EASTBOURNE RUGBY FOOTBALL CLUB – MATCH REPORT – 12.04.08

LONDON LEAGUE 3SE: LORDSWOOD 10 EASTBOURNE 7.

The Blue & Golds were both disappointed and disappointing in this penultimate league encounter of the season. Losing by the narrow margin of a converted try to two unconverted tries they failed to capitalise on great swathes of possession and territory, particularly in the first half when they had the advantage of a brisk breeze exploited by fly-half James Coulthard and some blind side sniping runs by scrum half Matt Pysden. Eastbourne should have scored after just 4 minutes when the forwards surged down the left touch line but with the try line beckoning an inaccurate pass caused the ball to be spilled. Eastbourne continued to press but failed to commit enough players to mauls and rucks, thus, despite encroaching in the Lordswood 22 for the first 20 minutes, they were unable to score. After this Lordswood came more into the game with an active pack and it wasn’t until the 35th. minute, when the hosts had two players sin binned, that Eastbourne scored. Against a depleted pack and at last committing more players to the rolling maul, Eastbourne shoved Lordswood back across it’s try line and hooker Nathan Ring touched down for the opening try which he then converted to give the Blue & Golds a 7 – 0 lead. Lordswood responded and had a 20 metre drive towards the Eastbourne line, it spurned a subsequent penalty award in front of the posts and then lost possession with a knock on. The half ended with the score remaining 7 – 0 in Eastbourne’s favour.

Eastbourne had to defend from the start of the second half when a committed Lordswood pack kept driving forward into Blue & Gold territory, a fine run by the home No. 15 provided his pack with the opportunity to roll the Eastbourne pack back and to score an unconverted try, bringing the score to 5 – 7. Ten minutes later Eastbourne suffered when a dubious penalty decision was exploited by Lordswood whose pack again drove over for a second unconverted try to take a 10 – 7 lead. The Blue & Golds retaliated in the last quarter of the game when Lordswood was again depleted through the sin binning of it’s No.7, and dwelt adjacent to the Lordswood try line for a sustained period but good defending, some wrong options in the line of attack plus being penalised for collapsing a scrum driving within a metre of the try line prevented what could have been a winning effort.
The match ended in Lordswood’s favour and with Eastbourne frustrated with it’s lack of success in a match it could have won.

MOM: Nathan Ring at hooker and Joe Tobin in the back row were in the frame but the award goes to fly half James Coulthard for a fine kicking from the hand display and attacking runs over the gain line.

TEAM: Flude, Ring, Price, Groenen, Farley, Buttle, Tobin, Thompson, Pysden (c), Coulthard, Wynne, Bremer, Davidson, Crane, Coombe, Barron, Bailey and King.

Talented young centre ‘Hamish’ Davidson who had an excellent run of games for Eastbourne in the latter half of the season returns to Canada with the Club’s best wishes.

Peter Lloyd, 13/04/08.