Following the enthralling title-winning encounter at Medway and all the ensuing celebrations it was probably not the greatest shock that Saturday’s fixture against Chiswick was not the Black & Whites finest hour.
It was not only a case of the hosts being under par but also the performance of the visitors who tackled, harried and pressurised Sutton at every opportunity and threatened to spoil the homecoming parade. A bonus point win was achieved but there was to be no repeat of the maulings inflicted on Dover and Charlton Park.
A couple minutes later Dave Cook surged through the centres using his exceptional pace to score and the home crowd anticipated another record score. However, the Middlesex side were not prepared to play second fiddle and as with the reverse fixture before Christmas they were soon causing problems. From an attacking line out Simon Allen-Clarke did well to score despite having been stopped short he used his strength to wrestle his way over.
Simon Hallett converted the try to cut the deficit to 7-14. The Champions renewed their attack and seemed to be in an ideal scoring position when Dan Sutherland intercepted the ball in his own 22 and ran the length of the pitch to score. Two tries in three minutes and the lead cut to two points was a rude awakening.
The second quarter of the match was a frustrating affair for players and spectators alike. Sutton & Epsom squandered overlaps, dropped the ball and lack the clinical precision that they demonstrate when at their best. Chiswick disrupted at the break down, scrummage well and were tenacious in the tackle but never had enough clean possession for their livewire scrum half Adam Ross to exploit.
The first half concluded with no additional score as the teams turned around with the Black & Whites holding a slender 14-12 lead. The second period began with the hosts attempting to regain their early supremacy. They were helped when the influential Adam Ross was forced to concede a yellow card. Despite the numerical advantage it nearly took all of the 10 minutes of the penalty for Sutton to extend their lead.
Encamped in the Chiswick 22 they were frustrated not only by the excellent defence of the men from Duke’s Meadows but also careless play before Ollie Clements scored his first try for the club in the corner. Another excellent touchline conversion from Steve Munford increased the lead to 21-14. Within five minutes Simon Hallett had added a long range penalty to keep the visitors within a score. However, that was to prove to be their last addition to the scoreboard.
The remainder of the game S&E were disrupted by the fine effort of the Middlesex team’s pack. They took a 5-metre scrum against the head, held firm in the set piece and never let the Sutton side have an easy platform from the line out. They also forced errors through their powerful tackling. As a result the Surrey side were only able to add two more tries to their season’s burgeoning tally.
The first was opportunistic following a fly hack by Paul Hodgson that was gathered by the excellent Dave Cook who gifted Andy Matthews a try. The second and final score came with the final play of the game with Sal Bell rounding off a fine debut to touch down near the posts having outpaced the covering defence.
The London One South Champions ran out 33-15 winners but Chiswick, in their first season at this level, showed once more that they can compete with any team in this league and should be confident of consolidating their status next season. The campaign draws to a close next Saturday with a home game against Twickenham.
There will be a celebratory air at Rugby Lane and hopefully a large crowd will gather to salute a magnificent season by the men in Black & White. A 14-point lead is no mean achievement in an extremely competitive league and throughout the season the team have proved to be worthy Champions.
Team: Ian Knott, Andy Matthews, Dave Cook, Pete Matthews, Sal Bell, Paul Hodgson, Steve Munford, Raynn Bruce, Seb Bonizzi, Craig Bellringer, Felix Symonds, Ian White, James Caddy, George London, Matt Whitaker. Replacements: Joe Ridgley, Ollie Clements and Dave Weller.
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