Archive Match Reports
Thanet Wanderers 2nd XV 15 Sevenoaks Extra 1st XV 19
9 Sep 2006
Sevenoaks Extra 1st’s got their league season of to the best possible start with a hard fought away win over Thanet one of the best sides in the league
Sevenoaks Extra 1st’s got their league season of to the best possible start with a hard fought away win over Thanet one of the best sides in the league. As a measurement of the scale of the performance this was a Thanet side that had scored 55 points against the Extra 1st’s last season.
The match started in much the same vain with Thanet scoring a well worked try in the first 5 minutes. This time though Sevenoaks showed the mettle and being well marshalled by captain Quaile stuck to the task in hand with vigour and determination. This was personified in a man of the match performance by the inexorable Sam Kilcardy, who tackled everything that moved all afternoon.
The first half turned out to be a battle of attrition with Sevenoaks never really getting any phases of play going, losing Barber to injury and spending a lot of time defending. Thanet kept up the pressure and despite missing a couple of penalties scored another try to take a 10 point lead. Sevenoaks were put under even more pressure with the yellow carding of the cherubic Tinker reducing them to 14 men. This brought out the worst in the Sevenoaks team with bickering and moaning at the referee and each other beginning to undermine a solid performance.
Sevenoaks turned round with 15 men back on the pitch and everything to play for in what was becoming an increasingly close game. To a less spirited team conceding a soft try straight after the break may have broken them but the Oaks grew in strength from this. Players stepped up to the mark all over the pitch and the forwards remembered what had been drilled into them over the summer and started going through their phases. Stewart, Coleman, Vizard and Thurnell were prevalent in the tight exchanges; Ollie Smith was an awesome presence all over the field and raised everyone’s performance with a bone crunching tackle on his opposite number.
In the backs Golds showed what a class act he was in the centre supported robustly by Dan Scott, Parkhill was industrious, McInally aggressive and Bates provided the direction by keeping Thanet on the back foot.
The breakthrough finally came after about 60 minutes when following a period of sustained pressure Golds ghosted under the posts using the imposing Stewart as a dummy runner. Bates converted to bring Sevenoaks right back into the games. With confidence now running high Oaks needed a second score, this came from a long kick from Thanet deep into Sevenoaks territory. Fullback Monks ran the kick back and supported by Golds against three defenders managed to recycle the ball. This was spun wide by Bates to Dan Scott on the outside, Scott scuttled past six defenders in a 50 metre run to touch down under the posts for a fine try converted by Bates.
With time ticking away the Oaks were one point down with all to play for. The forwards now had the upper hand in the tight and the loose and began to really put the pressure on the Thanet pack. Kavanagh having a fine game was calling the shots and directing play at scrum half and the athletic Huthcheson had been brought on to up the tempo further. With three minutes to go Bates scampered over in the corner for the winning score after sustained pressure on the Thanet line.
This left time for three minutes of frantic defending to get the season of to the best possible start. Sevenoaks can take a lot of heart and pride from this win and need to consolidate in next weeks friendly against Gillingham.