OAs vs Mitcham
(11th Feb 2006)

Old Alleynian's RFC 11 (3)
[T: Robinson - P: Robinson (2)]

Mitcham RFC 11 (6)
[T: 1 - P: 2]

Old Alleynian’s travelled to Mitcham for their latest Surrey Two league fixture on Saturday for an early kick off ahead of the Italy v England Six Nations International. In a dour game devoid of any continuity Old Alleynian’s failed to assert their usual free flowing game, falling foul of the referee’s whistle as they struggled to adapt to his interpretation of the breakdown.

Despite being near the bottom of the table after a number of close defeats Mitcham are a better team than their league position suggests. A strong pack, complemented by a narrow pitch, provided the platform for them to take a 6-0 lead through two early penalties following infringements at the ruck.

Old Alleynian’s reduced the deficit to 6-3 through a Robinson penalty mid way through the first half. A strong break by Ross provided one of the few highlights of the first half but a Mitcham hand foiled the resultant quick ruck.

With the wind advantage in the second half Old Alleynian’s tried to up the tempo and a strong opening was foiled after ten minutes when an interception deep in the Mitcham 22 allowed the outside centre to run the full length to take an 11-3 lead. The conversion was unsuccessful.

Old Alleynian’s responded with a further penalty to cut Mitcham’s lead to 11-6. Shortly afterwards Old Alleynian’s put together their best sequence of play after a cleanly taken line out, followed by a wide miss pass allowing Robinson to go over unopposed. The conversion went wide.

The remainder of the second half failed to provide any free flowing play as infringements at the breakdown resulted in a multitude of penalties which restricted play outside of the respective 22’s. A number of late penalties for the Old Alleynian’s went wide and with it restricted the score to a disappointing 11-11 draw.

Old Alleynian’s entertain the much-improved Old Haileyburian’s next weekend in another game that must be won, given promotion to Surrey One is now dependent on the results of others.

Team: Tom Woodford, James Franklin, Kobie van der Westhuizen, Bertie Campbell-Baldwin, Matthew Vale, Andrew Ross, Giles Burris, Tom Harding, Dilwyn Sheers, Jamie Docherty, Dan Mead, Tim Sandars (c), Mark Robertson, Yousef Salamony, Jack Robinson.
Replacements: Jonas Jaanimagi, Joe Richardson, Mike Joy.

Author - Jamie Docherty