Hitchin 4ths 40 Southgate 17
So this week we got back to our winning ways with another 40 point haul against very stiff opposition. Having lost a lot of key players during the week we were lucky enough to pick up a few who have not played regularly this season but picked this week to make Cameo appearances that greatly contributed to this fine performance. With an opportunistic try and Five conversions it was nice to see Matt Hawtin back in a Hitchin shirt and adding Fly Half to his list of positions played. Yet again we played the first quarter of the match putting in a lot of effort for little reward and also suffering a few early injuries but with a very strong bench this week this did not have too much of an effect on the game. Once the scores started to come we knew there was only going to be one winner although the Referee having a couple of Senior Moments with his scorebook did actually credit Southgate with one of our tries and informed me during the second half that we were all square when in reality we were well ahead. This only spurred us on in the final quarter to add a couple more tries to leave no doubt who the winners were. A sterner test in the scrum this week was countered by some gutsy resistance by the Hitchin pack which was changing personnel and positions all through the game but the lineout was still functioning well considering the blustery conditions with our Simon "Leaping Salmon" Elves doing his usual great job. Again this was a good all round performance with everyone contributing but I will mention a few standout performances by the likes of Amos and Duane Brand who both play with a forceful intensity that seems to be inbred in the Boks rugby mindset. The two new faces in the team Richard Dowson Park and Nathan Ellis both acquitted themselves very well with some fine tackling and good back up play when supporting the many attacking phases of this lively match.Six good tries the pick of which was a Chris Johnson pick up from 30 Yards out when he suddenly decided that Chris Ashton was not the only one who could leave an entire team in his wake by hitting the afterburner and scoring in the corner. It was good to see that the scoring was not confined to the youth of the team with the aforementioned Amos getting a fine individual try and Chris Merrit stretching for a try at the end of a long siege on the Southgate line. The usual stalwarts of the 4th team (you know who you are) all had a good game and we all agreed in the changing room after that it had been a very enjoyable afternoon. I have to say I was surprised to hear Jon Harrison joining in the club song so loudly though as he is usually far too tired for that kind of thing but maybe it was the elation of knowing he had got through another game without going in the Refs book !
Team Gary Hawtin, Mike Skeels, Simon Elves, Gary Wearing, Philip Elwood, Tim Jeffries, Mark Gibson, Jon Harrison, Deon Marevich, Matthew Hawtin, Nathan Ellis, Mike Jones, Julian Emmerson, Kevin Lok, Richard Dowson-Park
Subs Simon Goodlad, John Cartwright, Chris Merritt, Chris Johnson, Michael Benson, Tommy Moore, Amos Brand, Duane Brand
Scores T: Duane Brand (2), Matthew Hawtin (1), Chris Merritt (1), Chris Johnson (1), Amos Brand (1)
C: Matthew Hawtin (5)
League Tables