Author Archives: Paul Clarke

REPORT: Old Isleworthians II 9 – 29 Ealing Exiles

Ian Thynne reports on the Exiles’ trip to Isleworth.

Director of Rugby Barry was decidedly giddy with praise at the sight of Ealing’s hat-trick of wins. Following a season of much endeavour with little to show in the way of results, the end of the season is bearing much-deserved riches. This hat-trick-completing win came against a well-presented and organised Old Isleworthians 15. The setting was our opposition’s second-team pitch; a small pitch of battlefield appearance strewn with trenches and craters, with a bunker-style changing room to match. This less-than-glamourous location was in stark contrast to the Old Isleworthians themselves, who turned up in club colours, complete with blazers, whilst the Exiles were slightly more informal; it takes all sorts.

Assistant Director of Rugby Alex K had a full squad to pick from with plenty in reserve and so opted for a mixture of strength, speed, experience and some fresh legs (under 30). The warm-up showed the forwards were well up for the battle whilst the backs ran through some defence-splitting moves which would have looked better if they had fulfilled the requirement to catch the ball. Backs coach Alex K drilled some last minute instructions into his eager charges whilst Barry (prop) gave wise words to the wingers; but it was Dave MacS’s pre-match talk that got the players in the right mood – and it showed from the kick off.

A lovely start from Simon T exposed hesitancy in the Old Isleworthians pack, which hampered the home side throughout. A well-won line-out and drive, followed by a rip-roaring scrum, and there was a sense of belief that the home side were there for the taking.

The Exiles forwards had the opposition’s pack beaten and it looked like the ladies in the back line would not be required. But given their chance, led admirably first by Simon T and then by Spike at 10, the backs showed they could break the gain line and catch the ball: multi-tasking at its finest. Ten minutes in and another powerful forwards drive led to the ball spinning wide and being taken on by Eyre, who crashed over the line for a well-worked and deserved try. Forwards working with backs: stand up Director of Rugby Barry, England needs you!

The conversion was just shy of the uprights but at 0-5 up after ten minutes, and seeing the forwards dominate so heavily, confidence was growing. The home side were not to be a walkover though: a stout and well-organised Exiles defence kept them short of the line on a number of occasions. The opposition got on the score sheet just five minutes after the first try with a penalty which was an indication that they were not fancying the powerful defence (or their number 10 was playing for his average). The next score came from more good Ealing forwards work which saw Dave MacS carry over a couple of tacklers for a tidy five points. Conversion missed. The Exiles were playing well but still lacked a little precision and execution, and turnovers were penalised by the boot of the home side’s number 10, who kept pinging the ball in behind the Exiles. It was from one such move that led to a drop goal. We had all seen this form of scoring on TV, but none of us had ever experienced it at this level of rugby. This put the score at 6-10 but seriously, a drop goal! half way through the first half! at second/third team level! in a friendly! The number 10 must be a Saracens fan.

Half time and the Exiles were 6-10 up. A number of changes were made to liven the Exiles and orange-carrier Alex K brought on well-earned refreshments.

The second half was more of the same with the Exiles dominant in possession and territory. The first score was a penalty to the home side but that was the end of their count. The Exiles responded superbly with another well-worked forwards try, when Julian piled over. On came the kicking tee monitor Alex K, and Alex A added the extras. The Exiles were getting well on top by this stage, but had to watch out for the lively opposition backs. Both teams were playing top rugby (for this level anyway – although both sides could probably have beaten England – the men not the women – they’re quite good) and it made for a good game. But it was the Exiles back-rowers through Julian, Fabio, T (first half) and Pierce (second half) who got the better of the opposition and helped to deliver quick ball.

It was not all plain sailing for the Exiles though and a combination of good defence and try butchering was frustrating the away side. One particular move included three phases of possession in quick succession each including a five-on-one overlap ten metres out to the beleaguered left side of the away team defence. Shocking then that on each occasion, the ball carrier opted to seek the solitary defender instead of feeding any one of four would-be scorers outside. Finally when it did go wide, it was dropped – so maybe those ball carriers knew something…

The last two scores came from Alister and another from Dave MacS. Both were converted by Alex A. The final stages of the game saw the Exiles back line getting some ball, and even the wingers got a taste of the action and looked to be enjoying the space.

Throughout the game the link between forwards and backs was better than any other Exiles game I had witnessed all season. Number 9s James O’B and Stef provided good ball to work with and the strong running from both Eyre and Adrian in the centre was getting the Exiles going. Their line-out was struggling thanks to Steve R and the lifters, and the pack, cheered on by the non-playing prop/winger Barry, blitzed the opposition and claimed a good five scrums against the head.

All in all it was a thoroughly good display and the 9–29 win completed a hat-trick which left the coaching staff suitably pleased, although this was a friendly so the tears were probably a little over the top.

Ian

Old Isleworthians II 9		Ealing Exiles 29
Tries:		Tries:	Eyre, Dave MacS (2), Julian, Alister
Cons:		Cons:	Alex A (2)
Pens:	(2)	Pens:
Drops:	(1)	Drops:

Ealing Jades play Teddington at Home 28th March 2010

Ealing started out against Teddington on their best form of the season. Right from the kick off Ealing dominated in attack and showed some organised rugby. Using strength in the forwards phase after phase was played and Ealing soon found themselves in the oppositions twenty two.

Unfortunately, in Teddington, the Jades found themselves up against a tight defensive line and struggled to create the all important gaps they needed. A strong boot in Teddingtons back line saw the ball punted back down the pitch putting Teddington back on the offensive. Fortunately, some good pressure in the forwards by Lindsey Irvine and Vanessa Dixon meant that Ealing were able to steal the ball back and take control once again.

With Natasha Holmes directing play at stand-off, some good crash ball by Nicky Dent at 12 and great support work by Anna Willis and Yvette Burton meant that Ealing were able to gain ground once again. With Abby Nduva breaking the line, Ealing soon found themselves back at Teddingtons try line. A strong drive in the forwards almost saw the first try of the game taken by Ealing, but was brought down just before Hazel Griffin could touch down.

An infringement at the ruck by Ealing meant that the ball was back in Teddington hands, some quick paced backs put Ealing under pressure but it was a kick by Teddingtons number 10 that caused the real trouble when it was kicked beyond all of the defence and landed at Ealings try line. A very pacey teddington winger saw the opportunity and raced after the ball only to put pressure on at the line and see Ealing concede a penalty try. The score was taken to 0:7 and left Ealing slightly deflated following all their hard work. The Jades were kept afloat though by the knowledge that this was the only real performance Teddington had put out so far.

The second half saw Teddington with a new boosts of energy and Ealing found themselves in defence much more. A sneaky gap in Ealings defence was found by Teddingtons winger who managed to out-step the defence and score under the post. Another try was gained while Ealings heads were down and Teddingtons centre bounded through the line to score one more. This lapse in Ealings conentration caused a new boost of energy for the Jades who began to ‘switch on’ once again.

Finding themselves in defence again, some big tackles by Kelly lambert and Sharron Braddish meant that Teddington struggled to find some space and good pressure from Ealing saw mistakes being made and Ealing winning the ball. With Yvette burton taking the ball in at Pace, Teddington were struggling to hold the attack at bay. With Ealing back in possession, Stacie Casciani on the wing and Tania Oddi at full back were able to work well together to shoot up the wing towards Teddingons try line. Good support play by Tania Oddi and Laura Kelly meant the odds were looking good.

A critical high tackle led to an Ealing penalty on the five yard line, a great opportunity! The ball was played and popped off to ‘power house’ Sharron Braddish who made her way, with the help of the pack, to barge through the defence up to the try line. Clean ball from the ruck meant Liz Garvey, at scrum half, was free to recycle the ball quickly and get it out to Hazel Griffin in perfect position to drive over the try line with the help of Kelly Lambert and Lindsey Castling. A great try Hazel and well deserved! A conversion by Tash Holmes took ealing to 7 points and it felt a little like the the hard work had finaly paid off…… but Ealing still had a long way to go.

With only minutes to go, Ealing knew their time was up but fought to finish strong all the same. Ealing were able to hold their heads high knowing they have produced some of their best rugby of the season. A great input all round, and it is obvious that the team spirit and dedication is firmly in place. With new players now getting to grips with the game and more experienced players really coming into their own, Ealing are confident that the potential in the team is certainly rising and are looking forward to finishing the season on their best form.

REPORT: Ealing Trailfinders 1st XV 28 – 27 Southend

Ealing kept their hopes of promotion alive with another game that went to the wire. After last week’s loss to Barking with the last kick of the match, it was Ealing’s turn to win in the dying seconds with drop goal from scrum half Morgan Thompson.

Southend are a strong side and were always going to be a tough side to beat at their home ground. They stated the first half strongly and put Ealing under a lot of pressure. After 20 minutes that pressure turned into points as Southend found an overlap and full back Simon Hoult ran through for a try that he successfully converted.

Ealing went further behind when an inside pass found Southend centre Chris Vaughan crashing through for another 7 points.

At 14-0 down, Ealing fought back hard and immediately scored wide through Owen Bruynseels from the kick off. The ball bounced loose and was fly hacked towards the Southend line. Bruynseels is rarely bested in a foot race and scored close to the posts to allow scrum-half Thompson to bring the scores to 14-7.

Southend returned to pressing the Ealing defwence and scored a third try on 35 minutes through fly-half Phillip Ellis.

Ealing refused to lie down and forced play close to the Southend line. A penalty against Southend saw Ealing opt for a scrum. The penalty count against Southend was mounting, and at the scrum Ealing pressure was too much and the referee Paul Kimber ran under the posts to signal the penalty try.

Ealing went into half time at 21-14 down knowing a better second-half performance was needed to keep their title hopes alive.

Fitness has been a strength of the Ealing side this year, and it is the second half when fitness really counts.

Ealing started the second half powerfully, and scored via a trademark cross field kick that Bruynseels gathered. Now the scores were almost level at 21-19 the game became more tense. No more tires would be scored, but penalties to both sides pushed the score to 27-25 to Southend with just four minutes on the clock.

Finally Ealing scrum half saw his opportunity and sent the winning drop goal over the posts to win the match and break the hearts of Southend who had put up a real fight.

Ealing mini scores two tries for England Women’s U20

Sophie Watkiss, former Ealing mini, scores two tries for England Women’s U20 (see report).

REPORT: Esher Expendables 15 – 7 Ealing Evergreens 20th March

Definitely one we let slip…. we started slowly on Saturday and by the time we decided to get involved in a game of rugby after 10 minutes we had conceded two tries, the second of which was a real sickener. But then we pretty much controlled the game for the next 45 minutes (we only played 60 mins so we could get to the bar and watch Ireland throw away a Triple Crown).

We dominated scrums apart from the odd lapse in concentration and disrupted their lineout. We had plenty of ball and made some decent breaks with even big Jon Harrison cutting a line through their centres at one stage but we just didn’t support the runners enough. Dave “The Chairman” Steene cut a swathe through the Esher defence in the first half, side-stepping like Jeremy Guscott before showing the strength and power to score our solitary try converted by Andy Cleary. Esher scored with the final movement of the game with a decent driving maul that we really didn’t defend well.

Not many other notable events in a game which was pretty evenly matched with plenty of huff and puff but no real inspiration.

The referee, God bless his efforts, seemed to decide that we could just work things out at the breakdown by ourselves. When he finally made a decision, it often took several iterations before he hit on a suitable offence and remedy e.g. “Green knock-on, green scrum” when we pointed out that this didn’t make sense, he said “sorry, red knock-on, red scrum” ahem, that doesn’t work either “Oh sorry, I meant the first one” OK, whatever…. Later he signalled a penalty to Esher but said Ealing and when Esher tapped the penalty he called them back for a scrum on the grounds that he had made an error and the game should restart with a scrum! Surreal.

Really disappointing to lose it after all the hassle of getting there, I think everyone got stuck in traffic somewhere along the way but we played with good spirit and ability once we woke up.

Big thanks again to all those who came along and made the long journey to Esher on an International weekend. That’s what its all supposed to be about! Number one rule of Vets rugby is fulfil the fixture…

We have a big one this weekend at home against Barnes. This, like the Richmond fixture, is another one where we need to set things right and no reason we can’t if we get our regular team out. So lets put the weekends disappointments behind us (including England and Ireland losing) and look to put out a decent squad for our 2nd last league game. This is actually our last home game as the Rosslyn Park game at the end of April is away.

This time I will definitely bring the camera for a few photos and maybe a team photo if we have most of our usual squad.

Scores:

Ealing Evergreens: 7

Tries: Steene

Cons: Cleary

Esher Expendables: 15

Tries: 3

REPORT: Ealing Trailfinders 1st XV 19 – 21 Barking

Barking fly half Craig Ratford, broke Ealing’s hearts on Saturday as his penalty in the 9th minute of added time condemned Ealing to a 19-21 defeat, and with it dealt the Vallis Way’s side chances of promotion to National Division One a huge blow.

Skipper Jay King said after the game "Ultimately the first half cost us, we were poor, but saying that Barking were extremely clinical. The wind was also a big factor in both halves. The commitment from all the guys was outstanding in the second half. We battled hard and to take the lead, only to have it snatched away is well, the only word is completely gutting. This loss will be hard to take".

The East End side started the game at a flying pace, and indeed went into half time leading 18 points to nil.

Barking second row Stuart Riding opened the scoring for Barking on 12 minutes with a well worked try. Ratford added 3 more points from a neatly taken drop goal on 19 minutes. He added a penalty on 31 minutes. and just before the break, number 8 James Kellard crossed the line to take Barking into a deserved 18-0 lead.

The second half was a different affair.

Ealing’s Director of Rugby Mike Cudmore said, "Due to our error count, game management and a wind in our face we found ourselves down by 18 points at half time. We made a coupe of changes and then delivered what we set out to do which was put Barking under pressure and force scores or pens. We took the lead but unfortunately the officials decided we had lots of injury time and gave a penalty against us in front of the posts for the last kick of the game and they won it. Barking are very good at what they do but so are we and our first half performance and score line gave us too much to do"

Ealing opened the second half pressing their opponents back, and the first of four Ben Ward second half penalties came on 43 minutes. He added 3 more on 52,60 and 65 minutes to take the 12-18.

It was skipper Jay King crossed the line for a try on 72 minutes, following an excellent move by Ealing’s dangerous backs. Ward added the conversion and Ealing’s fans must have thought with it they had downed the Barking side’s colours for only the 3rd time this season as the Vallis Way side took the lead, 19-18 with only injury time to be played.

However the referee’s decision was to play some 9 minutes of time added on. Kicking off, Barking were given a scrum for an apparent Ealing knock on. When the ball shot out of the scrum, they set the ball up , and with it tried to put the Barking 10 in range of a drop goal to win the game. Ealing were up quickly in defence and despite being assured by the referee that they were onside, when Ratford went for the drop goal, it was charged down, only for the assistant referee to advise the ref on an offside in midfield. Up stepped Ratford and his penalty took the game Barking’s way, 19-21. Referee Terry Hall blew the whistle and with it the game went to Barking.

It was a cruel way to end the game, having displayed real courage in over turning an 18 point half time deficit, it will be a bitter pill to swallow, but as fly half Ben Ward said, "We can be proud of the way we played second half. It was gutting to lose the way we did but you only have 7 days to turn around until you are back in action again. We must get over this defeat quickly and enjoy the challenges each week until the end of the season."

Jay King will have to inspire his troops again, as next week they travel to Essex to face Southend, currently sitting in 5th place for another testing match. Kick off is 3pm

15 – Pete Hodgkinson 14 – Owen Bruynseels 13- Markus Burcham 12 – Joe Price 11 – Phil Chesters 10 – Ben Ward 9 – Paddy Gill 1- Steve Neville 2 – Jon Moyce 3 – Dinos Alexpoulous 4 – Ryan Gregory 5 – James Winterbottom 6 – Karl Gibson 7- Jay King (C) 8 – Luke Wallace

Subs – 16 – Luke Charlton 17 – Sungo Kuwana 18 – Gethin Davies 19 – Morgan Thompson 20 -Richard Briggs

PREVIEW: Ealing Trailfinders 1st Xv versus Barking 20th March

After the snow and rain that decended on Vallis Way in January, it is good that we are finding the going a bit firmer in March!

League leaders Barking RFC visit Vallis Way this weekend for the 3rd v 1st clash – It doesn’t get any bigger than this!! Last weekend Jay and the boys had a testing game against a much improved Worthing side, coming through with a strong second half performance to nil them in the second half. It left a few bodies battered and bruised but as DOR Mike Cudmore said earlier this week, "these are the games we look forward to testing ourselves in, you deal with the problems you have and get on with it. We have only lost against Rosslyn Park this year on a pretty unplayable pitch. We are all looking forward to the Barking game"

Indeed given their well publicised financial problems, it is testament to their DoR Peter Mahoney and coaches Alex Codling & Kevin Sorrell that the team are playing to the level that they are. Sometimes adversity brings a team together and this is certainly the case at Goresbrook. From a neutrals point of view as well it’s good to see.

Barking arrive at Vallis Way topping National 2 South. 20 wins and 2 losses along with 17 all important bonus points ( we have 18!). Their two losses have both been close games, 13-17 against Clifton and 11-10 against Park. They have had some near misses and have fly half Craig Ratford to thank for getting them out of jail on more than one occasion!

A Brief History of Barking

It all started in 1930 as Park Modern Old Boys. Park Modern was a rugby playing school in the borough and their first headmaster, Bill Easterby, decided that there was enough interest to form a senior side. The school grounds in Rosslyn Road were used in the early years before moving to Barking Park in the 1960’s. The Club continued under the Park Modern name until 1974 when it was no longer a strictly old boy’s team and became Barking Park Rugby Club, and two years later, changed to its current name Barking RUFC. In 1989 the Club moved to Goresbrook initially with two pitches one of which had floodlights enabling the Club to play and host evening matches. Training facilities were improved beyond recognition from the previous facilities and lighting at the school and park.

Barking gained National League status in 1994 and had their most successful season in 2004 – 05 when they won promotion to Division 2. Unfortunately they stayed only a couple of seasons and it proved to be a costly introduction to professional rugby. A change of direction was required with an emphasis on home-grown players. The 2007 – 08 season saw a new look Barking side made up of home-grown established players and promising youngsters. The team struggled to keep their National League status and only avoided relegation after a monumental victory on the last day of the season against crowned league champions Mounts Bay.

Barking, are proud of their successful youth set up which has over 300 players in 12 age groups and is constantly increasing. Many players, on a regular basis come through the Goresbrook Clubs youth set up and either become part of their National League Squad or play for one of the Clubs social sides, and many, we are proud to report, go on to play for premiership clubs around the world and in some cases gain international honours. The 2 most prominent players being Club President Jason Leonard-OBE (England and British & Irish Lion) and Kris Chesney (England Sevens & Toulon). Other players include Glyn Llewellyn (Wales) and John Rudd (Newcastle Flacons and England Saxons). International Players of note who have also played for Barking are Jeff Probyn, John Buckton (England) Corrado Pilat (Italy), Sevanaia Rokobaro (Fiji) and Mathias Albina (Argentina).

So who do we look out for today?

Fly half Craig Ratford tops the scoring list for Barking with 208 to his name, whilst number 8 James Kellard has 14 tries to his name. Not bad for a piano shifter, whilst piano player ,full back Chris Jones as 12.

Barking have picked up 14 yellow cards this season, Arron Liffack has 2 and bad boy Tim Collier has 3 ( although he now back on home turf with Bournemouth).

Looking at the stats – Barking have 101 tries to Ealing’s 106. of those 32 have been scored away, whilst we have scored 59 at Vallis Way! Barking’s grunt merchants have accounted for 41 tries and 53 by the backs compared to 23/80 for Ealing.

It all points to a great battle at Vallis Way – get there early . 3pm kick off.

Ealing’s Dinos Alexopoulos said after training on Thursday "This is simply a must win game for us. Over recent weeks we have let ourselves down and today provides an opportunity to amend those mistakes. The challenge that Barking provide is an enormous one, but life is all about challenges and I have no doubt in my mind that today we will overcome this one. For this to happen we must win our personal battles because inevitability this will win us the game"

Recent results between Ealing Trailfinders & Barking

26/09/09 Barking 44 Ealing Trailfinders 29

24/01/09 Barking 27 Ealing Trailfinders 8

27/09/08 Ealing Trailfinders 55 Barking 0

22/12/07 Ealing Trailfinders 39 Barking 8

08/09/07 Barking 13 Ealing Trailfinders 13

REPORT: Ealing Trailfinders 1st XV 27 – 15 Worthing

Ealing Trailfinders overcome a 10 point half time deficit to record their 17th win of the season and with it their 15th four try bonus point. Two second half tries by the man of the match Phil Chesters proved the difference between the sides, whilst the win keeps them in touch with the league leaders Barking ( who won 38-26 against Clifton) and Rosslyn Park who defeated Shelford (3-42) . This coming weekend, Ealing entertain leaders Barking at Vallis Way, kick off 3pm.

Ealing’s stand in captain Ben Ward said after the game "We allowed Worthing into the game in the first 40 minutes with too many errors. At the start of the second half we played with good control with a man in the sin bin. When back to 15 players we then started to test them and this created mismatches out wide which we exploited. The bench made a good impact and it was a very pleasing result considering the amount of changes during the match"

Ealing’s south coast visitors took the game to their hosts from the open and only strong defence kept them at bay. Wing Owen Bryunseels and back row Blare Morris & Luke Wallace snuffed out Jack Maslen as he went for the corner. Worthing kept he pressure up on the West London side, but time and again their ball carrying man mountain, number 8 Semisi Taulava and his colleagues Jamie Redmayne & James Arthur were stopped in their tracks by Ealing’s own forwards. Worthing were forced into early changes after first full back Matt McLean on 27 minutes and Taulava left the fray on 35 minutes, both to play no further part in the day’s proceedings.

The games first points came on 16 minutes and went to Worthing. Having started the game brightly they denied Ealing possession, and this showed Ealing’s defence at its best. Worthing attacked, hacking through a loose ball and the ball stood up for wing Maslen to go over. McLean added the conversion to make it 0-7.

The home side hit back on 28 minutes, moving the ball from the breakdown on their own 10m line to full back Hodgkinson whose deft off load to Ealing’s powerhouse wing Owen Bruynseels saw him break through some flimsy tackles to go over in the right hand corner. Ward was just wide with the extras.

Bruynseels runs in first try

Worthing continued to test the home sides defence and on 33 minutes, Worthing second row Joe Launchberry dotted down after a good forward drive. The conversion was missed by stand in kicker Joe Govett. Ealing’s scramble defence was being tested, and after several warnings Ealing skipper Ben Ward was given 10 minutes in the sin bin for holding on. Govett popped over a penalty and the with it took Worthing into a half time lead of 5-15.

The second half was to prove a very different affair. Ealing’s superior fitness began to tell as they went through multiple phases. They began to dominate territory from quality lineout possession from James Winterbottom and Ryan Gregory, whilst Ben Ward was now controlling proceedings. Paddy Gill at scrum half was also proving to be a thorn in the Worthing side. The constant pressure saw Worthing concede a penalty on 51 minutes, which was converted by Ben Ward, making the score 8-15.

The constant spoiling and slowing down of the ball by the visitors in the second half finally lead to referee Simon McConnell reaching for his cards and despatching Worthing open side Jamie Redmayne to the sin bin. Ward kicked for the corner from the resultant penalty , Ealing won the lineout , the ball moved into the centre, and swicthed with for Markus Burcham to cross for 5 points, which was converted by Ben Ward.

With the score now 15-15, Ealing began to pick up the pace and use their numerical advantage. They spread the ball testing the 14 man Worthing defence, and it was the leagues top try scorer Phil Chesters who crossed the line in rapid succession for his 24th and 25th tries of the season. Chesters has scored more tries than any other player at National league level (his nearest rival is currently on 19). This shows what entertaining rugby is on offer at Vallis Way!

Man of the match Phil Chesters said "we were pleased with how the team reacted to what we knew was required in the second 40 minutes after a muted first half. W e delivered an impressive performance with 22 unanswered points and proved that we are still very much striving for a sniff at promotion"

Ealing Trailfinders DoR Mike Cudmore echoed Ben’s comment, "We were not happy with our first half performance. We knew from Worthing’s current form that they would be a difficult opposition and they proved to be so. At half time we were aware of what was required to change the game and allow us to start putting more pressure on them. Our control and game management improved and we delivered twenty two unanswered points in the second half. A good reaction but we will be looking for an eighty minute performance this week. In the end we are happy with the five point win" .

This coming weekend , Ealing entertain leaders Barking at Vallis Way, kick off 3pm.

EalingTrailfinders :

Subs – 16 – Rob Buchanan 17 – Sungo Kuwana 17 – Karl Gibson 18 – Gethin Davies 19 – Richard Briggs

REPORT: Camberley 13 – 26 Ealing Jades 7th March

Ealing Jades played their first Game against Camberley Ladies this season. Due to injuries, both teams were slightly diminished but carried on regardless despite the lack of numbers.

Ealing started out well by attacking hard and fast but gave away an early penalty, converted to make it 3:0 to Camberley.
However, within the first 10mins Ealing had secured the lead through a try by Abby Nduva at inside centre. Nicky Dent took the ball in and neatly drew the defender enough for Abby to take the inside pop (at the last minute) and attack the 12 channel. Camberley’s full back must have thought she was in for a try saving tackle when, after running the length of half a pitch, Abby began to slow near the try line just to tease the opposition somewhat but Abby had the try in the bag! Nicely converted by stand-off Tash Holmes.

Ealing, getting complacent by their first try, made a few mistakes in defence and allowed some line breaks to be made by Camberley. Their quick scrum half saw the opportunities and broke the line to score Camberley’s first try of the game.

Because of this, Ealing stepped up once more and in defence put the pressure on doing much better to communicate well and come up as a strong line. The pressure the Jades put on Camberley led to a string of mistakes and the quick thinking of forwards , Lindsey Irvine and Hazel Griffin meant that Ealing could steal the ball and make ground through some fabulous phases – driving over the gain ball line and allowing the backs time to re organise.
Some great support work by the forwards , Anna Willis and Vanessa Dixon meant Ealing kept the upper hand by securing the ball effectively. This was further shown when winger Stacie Casciani took the ball way up into the oppositions twenty two, made a nice offload to Liz Garvey at scrum half. Being quickly pursued by the full back, Liz popped to Sharron Braddish who, in support as ever, put herself in the gap and carried the ball straight over the line beneath the posts. A well deserved try Bradders!! Converted by Tash Holmes.

The second half saw Camberley come back fighting. An unfortunate (and misinterpreted) quick penalty at the five yard line caught Ealing off guard and allowed Camberley to saunter over the try line once again. Nonetheless, this only spurred the Jades on more and within minutes, the ball was stolen back by (the likes of) Laura Kelly in the forwards who is showing massive improvement in the last few weeks!

The jades were putting everything they have learned this season into practice and creating space and using it! A pick and go at the scrum by Skipper Liz Garvey surprised the opposition and meant Liz was able to side step the opposition and finding HUGE gaps in the defence. Much to her dismay, this meant she had to run almost half a pitch to the try line with the opposition in full pursuit behind! Tash Holmes adding the conversion to extend the lead by 7 points.
The jades were continuously able to move further and further into the oppositions twenty two by running through some great phases and being patient to seek out opportunities and maintained the largest possession of the ball throughout the game. Accurate line outs by Sharron meant Ealing were able to get quick ball to the backs and although Camberley’s pack held a majority share of weight in the scrums, Ealing held up well and continued to retain possession.

With confidence high, Ealing continued to grow in strength. Clean ball from the rucks meant that Ealing were able to use get the ball out a number of times to our new member of the club – Justine who played on the wing. Despite her nerves, she showed great handling skills and she even wowed us with a few side steps and offloads! Well done Justine.

With good direction from Tash at 10, the backs were on form! Tania at thirteen made some fabulous runs pacing out their centres and wings. Great to have you back Tania! A dummy option from Tania also meant that Abby was able to use her skills and knowledge to out pace the opposition once again by handing off the 12 and side-stepping the full back to score between the posts one more time.

Ealing played the best rugby they have played all season which is encouraging that the team is getting better and better by the week. Everyone put in the hard graft and the result finally came. When the whistle blew, everyone knew they had given their all and got what they deserved – a win of 26:13 to the JADES!!

Special Thanks to Mr Jade for keeping us on top of the details and Stefan whose patience with the girls remains intact somehow. Both of which we could not function without. Thanks also to guest coach Dave Steene for giving the women’s coaching thing a go too!

Man of the match went to Nicky Dent (F) and Tania (B)

REPORT: Henley Hawks 19 – 19 Ealing Trailfinders 1st XV 6th March

Ealing’s trip to Dry Leas did not go to the formbook. The Hawks sitting 3rd from bottom of National 2 south extracted a display that many of the home fans thought was beyond them to deny the visitors the win they wanted to keep their promotion quest on track.

Indeed it was the Hawks fly half Will Fulton that provided the home fans with much to cheer about in this gritty man of the match performance, with two late penalties that earned the home side a deserved draw.

Ealing’s skipper Jay King reflected on his sides display, “there were too many basic errors that cost us today. We didn’t fire on all cylinders and Henley punished us. Dry Leas is never an easy place to come and get a result and that was the case today. We are still a very young side, and maybe we didn’t always take the right options today.”

Ealing Trailfinders started brightly when full back Pete Hodgkinson out paced the Hawks defence to send wing Phil Chesters over for his 23rd try of the season. Fly half Ben Ward was wide of the mark with he conversion.

On 7 minutes Henley took advantage of numbers at the back of the lineout on the Ealing 22m line, and second row Dave Clements crashed over to equal the score. Fly half Fulton took the Hawks to a 7-5 lead with the conversion.

The game began a phase of the lead changing hands, on 10 minutes Fulton added the first of his four penalties, before Ealing hooker Jon Moyce helped the visitors regain the lead with a banb storming run, brushing aside several would be tacklers, to go in under the posts. Ward added the conversion and retook the lead 10-12 after 16 minutes of the first half.

The Hawks began to take advantage of the territory they had established after the Moyce try, but for all the territory only a solitary Will Fulton penalty on 39 minutes and Henley went into half time with a lead of 13-12.

Ealing started the second half showing some fine phases of lay and on 51 minutes a fine show and go saw Ben Ward trough the Hawks defence and over for a try under the posts. HE duly added the two points and with it the lead 13-19.

Ward did however miss two further penalties, which were to prove costly to the visitors as the Hawks fly half added his two last penalties of the game on the 62nd and 70th minute.

Director of Rugby Mike Cudmore said after the game "We were all disappointed in our performance. We did not test them for any long periods and there were too many individual errors or poor decisions. We all want the same thing and that is to be in the promotion window at the end of the season. To do this we need to be consistent in our performances and put pressure on the teams above with our results until the end of the season”

Next weekend Ealing Trailfinders return to Vallis Way and with it the visit of the improving Worthing Raiders RFC. Kick off is 3pm.

Ealing Trailfinders 1871 U23

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