HAC. 12 – Quintin 0

So, three losing games in a row and a failure to score for the first time in a long time. This was certainly not quite the start to the season we had hoped for. However, we must take heart that all of these were very winnable!

This weekend, Quintin took on the top of the table team who have brushed all others aside. Preparations were far from perfect with a rushed warm session and the sight of Dyke shedding his clothes as he attempted to get changed between the car park and the pitch as the starting whistle was about to blow.

We always knew that HAC would be fast and physical, wanting quick ruck ball to get out to the speedy looking back line. However, from the start we very successfully nullified that threat, controlling the tempo of the game with clever positional kicking deep into the opponent’s half. It was clear that they had not expected such resistance and we should have converted the pressure into points. However, a mixture of ill discipline and confusing decisions from the ref concerning the contact area let HAC back into our half where they converted two penalty opportunities.

It was clear to see that we were the stronger team, which caused the home team to snap towards the end of the first half. This led to an incident involving their second row going in for a cuddle with Captain Damo on the floor, being wedgied and all manner of handbag fighting! At least it showed that we had them rattled!!!

Unfortunately, the second half continued in the same frustrating way, with the ref’s whistle continually blowing in the opponent’s favour. This led to two further penalty kicks, with the last one all but finishing the game off. Quintin did have some very threatening periods of play with winger Will having a great run up the left wing. An apparent phantom whistle made him slow down, only to be cleaned out by a committed cover tackle. But once again, we simply could not convert our chances into points.

So, we pushed the league leaders all the way. But, it will go down as another game that was there for the taking. The little errors are costing us points and ultimately results at the moment. However, these can be removed with the more training we do as a team.

 One thing is clear, that we should not be afraid of any team in this league. We have the skill and commitment to beat them all!!

The players below won the awards, but John Sanger selfishly forced them to hand over their drinks to him as it was his birthday!!!

Man of the match: Will Carter – for some fantastic runs and brilliant covering tackling
Girl of the match: Dyke – for attempting to crawl his way to the try line

Honourable Mentions:
 Alex Horsfall – for a highly successful return to winger and for bouncing their prop to the floor
Andy Kennedy – for being everywhere around the pitch all game