Titanic battle at the top

So it came to be; a blustery sunny day in the heart of Surrey, Old Walcountians 2XV headed down to take on the unbeaten champions elect Effingham & Leatherhead 2XV. King George V Hall was the location for this meeting of the two best teams in the league and a strong OWs side was looking to avenge the murky loss to E&F earlier in the season. Spirits and belief were high in the warm up with Pob taming the wind and throwing darts and the backs looking in fine fettle.
The toss was lost, again. However, OWs were all set to receive and stop the E&F juggernaut. What followed was the best half of rugby that OWs have played all season. An incredibly tight half was marked by the imposing presence of Callum Tilleray who marked his debut for the 2XV with an impact so hard in the first scrum that the opposition’s hooker’s game ended less than 5 minutes in. This followed some hard running by Tom Naylor and James Tutton who formed a hard-hitting centre partnership. The line out set a high standard throughout the match and both Pete Thomas and Callum O’Brien soared high into the clouds and came down with possession every time.
The pace of the game saw possession change regularly with ‘Phil’ finding it hard to control the break down. One passage of play for E&F saw some slick hands though the un-diminutive 10 who set the 13 through and with the try-line at his mercy he saw fit to throw the ball forward in some attempt to not score. This let off for OWs saw the forward start marching with Tommy McEvoy working incredibly hard at every breakdown to provide the platform for Andy Gill to get his outside backs into the game. Both sides found it hard to break the other down with turnover ball regularly secured however, neither side could get the rewards their turnovers deserved and a combination of missed penalties saw the game headed to a 0-0 score line at the break. This was until a stray hand was seen and E&F took the option to kick at goal and undeservedly went into the break with a 3-0 lead.
The second half started with a change at 9, unfortunately Tommy had to make way for the pocket battleship Badge who decided that he wasn’t a blind side flanker but the New OW 2XV 9, sniping left and right at the breakdown as if he was auditioning for the American Sniper sequel. Again the next 15 minutes saw possession see-saw between the two sides with fellow debutant Julian Jandles and Muhammed Jaffer adding electric pace on the wings and George Shaw using his strictly come dancing skills to constantly cause the E&F defence issues. Big carries from skipper Tom Thornton and Shaun Shaw continued to help build a platform for OWs but the solid E&F defence stood firm and was showing why they were 15 games unbeaten. Their tireless work at the breakdown saw them rewarded with a quick penalty and quick hands, which saw their winger, go over in the corner minutes after repealing another OW attack. The extras missed saw OWs trail 8-0 but still well and truly in the match.
OWs did not take this warning and straight away from kick off, E&F took it upon themselves to add a further score with the E&F 10 running a solid line and scoring underneath the posts. Extras again missed. OWs went into the last eight needing two converted scores. OWs again roared into action with the elusive Ben Anderson shimmying his way through the midfield on his way to a mazy 30-yard run and putting OWs on the front foot again. E&F began to panic and penalties followed putting OWs in fantastic field position. Panic set in as the referee suddenly found himself underneath Ben Anderson and many worried faces met his cries for help. Post-match, we found out that he had recently had a hip replacement but fortunately, he came through unscathed. With time running out OWs poured forward and with a penalty 5 metres out a dummy run from Ben Anderson saw Callum Tilleray again pound his way through a number of players to score under the post. Extras missed OWs turned back but clever possession play from E&F saw them close out, winning the match 13-5.

With only two games, left in the season OWs will be looking to bounce back against Streatham & Croydon and Warlingham and finish the season on a high.

Old Walcountians 2XV: G. Shaw, Jandles, Naylor, Tutton, Jaffer, Gill, McEvoy, S. Shaw, O’Brien, George, Thornton, Thomas, Anderson, Tilleray, Warren.
Subs: Moore