London Cornish 26 Sevenoaks Rugby 19
Sevenoaks Rugby suffered a last gasp defeat away to London Cornish on Saturday 8 September. The exiles dotted the ball down under the bar for a converted try that secured the 26-19 victory with the very last play of the match.
The bonus point loss for Oaks leaves the navy and golds in fourth position in the League after the previous week’s barnstorming win against Thurrock, though the second half performance against Cornish was some way below the benchmark that Coach Bowman sets for this young squad.
The match started so well for Oaks as they opened the scoring with a well worked try from debutant Leighton Ralph, which was duly converted by Ben Adams.
The visitors were pegged back within short order, in the form of a penalty and then a try by Cornish after the pack rumbled the ball up some twenty yards before crashing over the line. Two penalties for Oaks from the immaculate boot of Adams saw the visitors enter the half time break 13-8 to the good.
At that stage, with the Oaks in clear ascendancy and one or two chances scorned, the travelling faithful from the Paddock had everything to look forward to; Oaks had the added advantage of a downhill slope in the second half.
Continued infringements by Cornish did indeed enable Oaks to maintain a slight ascendency in the second half, but the home side tails were up as the game drew to its messy yet compelling close, and an imposing defensive display kept Oaks at bay and outside the Cornish 22 metre line.
Each time Sevenoaks pulled ahead the daylight they were trying to establish was snuffed out; at stages the Oaks were 16-11 and 19-16 up only for Cornish to reply, first with a try to draw level and then a penalty to level the match again at 19-19 before having the aforementioned final say.
The losing bonus point was no less than Oaks deserved and credit to Cornish for showing the appetite to bring home the pasties. Results elsewhere revealed just how tight it will be in London 1 South this season.
The Oaks are in League action at Knole Paddock on Saturday 15 September versus Chobham, 3:00pmkick off following the fun and formalities of the Savills Matchday Lunch. All support very welcome.
All in all it was a tough weekend for Sevenoaks Senior Rugby, with the 2s and 3s narrowly losing out to TJs and Gravesend respectively though plaudits and team of the weekend must go to the Sevenoaks Rugby Under 12s, who secured victory in the Saracens Land Rover Cup in front of a full house during the half time at Allianz Park. The future is navy and gold!
