Injury-hit Counts return to winning form

The Counts went into the match without the services of four players – prop Remy Claustres, flanker Rob Fleming, hooker Callum Tilleray and midfield back Harry Wrightson – whose form had been integral to their success this season. However, the Counts were able to call upon replacements with 1st XV experience, notably in veteran prop Paul Harris and flanker Tom Housden, and dominated the early exchanges.
Walcountians took the lead after just five minutes when they set up a driving maul after winning a lineout on the Georgians 5-metre line and No8 Joe Lawrence got the final touch as they rumbled over the line, full-back Ross Norton adding two more points for the conversion.

However, the Counts found that Georgians were well—drilled and skilful opponents who soon had them defending their line. Georgians’ left-winger Chris Douglas was held up on the Walcountians line after 15 minutes and, two minutes later, the hosts drew level when lock Cameron Price drove over for a try after picking up the ball from a ruck close to the Counts’ line.

The scores remained level at half-time after Ross Norton and Georgians’ fly-half Jack Cooney exchanged penalties.

Walcountians got a critical score just three minutes into the second half when scrum-half Seb Chmielinski whipped the ball out of a ruck five metres from the Georgians line and found Walcountians’ skipper Will Thornton in support to crash through the Georgians cover tackling and touch down. Once again, Ross Norton added two more points for a conversion.

Both teams showed considerable adventure in trying to run the ball in conditions more suited to mud-wrestling. However, the defences of the respective teams proved solid and Walcountians’ most penetrative runners, centre Dharshan Vadivelu and winger Nino Stylianou, were effectively contained, as was Georgians best attacker, Chris Douglas.

Walcountians suffered a further setback when hooker Tom Brown had to go off in the 20th minute with a shoulder injury. The reshuffle saw Paul Harris move to hooker as replacement prop Dom Bell took to the field. Bell’s introduction saw Walcountians start to take charge in the set scrums but, despite a dominant performance in the middle of the lineout from Will Thornton and industrious foraging in the loose by the pretender, Tom Housden, who made something from nothing on these days, Walcountians were not able to add to their score until the closing minutes of the match. Walcountians sealed victory in the final 10 minutes of normal time when, firstly, Ross Norton banged over his second penalty of the day in the 30th minute , followed by a converted try by scrum-half Seb Chmielinski in the 36th minute after he caught out Georgians’ defence with a sniping break down the blind side.

Georgians got a consolation score in the 41st minute when scrum-half Harry Delaney ran in for a try after taking a quick tap penalty.
Next Saturday, Walcountians take on struggling Old Cranleighans in a match rearranged form January after a Covid outbreak forced cancellation of the original fixture. Kick-off at Clock House, Carshalton Road, Woodmansterne is at 2:30pm.

Old Walcountians:- Norton, Murphy, Vadivelu, Sparks, Stylianou, Cleary, Chmielinski, Evans, Brown, Harris, Thornton, Thomas, Bellringer, Housden, Lawrence.

Subs:- Bell, Henderson (James), Henderson (Joe).