttering of 'think we should just let the ref handle the rest!' ....et voila! The standard Toulon Rallying call - Pelou Pelou from the tattooed man and we're off.
France v Britain - a few French funnies at the start, offsides everywhere, high tackles and a blind ref, finally some control. The RN rock this professional scrum unit to their core - so much so the ref has to find a reason to reset it quickly... The Perpignon frontrow not happy with foreheads knocking, a bit of Cornish afters just to add to their disgruntlement and the ref looses control.. and we've got an international shindig! Pas Bon! The Scrums are going 'toe to toe' with lots of close quarter action while the extras are coming from flying backs. The RN lads stood their ground and gave no quarter - purely responding to the opposition antics. The French crowd are baying for blood - why wouldn't they!
A few hasty directives from the naval seniors as the melee overspills from the playing field and eventually after a long while the ref regains some control. His subsequent red card to their loose head (the one not starting in the European Championship game that weekend) and our Tight head - was probably about 180 degrees out from where all the real action started - but heyho when in France! The French Half time chats suddenly had a senior Naval presence providing the Hearts and Minds, while we left it to the TSG knowing full well that this was part of our pre-match analysis, as was the refs sudden blindness - but the game continued in the feisty manner and although we offered a lot more attacking play, we were always on the backfoot and unable to regain control without our dominant scrum against their tight unit... and so they win - As they say in France - 'that's life!'
So not the result we wanted, certainly not the kind of game required for our IS build-up ... but quite a memorable game for your first Cap in an RN shirt and certainly one to tell the grand kids. Ohh la la! #onwards #IS16build-up