Sittingbourne 36, Erith 8

Sittingbourne entertained Erith at the Grove on Saturday, looking to bounce back from their disappointing defeat to Vigo in their previous league game. With this defeat still in their minds, Bourne started the game forcefully, taking the game to Erith right from the off. It soon became clear that Bourne had the ascendancy in the scrums (pushing the Erith pack around all day) and, in Greg Phelps, Bourne had the dominant lineout jumper on either team’s ball. It didn’t take Bourne long to open the scoring when good hands from a 5 metre scrum saw winger, James Hobson, dive over in the corner. With Scott Truss converting, Bourne had exactly the start they needed and were keen to maintain their early momentum. Only 10 minutes later Bourne again crossed the Erith line, when a lineout 5 metres out evolved into a driving maul and hooker, Chris Nutley, touched down in the corner. At 12-0 Bourne were looking extremely dominant, with Paul Chambers organising things well from scrumhalf and Ross Cooley and Chris Tombs linking play well from the front. Unfortunately for Bourne, however, they conceded a penalty from the resulting re-start and the Erith kicker slotted over the three points. Not to be outdone though, Bourne were immediately back on the offensive, with centre Mark Penny and second row Chris Nanson running strongly with ball in hand and, after several phases of play, flanker Greg Phelps sliced through for a converted try under the posts. Again, at 19-3, Bourne were looking comfortable, but a lapse in concentration 5 minutes later saw them being turned over at their own ruck on halfway and then the Erith backline stormed upfield to score an unconverted try in the corner. With half-time soon approaching, Bourne were awarded a penalty immediately after the re-start and Truss slotted over the three points to take the momentum out of any Erith revival and leave the scoreline 22-8 at the break. The priority for Bourne was to maintain their strong play after the break and this they did with aplomb. The second half was only 5 minutes old when Bourne were awarded a 5 metre scrum and, as was the case for most of the game, the Bourne pack got the shove on and number 8 Rob McNamara benefited with the touch down. Truss again converted to leave the score 29-8. 10 minutes later Bourne extended this lead when centre Allan Chapman carved through the defence and, once tackled by the final defender, popped the ball up to the supporting Chris Nanson to charge over for a converted try. Now, at this point, all involved expected Bourne to run away with the game, especially considering Erith were struggling with injuries. However, as is often the case when a team go down to 10 men in football, Erith found extra resolve and really took the game to Bourne. As the pressure built, Bourne’s composure also deserted them, with passes going astray and ball retention becoming difficult. Indeed, Bourne found themselves defending for large parts of the final 20 minutes and, while Erith deserve full credit for their battling display, Bourne also deserve credit for not yielding under the pressure and refusing to have their tryline crossed. The final 36-8 scoreline sees Bourne’s season back on track and they now face a tricky trip to HSBC next Saturday.

Man of the Match – Ross Cooley (another solid game in tight, but more significantly, was very noticeable in the loose with his link play and defence)

Squad – Ross Cooley, Chris Nutley, Justin Boyes, Paul Prett, Chris Nanson, Chris Tombs, Greg Phelps, Rob McNamara, Paul Chambers, Scott Truss, Dick Humphries, Mark Penny, Allan Chapman, Dick Humphreys, Roo Nanson, Kev Ford, Justin Rix, Alan Sharman