The Dark Art. Bishop Stortford RFC latest stop for Hoppa

Hoppa again stayed in, a new bottle of malt purchased and the new PS4 to test. So a smidging of silver surfing and he came across this result from Bishop Stortford, before heading for the conclave.

Thank you to the guys at Bishop Stortford Rugby Club for the following report and photo.

By Perry Oliver | Sunday 3rd March 2013

Stortford dodge a bullet to maintain their push for promotion.

Match report In John's temporary absence by Mark Smith assisted by the @BSRugby Twitter feed.

 

This important top half of the table clash was played on a clear but cool day, & a perfect pitch. In the earlier fixture between the two teams a 6-6 draw had been ground out in dreadful conditions, the hope today was for much more.

 

Pressure from Tonbridge from the kick off resulted in them crossing the try line after only 3 minutes only to be pulled back by the referee as the last pass drifted forward. This was an early wake up call for a slow starting Stortford.

 

The action ebbed and flowed in the middle of the pitch until finally a TJ’s penalty crept over the bar with the help of the upright to make it 0-3. Stortford responded quickly though, with a penalty of their own, to level the match at 3-3.

 

In what was always going to be a tight game the sides exchanged kicks, rucks and rolling mauls until a break by TJ’s centre John Farmer was spun wide to Full Back Ian Davey for a simple score. The conversion though was pulled wide. 3-8

 

A spell of poor tackling then allowed the Tonbridge Fly Half Charlie Harding to spot a gap to glide through, complete a pass to the flanker on his right and once again TJ’s found themselves across the line. This time the kick is good. And at Half time Stortford were struggling 3-15 down.

 

The second half started more positively for us though with Stocker making a clean break, and a good interchange of passes eventually put Marcus Cattell in the corner for our first try. Tom Coleman nailed a difficult kick from a very tight angle and at 10-15 it looked like we are back in the game

 

The next play resulted in Scrum half Sam Coleman taking a big hit to the face which led to his immediate replacement by Jimmy Rea. TJ’s were then penalised for not rolling away at the tackle and the ever reliable Tom Coleman closed the gap to 2 points. 13-15.

 

But the visitors weren’t about to yield the lead easily and following a sustained period of possession, Dan Hawkes their scrum half chipped over for his winger to score in the corner. The conversion though once again drifted wide. 13-20.

 

Stortford responded to that blow immediately and Steve Bull picked up from the base of a ruck and fought his way over the line score under the posts. Coleman once again added the extras and the game was all square at 20-20.

 

At this point the game was very tense with neither side fault free, both apparently waiting for the mistake that would allow a score. That score came for the home team when TJ’s were penalised for killing the ball and Tom Coleman put Stortford ahead for the first time in the match. 23-20.

 

A period of positive play from the hosts led to yet another penalty opportunity for Tom Coleman which he duly took to extend his sides lead to 26-20.

 

But TJ’s refused to give up and after a lengthy period of pressure the a gap was finally prised open in the home sides defence with what proved to be the final play of the game. At 26-25 it all came down to the final conversion kick to decide the match but from an eminently kickable position the TJ’s player missed and the anxious home support could finally exhale and celebrate the narrowest of victories . 26-25.

 

TJ’s must have rued so many missed kicks and on their journey back to Kent been wondering how they lost the game. It was by no means our best performance of the season and not even the most fervent Stortford supporter would deny that we probably dodged a bullet on this occasion having been outscored 4 tries to 2. Luckily for us we had a great place kicker and they did not!

 

So we’ll take the win if not the performance and move on to our next fixture against Tring this coming Saturday (9th). There are though no easy games in this league and Tring are fighting for their lives in this league. We can therefore anticipate another titanic battle. The edgy home support will hope though that next time whilst the result stays the same, the performance is a little more assured Otherwise we’ll have to start serving Valium from the pitch side bar!

 

Hoop Zone: Barking Abbey move closer to South East Title

Thank you too Mark, Lloyd and the Barking Abbey team for update and photo.

Barking Abbey moved a step closer to clinching the VCars.co.uk Division 4 South East regular season league title after beating Croydon Cougars 62-55 on Sunday afternoon.

“It was a total team effort in securing tonight’s win,” said head coach Frank Holloway after the game. “We came out ready to play and shared the basketball. Croydon is a very good team, and they play very physical inside the paint. I am proud of our guys for not backing down and accepting the challenge.”

BA now stand at 14-3 at the top of the South East conference, with University of East London NASSA in second place.

Roy Downey led BA with 19 points, David Akibo had a 14 point, 10 rebound double double, adding 3 steals and 2 blocks, and Niall Hegarty joined them in double figures with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Barking Women suffer defeat against Nottingham

Barking Abbey Senior Women suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of Nottingham Wildcats, 70-45, on Saturday evening away from home.

“After the prepaaration we had, and loss of players to college visits, coupled with the injuries, we got what we deserved,” said head coach Mark Clark after the game. “Nottingham played hard and took advantage of a below par performance.

“Our young backcourt of Shanice Norton and Leah McDerment were a positive. It’s a different challenge for us now to prepare for a game after a disappointing performance and refocus on our performance. We’ll get back into practice and remember how well we have played before this weekend.”

Shanice Norton had 13 points to lead BA, with Leah McDerment adding 10. BA will look to bounce back next weekend when they face Leeds Carnegie at home (8:00pm tip, Barking Abbey Leisure Centre).

Front Row: Aviva Premiership Round 17 review.

Thank you to our friends at Aviva Premiership, for the following review of Round 17 and photo

 

London Welsh head coach Lyn Jones was less than impressed after watching the Exiles fall to a 35-14 Aviva Premiership defeat to Saracens at Allianz Park

 

After two Charlie Hodgson penalties, London Welsh scored the first try of the game through new addition from Harlequins Seb Stegmann to make it 6-5 after 26 minutes.

 

However, with Gavin Henson missing the conversion, that was a close as the Exiles would come to Saracens, who were to record four tries for a third successive try bonus point win.

A penalty try in the first half was followed by scores from Joel Tomkins and Will Fraser in a 15-minute spell in the second half before David Strettle added the fourth late on.

Hodgson recorded 15 points from the boot in total with Henson contributing two penalties and a drop goal to London Welsh's score at Allianz Park.

Three points separate the Exiles and bottom club Sale Sharks in the Aviva Premiership table and head coach Jones was a far from happy man after their 13th defeat of the season.

"Coaches, players or anybody involved in rugby aren't perfect; we all mistakes but all we ask for is consistency and that was missed," said Jones, who saw Phil MacKenzie and Tom Bristow yellow carded in the first half.

"You just want to go from week to week with a basic understanding of what is a competitive ruck. I felt the first two rucks were clear wins for us but they were penalties against us and if that's what the rules are that's fine.

"But then in the second half it wasn't like that - are you allowed to compete for the ball or not? I'm just confused about it and I'm just a coach.

"I don't know what it's like for players because one week it's all one thing then the following week it's completely different and I'm struggling with the consistency."

Meanwhile, if England head coach Stuart Lancaster came knocking then Tom Croft would answer his call with aplomb according to Leicester Tigers director of rugby Richard Cockerill after the flanker continued his comeback from a broken neck.

Croft was stand-in captain for the visit of bottom side Sale and played the full 80 minutes as doubles from Matt Smith and Ed Slater, a penalty try and a Mathew Tait effort lifted the Tigers to a 48-10 victory.
And Cockerill has seen enough to say with confidence that the 27-year-old is ready to contribute straight away to England's remaining Six Nations campaign.

"He is a good enough player to go and play," he said. "He has played two full games now and if England needed him I'm sure he would be ready to go and do a job.

"Tom's attitude has been outstanding and he has used the time when he has not been playing to deal with his contact work and his conditioning.

"With 15 minutes to go he was wanting a bit of oxygen but he works to the maximum all the time. I'd have no hesitation in saying that Tom is ready to go and play a Test match next week.
"He has worked really hard and been patient and we are now getting the rewards."

Elsewhere on Saturday, Northampton Saints wing Jamie Elliott followed up with his double against Bath Rugby by going one better in a 40-14 win over London Irish at Franklin's Gardens.

Elliott was joined on the scoresheet by Soane Tonga'uiha and Samu Manoa as Stephen Myler added four conversions, the Exiles' points coming from a Guy Armitage try and three Tom Homer penalties.
And Exeter Chiefs recorded a first-ever Aviva Premiership double over Harlequins as they left the Stoop 27-16 victors.

Ugo Monye had put the defending champions ahead after just five minutes but second-half tries from Damian Welch and Luke Arscott reignited the Chiefs' Heineken Cup charge.

On Friday night, Jonny Arr's try 12 minutes from time sealed a vital bonus-point 29-23 victory for Worcester Warriors, condemning London Wasps to a second successive defeat in the process.

And Bath Rugby earned the local bragging rights after winning the West Country derby with Gloucester Rugby 31-25 at the Rec thanks to tries from Kyle Eastmond and Tom Biggs as well as 16 points from the boot of Tom Heathcote.

But, despite continuing what seems to be their ruthless charge up the Aviva Premiership table, Bath head coach Gary Gold is refusing to get carried away.

He said: "I don't think we're back in the title race after just one performance but I do think we've now given ourselves a chance. I think we'll keep our feet on the ground - we're not back in the title race just yet.

"Slowly but surely I think we're getting to where we want to be. I think we're making better decisions now about whether to kick or run but I also still think we're making awful decisions."

Rebels 3: Rebels fall short against Waratahs

Thank you to our friends at Rebels Media Team for providing us with the following post by Pete Fairbairn and photo.

The RaboDirect Rebels took to Sydney for their first away match of the season against the Waratahs, looking to record their first ever victory over their biggest rivals and for the first time get their hands on the Weary Dunlop Shield.

But despite heading into the half-time break with a 10 point lead which still flattered the hosts, it was more of the same from the Rebels as they replicated their poor second half from last week and went down 31-26 in the end.

The Waratahs didn't take long to get on the scoreboard, with Brendan McKibbin able to give them a 3-0 lead in just the fourth minute as he knocked over a penalty from right in front. Fortunately, James O'Connor was able to restore parity just three minutes later.

It was an error-riddled opening from both sides with plenty of dropped ball, but the Rebels came closest to the crossing the line with Scott Higginbotham intercepting an errant pass and being dragged down after a solid sprint.  O'Connor was able to put the visitors in front with another penalty, and after the first quarter of the match it was the Rebels 6-3.

The Rebels had the lion's share of possession, with Rory Sidey and Ged Robinson looking assured in possession and working hard to back up their teammates in support. Constant infringements led to Waratahs hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau receiving a yellow card, and Rebels' vice-captain for the evening, Ged Robinson, capitalised by getting over the line for his second try of the year. O'Connor kicked truly and the Rebels, having held 67% of possession, deservedly led 13-3 after 28 minutes.

McKibbin was able to reduce the deficit when he slotted his second kick of the night on the half hour mark, but the Rebels were dominating the game and reducing every Waratahs attacking movement to a mere couple of phases before forcing errors or turnovers.

O'Connor restored the ten point advantage, as the Rebels looked to hold that lead until the break. Nick Phipps broke the line and released a rampaging Richard Kingi, but convert Israel Folau managed to bring him down, and the Waratahs counter-attacked and won themselves a penalty - McKibbin was unable to add the points, and it was 16-6 to the visitors at half time.

Following the resumption, the Rebels picked up where they left off and again piled on the pressure. Luke Jones just failed to release Lachlan Mitchell out wide, but then it was the Waratahs who began to pile on the pressure for the first time in the game.

Laurie Weeks was sent to the bin as the Waratahs began to shuffle their pack, with Ben Volavola and Paddy Ryan joining the fray. And while the Rebels were able to subdue their opponents through sustained pressure, just one minute before the big prop was to re-join the game Folau offloaded for Bernard Foley to touch down across the dotted line, and with an easy kick in front McKibbin made it sixteen points apiece.

Volavola galvanised the Waratahs offensively as they showed more inventiveness than at any stage previously, and flanker Michael Hooper scored his first try for his new side following a great offload from Israel Folau, which was converted.

The Rebels were determined not to fade away as they did in Round Two against the Brumbies, and took advantage of the Waratahs being offside at the ruck to reduce the deficit back to four points .

It was end to end stuff, with Hooper and Benn Robinson working in tandem to win a penalty which McKibbin drilled from a long way out, straight in front. That was his final involvement, a calf injury forcing him from the field following a successful night with the boot, slotting six from seven.

The Rebels were unable to get their hands on the ball when it really counted, as the clock kept ticking and the chances of an upset looked less and less likely.

A clever chip from Drew Mitchell put the Rebels under the pump just five metres from their own line, and Shota Horie wasn't quick enough to get the throw in. From the resultant turnover, the Waratahs got over for their third try to replacement prop Ryan, his first in Super Rugby.

And time eventually ran out for the Rebels. Kurtley Beale managed to score his first try of the season beside the posts right at the death to secure a bonus point for the Rebels, but ultimately a lack of conviction in defence during the second half cost the Rebels a golden opportunity to get their hands on the Weary Dunlop Trophy for the first time.

The Waratahs picked up their first win of season 2013, and leapt to a 5-0 head to head record against the Rebels, who must now regroup as they head home to Melbourne to host 2011 Super Rugby champion Queensland Reds.

There were some positives for the Rebels, with the scrum managing to more than hold their own for the second week running against a Wallaby-strength front row.

Higginbotham had his best game yet in a Rebels jersey, admirably filling in for injured skipper Gareth Delve at number 8, while O'Connor and Beale threw plenty of clever balls and looked to break the line themselves.
But ultimately, it will be viewed as points lost, and a bitterly disappointed Rebels team must re-group quickly if they are to get their season back on track.

 
Pete Fairbairn is the Senior Rebels Writer and was watching the Waratahs host the Rebels in Round 3 of the 2013 Super Rugby season.