Thamesians kicked off their 3rd league game of the season against an experienced Watford side that provided a real test last year. Thamesians had fielded a very good team, bolstered by two new young players, Otis and Ollie, who had stepped in to cover late dropouts.
After clarifying various intricacies and important points with the referee before kick off, the game was underway. A well taken kick-off by Hugo set the foundations, and after sustained pressure Watford gave away a penalty. This resulted in Thamesians’ first try from their barrelling captain Rajan ‘Benny’ Lagha, who grounded the ball well, despite decries from the sideline.
A messier restart and penalty led to Watford regaining the ball, but a big few tackles and an impressive turnover from David Hill allowed Thamesians to exit their half. In the following chaos, Joe Powell pounced on a loose ball and broke away, under the posts, taking the score to 12-0.
Soon after, the rain came down heavily, altering the nature of the game. The freer flowing rugby that had been played before was interrupted by almost continuous messy set piece and penalties from both sides. Eventually Kieran Morgan managed to add 3 more points to the tally. Watford’s defence held strong and they showed great spirit to hold out Thamesians for the rest of the half and even challenge into Thamesians’ 22, but neither team adapted to the conditions, the half ended 15-0.
During half time both teams seemed to consider the conditions and play more to them, and luckily the rain became lighter. Thamesians were first to adapt, keeping the ball tighter and using powerful forwards and great territorial play. A well-placed kick forced a knock on meters from Watford’s tryline, and strong forward play allowed Hugo O’Neil to run over uncontested.
Some clumsy offside penalties gave Watford a platform for their forwards to power over soon after and show they would not roll over and give up on this game. Thamesians wanted to maintain their run of bonus point wins though and, despite trading possession, had the lion’s share of territory. An impressive carry from Ka-Cie set up Ben ‘Kiwi’ Thomson for a try, despite a strong tackle from the upright. The bonus point was sealed, and another conversion added by Kieran Morgan.
Thamesians once again used a territorial kick to great advantage, Eddy Fogg pinned Watford back in the bottom right corner of the pitch and a tenacious chase and charge down from youngster Ollie provided him with a well earnt try on debut. Kieran Morgan slotted the conversion. More pressure ensued, leading to a penalty in front of the posts, Eddy Fogg calmly slotted it to bring the score to 37-7.
As the clouds cleared slightly, play started to flow again, with both sides attacking well. At 80 minutes Thamesians decided to go for one last attack from a kick to touch. Both teams showed great spirit in this late stage of the game, and despite coming close to another try, Watford proudly stood strong, and the ball was knocked forwards, bring the game to a close at 37-7.
We would like to thank Watford for providing our toughest challenge of the season so far and look forward to the return fixture at their ground.
The bonus point win leaves Thamesians top of the table with all 15 points collected. Royston away as the next fixture is the next challenge, another team high in the table at the start of this season.
MOTM - Greg Illingworth – Lead the game well from 10 then adapted well to positions across the backline for an older man.
DOTD - David Hill - told the ref he wasn’t listening (the referee was just talking to Kiwi tbf).
David Hill.
