The Academy 1 boys arrived at Reeds Weybridge at midday hoping that by then the pitches would have defrosted after the heaviest frost of the season so far. The winter sun was bravely doing its utmost to microwave the crunchy grass into life but for the sake of injury prevention Reeds had generously agreed to a swap the game to their 1st Pitch which had had the benefit of a few more rays for longer.

Winning the toss meant an opportunity to do the first half uphill, saving the downhill leg for the tired second half bodies. The boys started as they meant to go on by regathering Finlay’s pinpoint kick and retained possession. What ensued was a relative masterclass in controlled rugby. It was as if the pre-christmas fog had been lifted and now the boys could see with laser-like clarity. Super coach Hamish Webb could see the playing structures he has been suggesting forming before his very eyes. Passes went to hand, Rucks were formed and resourced. At one point Hamish counted 6 phases and the Richmond boys just didn’t know what to do to get their hands on the ball.

Playing rugby in the red zone at the top of the hill looked easy and it seemed inevitable that one of the phases would result in the ball being spun out to the majestic Tom Lee on the left wing. Tom used his acceleration to gas around his oppo to score in the corner. A touchline conversion was just out of Finlay’s reach today and so the score was 5-0.

Rinse and repeat. The second try was a mirror image of the first. The forwards earned the right to send the ball wide by drawing in the Richmond defenders and then sent the ball fizzing down the line to right winger Ed Robinson who finished by extending his inspector gadget arm to the whitewash with ball in hand, seemingly with three of the Richmond lads on his back to boot. 10-0.

Farnham’s third try went to that man Tom Lee again. It was as if the corner flag had a magnetic attraction to the ball in Tom’s hands. 15-0.

Then, just in the dying seconds of the first half, Richmond bit back. Some offloads went to hand tackles were missed and a Richmond player breached the black and white wall to score near the posts. 15-7 didn’t seem like an entirely fair representation of the run of play but as Hamish gathered the boys for the half time talk he confided that he was in a way glad that the boys weren’t under the misapprehension that the second half would be trivial with the hill in their favour and the sun no longer in their eyes.

How right he was. The Richmond boys had recognised that in the first half they had defended far too narrowly and by spreading out and defending fiercely they made life much harder for the Farnham boys.

A ding dong battle ensued for much of the second half with neither side making much progress until a Richmondian clearance kick failed to make touch and the ball ended up in the hands of Full Back Ben Atkins who tore down the line, handing off their right winger to score just to the left of the posts at the bottom of the hill. A relatively easy kick delivered the 2 for Finlay’s boot and the score was now a much more repectable 22-7.

The second half had not been a repeat of the glorious display shown in the first. With the pressure off, the boys had relaxed a bit too much and the structured play they had shown earlier had evaporated but nevertheless they had defended well enough to keep a rejuvenated Richmond side away from the try line as long as they had. A consolation try (unconverted), once again in the dying seconds of the half, was a deserved reward for a side who had found a way of coming back in difficult circumstances.

So the final score was 22-12 and represented the best rugby the team have played all season. Thanks must go to a proud Richmond team who never gave up in the face of a strong 4 try Farnham side.

All that was left was the presentation of the trophy to Captain Archie Rawnsley and a team photo. Man of the match was voted as Tom Lee with his superb 2 try haul, fortunately sparing dad Tim Lee from having to buy the traditional parental beers to celebrate a Hat Trick. Player of the competition was Max Davison who has worked like a Trojan since September to bring the side the success it now deserves.

So, all in all, a highly successful day. Silverware all round; a 50% share of the Maple Shield for the Academy 2s and a full whack of the Birch Plate for the 1s. Thanks must go to Sam, Gary, Hamish, Dominic, Ross, Niall and all those who have contributed to what bodes well for the second half of the season. Bring it on!

Steve R.