It's no Worthing Raiders rout at Rochford - but it's another five points

The game was quite unstructured and littered with errors by both sides. Thirty penalties prevented any real continuity in the game, 15 awarded against each team. Despite this at times Raiders played some sparkling rugby.

For Raiders it was a performance inconsistent in quality but it was another five points earned away from home against difficult opponents whose position in the league doesn’t do them justice. The travelling supporters would have been pleased with the result but not so much with the performance and entertainment value.

The reverse fixture back in October produced a 17-0 win for Raiders. That game was hard fought throughout, thus it looked as though this one could be just as testing for Raiders.

The squad selected this week contained five players who were not involved against Old Albanian. Kieran Leeming returned to the starting line up and Ken Dowding, Jon Whittall and Rhys Morgan were on the bench. Curtis Barnes was also selected on the bench for his first game since re-joining Raiders from Rosslyn Park.

The forecast ‘moderate breeze’ turned out to be a gale-force wind but as it blew across the pitch it didn’t influence the game as much as it might have if it had been blowing end to end. Raiders kicked off to start the game and had a couple of minutes possession before scoring the first points of the game with a penalty from Matt Mclean. A good start and a 0-3 lead but the home side bounced straight back and spent the next few minutes testing the visitors’ defence. After eleven minutes they were rewarded with a converted try to take the lead 7-3.

Raiders were finding it difficult to string many phases together without making errors. Although they had plenty of possession it was deep in their own territory and their attempts to play out of defence with ball in hand were constantly thwarted by the enthusiastic defence of the home side. The phrase ‘play in the right areas’ sprung to mind.

Both sides tried to play open rugby but good defence and errors prevented either side dominating the game. The game became scrappy and lacked tempo. A high number of penalties awarded by the referee didn’t help the pace and flow of the game. Frustrating for players and spectators alike. As the time ticked by Raiders started to take more control of proceedings. They had plenty of ball and at last, in the right areas of the pitch. During this period the visitors were creating chances but couldn’t convert them into points.

However, as the game moved into the last ten minutes of the half Raiders’ pressure with ball in hand made them the dominant force. Three tries followed before half time. Elliott Luke scored after thirty-two minutes when he touched down following a well-worked catch and drive from a lineout near the home sides’ goal line. McLean converted from the touchline to give the visitors the lead 7-10.

Shortly after, following some purposeful phase play, the ball was moved quickly through the hands of the backs until it reached McLean wide on the left, using his pace and strength he split the defence and went in at the corner. In scoring he was injured and had to be replaced by the returning Curtis Barnes. Josh Tusler meanwhile attempted the touchline kick directly into the wind and not surprisingly was unable to convert. The visitors now had a more comfortable lead at 7-15.

At the restart Rochford kicked the ball out of play on the full and Raiders were able to get back on the front foot with possession from the resulting scrum on halfway. The final points of the half came as Will Scholes won the ball in a contest on the Rochford twenty-two metre line and ran in unopposed, Tusler converting to extend the lead to 7-22. Raiders had finished the half strongly and went into the break in a dominant position.

Half time score: Rochford Hundred 7 Worthing Raiders 22

The visitors made two changes at halftime, Rhys Morgan replaced Cam Dobinson and Jon Whittall replaced Rob Smith. The game was restarted by the home side but within a minute the visitors had scored again. Having gained possession from the kick off, Raiders kicked ahead towards the corner forcing Rochford to put the ball into touch close to their try line. From the lineout a maul was created and driven infield some fifteen metres, Morgan alive to the space this had created broke up the blindside and Jerome Rudder gladly accepted the pass and romped in to score the bonus point try in the corner. Tusler converted to extend the lead to 7-29.

Things were looking good for the visitors but the home side saw things differently and minutes later scored a converted try after a well-worked move at the front of the lineout which enabled them to go down the five-metre channel and score from the halfway line. At 14-29 they were back in the game. Ken Dowding replaced Dan Sargent in the front row before the restart.

Rochford pressed hard for a further score but the Raiders’ defence held firm. In fact, the defence through this period of the game prevented the home sides’ frequent attacks close to the try line. Having soaked up the pressure the visitors were soon in Rochford territory and looking for more points. Raiders made their final change of the match with Tom Young replacing Luke at hooker.

Young's first job was to throw in at a lineout five metres from the Rochford try line, this he did accurately and a drive was set up and within seconds of entering the game it was he who touched down for the try. With the conversion missed the result was no longer in doubt with only five minutes left to play, 14-34.

Rochford never gave up and continued to look dangerous with ball in hand but they were unable to breach Raiders’ defence again. The final highlight of the game was an outstanding sixty-metre break by Jack Forrest who sidestepped and brushed aside attempted tackles with ease. Unfortunately, the run didn’t result in any further score and moments later the full-time whistle ended the encounter.

Full time score: Rochford Hundred 14 Worthing Raiders 34

Referee: Tom Bird

Attendance: 250

Scorers:Tries: Luke, McLean, Scholes, Rudder, Young. Cons: McLean, Tusler x 2

Team: Dan Sargent 2. Elliott Luke 3. Rhys Litterick 4. Will Scholes 5. Jack Lake 6. Rob Smith 7. Kemp Price – Capt 8. Frank Taggart 9. Cam Dobinson 10. Josh Tusler 11. Jerome Rudder 12. Kieran Leeming 13. Jack Forrest 14. Cassius Cleaves 15. Matt McLean. Bench: 16. Tom Young 17. Ken Dowding 18. Jon Whittall 19. Rhys Morgan 20. Curtis Barnes.