Sevenoaks RFC Academy 1st XV 43-19 Dorking RFC U18s
Sevenoaks Academy 1st XV exorcised some demons on Sunday by defeating Dorking to progress to the 3rd round of the U18 National Cup.
It was in the 2nd round of last year's competition where a highly rated Oaks team failed to show up against an organised and determined Dorking side at the Paddock. 70 minutes later, their cup dreams were over after a humbling defeat. Dorking went on to win the competition, maintaining the South East's incredible record in recent years for producing champions and/or finalists.
Oaks knew that this was likely to be an incredibly difficult challenge and had prepared accordingly. Contrastingly to last season's game, the whole club seemed to be personally invested in the match as a large crowd gathered on the decking and along the touchlines. Our visiting friends from the Mzwandile Mali XV, touring from South Africa, gave the team an uplifting guard of honour as they ran onto the pitch - something that will live long in the memory of all present.
What followed exceeded all but the wildest expectations.
Sevenoaks flew out of the blocks and would have been 6-0 up early had fly half Will Brook not being have an incredibly rare off-day from the tee. He had to settle for orchestrating a lively Oaks attack and when Dorking kicked loosely under pressure in their own 22, the home side struck. The Oaks counter attack broke the Dorking line before the cover was beaten through multiple offloads out of contact in close quarters. Hooker, Harry Gullett, was the beneficiary as he crashed over to open scoring. Centre George Rehbein stepped up to add the conversion and after 15 minutes of intense pressure, Sevenoaks had their lead. 7-0.
Despite sporadic entries into the Oaks half by Dorking, the home side were very much in the ascendency. Even when Oaks looked like they were under pressure, the constant threat of their counterattack meant the visitors couldn't take the risks required to break down a determined defence. Winger Charlie Drysdale bagged two tries in quick succession, one from a well executed midfield scrum strike and one from a long distance counter attack. The score was now 17-0 and Oaks staff were having to remind themselves that there was still a long way to go as Dorking threw the kitchen sink at the Oaks defence in an attempt to get on the board.
Rehbein then sent the Oaks support into delirium as he intercepted the ball on what had been Dorking's most threatening attack to scamper away from his own 22 to score and convert his own try. When he scored again a couple of minutes later after winger Tom Hyde had broken from deep off the kickoff, the Oaks coaches could be seen standing under their own posts, staring at each other wordlessly. Rehbein converted again and Oaks went in 31-0 to the good.
Dorking though, were a far better outfit than the 1st half blitz had made them appear. They were not going to go away quietly. Poor Oaks discipline coupled with ferocious tackling and carrying by an almost desperate visiting side led to territory and eventually points as Dorking scored two tries in the first 10 minutes of the 2nd half. Oaks still had a healthy lead, but they looked a little flustered and one got the feeling that they would need to reassert quickly or risk becoming the victims of a rather special comeback.
To their credit, Oaks did exactly this as they constructed their first meaningful attack of the 2nd half to put Drysdale away down the right. He charged in from the half way line, beating multiple defenders on his way to a well deserved hattrick. Even without the conversion Oaks were now 36-12 up with around 10 minutes to play - could they finally start to look forward to a 3rd round game?
Dorking did their best to create a bit more jeopardy with another score as the game broke up increasingly. Oaks were determined to have the final say though, as vice captain Joel Walter, who had been having a quietly excellent game at fullback, ran a lovely inside line off Brook inside the Dorking 22 to score. Rehbein added the extras and Oaks took the spoils, 43-19.
Oaks can be incredibly proud of this performance. Their intensity and ambition from minute one was superb, as was the vast majority of their execution on both sides of the ball. They will need every ounce of this excellence when they play old friends and rivals, Tonbridge Juddians, in the 3rd round after they beat Canterbury. The fixture will be played on 17th November at the Slade. A big visiting crowd will be vital!
Squad list : Charlie Gillespie, Harry Gullett, Colby Bedford-Eatwell, George Booth (C), Noah Bruce, Tom Kerton, Ediz Karsak, Josh Martin, Zac Loder, Will Brook, Tom Hyde, George Rehbein, Gerran Prescott, Charlie Drysdale, Joel Walter
Subs : Harry Scott, Yiannis Papadopoulos, Tait Anderson, Hugo Schwemm