Oaks go top with big win away at Ashford

Ashford 0 Sevenoaks 80

Last Saturday saw Sevenoaks Rugby 1st XV maintain their promotion challenge with a convincing victory on the road at Ashford.

Oaks played some superb rugby on the day against a side who, despite having had a tough season, gave it their all from minutes one to eighty.

The boys from the Paddock led 35-0 at half time through tries from Martyr, Streather, Unwin, Saunders and Anderson. 

Playing against the wind in the second stanza Oaks ran in seven more tries with touchdowns coming from Vaihu, a brace from Academy starlet Adams, Winter, Streather, Robinson and an absolute peach that saw Bates finish off an outstanding team try that will live long in the memory. Winter kicked 10 from 12 taking his personal tally on the day to 25pts.

The additional bonus for Oaks is that with the Tunbridge Wells fixture being cancelled due to a waterlogged pitch, Oaks moved clear at the top of London 2, with the hunter now becoming the hunted.

Coach Vaughan commented at the final whistle, "I was obviously delighted with the guys' focus today for the full 80 minutes. We now have a week off, as Basingstoke have withdrawn from the Intermediate Cup, to prepare for a tough February that will see us play Deal, Horsham and Beckenham. These games will be pivotal in shaping our season."

Squad

Naismith

Martyr

Power

Anderson

Coleman

Thorpe

Sedgwick

Robinson

Shirtcliff

Winter

Saunders

Vaihu

Unwin

Streather

Bates

Subs

Richardson

Adams

Baldock

Oaks dominant on President's weekend

Sevenoaks 50 Crowborough 7

Oaks welcomed local rivals Crowborough to The Paddock last Saturday for the London 2 encounter that paired teams from the opposing ends of the table. Oaks were desperate to register their fifth consecutive bonus point victory whilst the visitors were looking points to help them in their survival bid.

In front of a large home crowd, bolstered in part by the not inconsiderable presence of the President of the RFU Jason Leonard,  both sides  put on a tremendous display of expansive, running rugby. Oaks recorded eight tries on the day, four in each half whilst the visitors sole consolation was an excellent breakaway try just before half. 

Oaks number eight and Captain Robinson led the blue gold from the front and registered a personal haul of three tries due to his excellent support play and the graft of a tight five that broke Crowborough hearts with its power, pace and physicality. Silky wing three quarter Streather notched a brace, with other tries from hooker Martyr, centre Vaihu and wing three quarter Saunders. Outside half Winter had a good day off the tee kicking five from eight, most of which were from out wide towards the touchline.

At the final whistle Coach Vaughan commented ‘That was a really good eighty minutes from us this week. Since Christmas we have played well in short bursts that have won us games but today we kept on playing from first to last and kept our composure and shape very well. We have set ourselves a high benchmark for the remainder of the season and I was particularly pleased with the work rate of the tight five, the omnipresence of the support runners and the mellifluous nature of some of the lines we took was a joy to behold’

Oaks next fixture is away to Ashford this coming Saturday before an Intermediate Cup visit to Basingstoke on the 6th Feb. The next home game at The Paddock is on the 13th February when Horsham are the visitors.

Squad

1 Naismith

2 Martyr

3 Power

4 Anderson

5 Coleman

6 Thorpe

7 Sedgwick

8 Robinson

9 Shirtcliff

10 Winter

11 Saunders

12 Vaihu

13 Unwin

14 Streather

15 Bates

16 Swallow

17 Aspinall

18 Adams

Strong first half display sees Oaks home

Sevenoaks 34 Hove 7

The Oaks freight train kept rolling last Saturday with a convincing home win against a talented Hove side who have struggled this term against the more physical sides in London SE2. The game also had the novelty factor of two brothers playing on opposing teams, Jack Walker for Oaks and Will Walker for Hove. Honours were almost even in the Walker household with Jack playing for the victors and Will registering the visitors only try by intercepting a misplaced pass as Oaks looked certain to score and scampering the length of the field to dot down under the sticks.

The game as a contest was effectively over by half time. Oaks were quick to recover from the early Hove intercept to register a penalty and four first half tries through Anderson, Power, Robinson and Dodd. Winter added the extras on three occasions and slotted the penalty. The coaching staff spoke at length at half time about retaining focus for the second half and keeping to the pattern that had served them so well in the first forty minutes. However, the second stanza turned into a scrappy affair with Oaks playing too much rugby and butchering chance after chance. The only reward for their efforts was a second Robinson try that made the final score 34-7 to the boys from The Paddock.

Coach Vaughan was in sanguine mood at the final whistle commenting ‘We played really well in the first half and I was delighted with our discipline and patience, the less said about the second half the better. All four tries came from the work we have been able to do in training which has been severely restricted by the weather. We will need to put in an 80 minute performance next week if we are to win against a Crowborough side who will take a lot of confidence from their win at the weekend’.  

Squad

1 Naismith

2 Martyr

3 Power

4 Coleman

5 Anderson

6 Thorpe

7 Sedgwick

8 Robinson

9 Shirtcliff

10 Winter

11 Dodd

12 Vaihu

13 Unwin

14 Saunders

15 Streather

16 Bates

17 Walker

18 Swallow

Oaks return from festive break with bonus point win

Thanet 22 Sevenoaks 27

Oaks made the long journey to East Kent last Saturday to face a Thanet Wanderers side desperate to register a win to boost their hopes in the battle for survival this season. Oaks were forced into a number of changes due to injury and illness but were still hopeful of picking up the bonus point win they needed to keep their promotion charge on track. 

Both teams were greeted by grim weather, a cold blustery wind, intermittent rain and a soggy sloping pitch that made for difficult playing conditions and had the crowd wistfully looking back to the fast tracks so prevalent earlier in the season. The ensuing tussle was, despite both teams best efforts to play an expansive game, something that will not live long in the memory. Oaks could have paid a high price for their imprecision and mental slackness on the day, due to a combination of the festive break and the lack of training caused by the Paddock resembling the paddy fields of the Far East.

However, as with all good pantomimes, it all turned out well in the end with both sides pleased with their points haul on the day. Oaks were delighted to escape with a bonus point win through tries from Thorpe, Swallow, Tree and Dodd. Equally Thanet and their supporters were overjoyed with the last minute score that gave them an unexpected losing bonus point that means that Crowborough, the team immediately above them in the table, are now within reach.

Coach Vaughan commented ‘I am obviously delighted to come to Thanet on a grim day and take home maximum points. However, our execution today and our mental application were not what I would expect. We looked like a team that had left our minds on the bus, whilst all credit to Thanet who were on the pace from the off. We played well for a total of ten minutes, scored four tries to put the game to bed and then popped on the slippers and settled down in front of the fire with a mince pie and a glass of something warming and that just isn’t good enough.’ 

1 Naismith

2 Richardson

3 Power

4 Anderson

5 Coleman

6 Thorpe

7 Swallow

8 Robinson

9 Shirtcliff

10 Winter

11 Tree

12 Vaihu

13 Unwin

14 Dodd

15 Bates

16 Walker

17 Adams

18 Swallow

Oaks continue winning streak

Sevenoaks 40 Old Alleynians 10

An Old Alleynians team, who sit comfortably in mid-table, were the visitors to the Paddock last Saturdayas Oaks played only their fourth home game of the season. The teams were greeted by a gale force wind, howling down a pitch that was in surprisingly good condition given the recent downpours, with OA’s having the advantage of the elements at their back for the first half.

Oaks, due to the wind, largely eschewed the kicking option in the early exchanges, keeping the ball in hand, probing for openings against a stubborn and well organised OA’s defence. OA’s also tried to put width on the game at every opportunity and eventually opened the scoring with an intercept try somewhat  against the run of play. With Oaks pressing deep in their opponents twenty two for a score, the final pass was intercepted and the OA’s twelve scampered the eighty metres to register the first try of the game.

Oaks were stung into action by this unfortunate reverse and hit back with tries from Streather  who is on track for a twenty plus tries this season and Robinson, both converted by outside half Winter. At the break Oaks led 14-7. Patience and execution were the watchwords from the coaches as the teams mulled over their efforts in the first forty minutes.

Now playing with the weather, Oaks soon put the game to bed, scoring four second half tries. Three coming from inside centre Vaihu, a menace with ball in hand all day and prop Power, rumbling over in the corner for the other. Winter added the extras on three occasions to make his record five from six on the day, which was an excellent effort given the capricious nature of the wind.  At the final whistle Oaks had registered the all important bonus point victory to stay at the top end of the table going into the Tunbridge Wells match next weekend.

After the match coach Vaughan commented ‘We are obviously delighted to get a ninth successive win against tenacious opponents. It would have been all too easy today, especially in such tough conditions, to have lost our way with the TW game just around the corner. However, the group kept focused on the task in hand and picked up five valuable points’

Squad

1 Naismith

2 Sedgwick

3 Power

4 Anderson

5 Coleman

6 Thorpe

7 Swallow

8 Robinson

9 Shirtcliff

10 Winter

11 Tree

12 Vaihu

13 Unwin

14 Saunders

15 Streather

16 Walker

17 Nay

18 Bates     

Another strong performance from the blue and gold

Oaks 27 Deal 0

Oaks notched up another hard fought victory on Saturday against Deal to take their record to 7-0 for the season. It also marked the return of one of Oaks' favourite sons as ex-premiership and England star Tom May returned to play for the blue and gold for the first time since his junior days at the club. 

In truly awful conditions this mid season arm wrestle was one for the connoisseur rather than an example of the free running rugby Oaks have displayed so far this term. However, Oaks three tries on the day came from two of their back three, winger Saunders and full back Streather with the other from fly half Winter. Oaks, playing with the wind,  took an early lead and never looked like relinquishing it. Skipper Robinson's men steadily built a 20-0 score line that was always going to be too much for the visitors from East Kent to overturn in the second half.

The boys from Knole Paddock continued to dominate the game in the second stanza, with Winter jogging over for a 27-0 lead but couldn’t find that all important bonus point try in the deteriorating conditions. Skipper Robinson was in sanguine mood after the match commenting ‘That was really tough out there today and I am delighted that the guys found a way to win and win well against tough opponents. Perhaps in one sense we were guilty of playing a little too much rugby at times, particularly in the first half but you do not want to suppress the ambition that has stood us in such good stead this term and has been the catalyst for our unbeaten start’. On May he noted ‘Tom has been fantastic since he joined us in pre season. He has a great work ethic at training and has installed a huge amount of confidence in everybody. Making the transition back to the amateur game cannot have been easy for him but he has mucked in as one of the lads and been a pleasure to work with. With the conditions as they were today though, I'm sure he may have been asking himself why he ever left Toulon!’

Oaks face an away trip next weekend to Beckenham who will be looking to bounce back from their surprising away loss to Hove. 

1 Naismith

2 Richardson

3 Power

4 Coleman

5 Anderson

6 Thorpe

7 Sedgwick

8 Robinson

9 Shirtcliff

10 Winter

11 Unwin

12 Vaihu

13 May

14 Saunders

15 Streather

16 Walker

17 Swallow

18 Adams

Oaks pass stern test at Horsham

Horsham 19 Sevenoaks 25

Saturday saw Oaks face their sternest test of the season to date as they made the trip down the M23 to visit third placed side Horsham.  The Sussex side had won four of their first five matches and were confident of causing an upset against  the unbeaten boys from Knole Paddock.

Oaks, having lost the coin toss, had to play the first half into driving rain that had washed away the pitch markings and a howling gale that blew diagonally across the pitch. The early stages saw both sides try and play some rugby but somewhat surprisingly the home side didn’t put boot to ball and try and pin Oaks back into their twenty two. Oaks, having registered eighty five points in their last outing, were comfortable with ball in hand but also judiciously used the boot to nudge the ball behind the Horsham back three. After pressurising the home line Oaks took the lead with a penalty from outside half Winter and it looked as though they would hold that narrow lead at the turn. However, two excellent tries, one from each team arrived in quick succession. Horsham opened the try scoring with a fluid move and then Oaks winger Saunders, continuing his recent good form,  touched down after a solo effort from inside his own half, leaving Oaks with a 10-7 lead at the half.

The second half was played in much calmer conditions and allowed both sides to express themselves more. Oaks kicked an early penalty to take their lead to six points and spurned a couple of chances to take control of the game. However, the home side had different ideas and in the space of five minutes midway through the second half, registered two quick fire long range scores to make the score 19-13 to Horsham. With just over ten minutes to preserve their unbeaten record Oaks had to dig deep into their reserves of self belief to take anything from the game. Skipper Robinson's men showed how far they have come over the past couple of years by notching two tries through the ever reliable fullback Streather who scored out wide and fly half Winter who dotted down besides the posts. Winter added the extras to his own try to make the full time score 19-25 to the visitors.  

Coach Vaughan commented ‘For me, bearing in mind the conditions I thought both teams played well and showed a great deal of ambition on a day when it would have been easier to put it up the jumper. Whilst it was a shame not to pick up a bonus point we are pleased with the win which I am sure, by the end of the season, will prove to be a really valuable one. We now move on to two further tough games this month starting with Deal at home on Saturday’.

Squad

1 Naismith

2 Richardson

3 Power

4 Anderson

5 Coleman

6 Thorpe

7 Swallow

8 Robinson

9 Shirtcliff

10 Winter

11 Dodd

12 Vaihu

13 Unwin

14 Saunders

15 Streather

16 Sedgwick

17 Martyr

18 Bates

Oaks thump Ashford at the Paddock

Sevenoaks 85 Ashford 10

Oaks continued their unbeaten start to the season and  retained the league leadership with a convincing win over Ashford at the Paddock last Saturday.  Oaks registered thirteen tries in all and outside half Winter secured a personal haul of 30 points.

Oaks took an early lead through centre Vaihu and the result was never in doubt after a quick fire brace from prop Walker and veteran number 8 Robinson. The all important bonus point try from Winter came after thirty minutes and Oaks added another on the stroke of half time from Tree.  Oaks lack of precision at times in the first half coupled with some brave Ashford defence meant that the score at the break was 36-3.

The team talk at the turn was all about keeping the ball, going through the phases and playing the pattern. The extra patience paid dividends with eight further tries from Vaihu, Winter, Dodd, Unwin, Streather, Robinson, Swallow and Naismith. Winter kicked 10 from 13 on the day.

After the match 1st XV Manager Jon Muchmore commented ‘We are obviously pleased with the result on the day. I am also delighted for the new players who started today. I thought Richardson had a great debut at hooker. He has been playing really well in the 2nds and deserved his chance, despite his very questionable haircut. It was also great to see youngsters Sedgwick and Walker make their first starts after good efforts from the bench over recent weeks. The squad has been really stretched over the first few weeks of the season and the more people we can get playing at the requisite level the better.  We know there will be tougher days ahead over a tricky November period that sees us travel to Horsham and Beckenham, whilst Deal are the visitors to the Paddock for our next home game on the 14thNovember. However, we welcome the challenge and the pressure that comes from being top of the table’.

1 Jack Walker

2 Fred Richardson

3 Dan Power

4 Will Thorpe

5 Stuart Coleman

6 Tom Swallow

7 Scott Sedgwick

8 Ollie Robinson

9 Ollie Shirtcliff

10 Isaac Winter

11 Simon Tree

12 Tino Vaihu

13 Robbie Unwin

14 Dom Saunders

15 Rob Streather

16 Kelly Anderson

17 Matt Dodd

18 Charlie Naismith

Oaks grind out win at Crowborough

Crowborough 0 Sevenoaks 21

Oaks recorded their fourth straight league victory last  Saturday to remain at the head of affairs in London SE2. Despite the Crows slow start to the season, largely due to a burgeoning injury list, Steel Cross is never an easy place to visit and wins there are always hard earned.  This encounter proved to be no different and was a stern test for a young Oaks team that was well led by stand in skipper Unwin.

Oaks registered the first points of the day through lock Coleman who rounded off an excellent backs move. With the home backs getting a little narrow in defence Oaks moved the ball down the line and put Tree away into space on the wing, his inside ball found the hard working second row in support and he galloped over the whitewash to dot down under the sticks.  Ten minutes later Oaks produced a carbon copy of the move and after Winter was held up just short of the line Saunders cut a lovely angle off the next phase to dot down between the posts. Winter added the extras in both cases to open up a 14-0 lead for the visitors. Despite a near miss from centre Vaihu, Oaks couldn’t add another score before the half time whistle.

The second half was a largely scrappy affair, lacking in shape and pattern. Crowborough pushed hard for long periods and deserved a score but a combination of stern Oaks defence and attacking handling errors kept the home team pointless.  Oaks finally finished off the game as a contest when another Oaks counter attack from lock Thorpe saw Winter register his second try of the day and make the score 21-0 to the boys from Knole Paddock.

After the match coach Bowman commented ‘We are obviously pleased to pick up another away win but a little annoyed with ourselves that we failed to register a bonus point try. We played too much rugby in the wrong areas of the pitch against a strong Crowborough team who, now they have got some of their first choice players back will be heading up the league in the near future. We now have two weeks off to hopefully mend some weary limbs before facing Ashford on the 24th.’

1 Naismith

2 Browne

3 Power

4 Thorpe

5 Coleman

6 Swallow

7 Desmith

8 Nay

9 Shirtcliff

10 Winter

11 Thomson

12 Vaihu

13 Unwin

14 Tree

15 Saunders

16 Sedgewick

17 Walker

18 Dodd