BackSat 18 Feb 2023 · Regional 2 South East
Dartfordians 1s
1st XV
20
22
1st XV edge the win at Dartfordians
Mark Weeks19 Feb 2023 - 21:09
The D does it again.
The Farnham boys set off around the M25 for the third time this season this time to play an inaugural league fixture at Dartfordians. Nestled beside the A2, Dartfordians is a hospitable club that enjoys a well-appointed club house, its 100th anniversary next year and a first team pitch that is patently used for Saturday fixtures only. The firm, well-grassed ground does, however, slope away from the club house. That and a stiff westerly breeze gave the team playing with their backs to the clubhouse a distinct advantage.
Dartfordians had that advantage at the kick off and immediately seized upon it. After just five minutes they were ahead by two unconverted tries to nil. Farnham had been caught cold, perhaps too mindful of the fact they had beaten Dartfordians earlier in the season and that Dartfordians sat second from bottom in the league.
However, the home side’s bulky pack, talented fly half and Esterhuizen-like centre gave them a go forward that was ably supported by the determination of the entire team to win this game. Once the more skilful Farnham side had recovered from those early scores, it made for a compelling encounter played at a frantic pace.
Farnham had started the game well as multiple phases penetrated up the hill into the Dartfordian 22. However, at the Darts line out, their bulky pack set the maul and took their Farnham counterparts back some fifteen meters. With the Farnham defence on the back foot and sucked into the maul, the Darts scrum half goes blind, draws the Farnham winger and releases his own speedster to sprint from halfway to the try line. The difficult conversion was missed.
The game at this level is defined by fine margins. Today, Farnham were on the wrong side of them on more than one occasion. Darts restarted deep into the Farnham half and the ball was spun to Toby Salmon who, from just outside his 22, kicks for a distance. However, the ball is caught in the wind and drifts out on the full and Darts have an attacking line out. Farnham held for a while but eventually conceded a penalty and Darts had the lineout five meters out. The catch, maul and drive over were almost a formality.
A good chase from the restart and Farnham were pressing on the Darts 22 when their hooker took what the watching Faithful described as a “cheap shot” on second row Bobby Mitchell. The hooker was lucky to only get binned for ten minutes. Meanwhile Mitchell left the field for the rest of the game – and possibly some more gams to come - with a dislocated shoulder and Tom Dullage came on.
There then followed two incidents when the ref’s shrill whistle blew at a point when both sides were on the verge of scoring, only from them to score the moment the game restarted. Farnham won their line out on the Darts 22 and a training ground move gave centre Tim Salmon the space to surge over. However in the midst of that surge, the whistle blew to halt the game for a Darts player down with a head injury. With no other pitch to adjourn to, there was a long delay while the player was treated and thankfully walked off the pitch. The ref restarted the game with a Farnham five meter scrum. Farnham attacked with some sharp phase play and the Darts 7 flopped over to kill the ball. Scrum half Harry West was quick to react and took a quick tap and quick hands released Jonny Vincent to go over. Toby Salmon missed the difficult conversion across the wind. 10-5 on 23 minutes.
The second incident saw the Dartfordian fly half take the penalty advantage with a long raking kick in behind the Farnham defence. However, as his winger gave chase with an open plain between him and the Farnham line, the Ref blew for the penalty and pulled him back. The disgruntled Darts flyhalf then put in a huge kick with the wind behind him to the Farnham 5 meter line and from the line out their huge No 8 powered over. Again, the conversion was missed. 15-5 on half an hour.
At this point, full back Mike Salmon returned to the fray after ten minutes in the bin having been adjudged to have made a dangerous tackle.
Man of the match Reece Stennett was instrumental in Farnham’s next score. Always aggressive in defence, he darted in to thwart a thrust down the blind side and forced a knock on. Farnham spun the ball wide from the scrum and Stennett punched into the Darts defence on the right. The ball is quickly recycled and props Chapman and Woodhams combined with strong carries and good hands to release Toby Salmon who went over out wide on the left. He failed to convert his own try. 15-10 and Farnham are very much in the game.
Toby Salmon’s next touch was a gem. The Darts chasers knocked on at the restart and Farnham had the scrum near their 22. Harry West popped the ball to Toby S who rounded the rear of the scrum and galloped up the blind side. Phillimore sprinting in support was the target for any number of dummy passes, as Salmon bamboozled the scramble defence, sprinted the seventy-five yards and dived over out wide. Again, he failed to convert his own try, but the game is now at parity 15 points all.
As the half drew to a close, a final Farnham attack put the visitors out in front. That man Stennett, when he’s not putting in last gasp tackles, terrorises defences with mazey runs up the touch line. After one such effort, he released the dynamic No 8 Oscar Henderson into the Darts 22 where he burst through a couple of tackles to jog in behind the posts for the bonus point fourth try. This conversion Toby could not miss. 15-22.
The second half delivered frustration for the travelling Faithful – not to mention their team – and genuine hope of an upset for the home support. With the wind and slope in their favour, Farnham had the chance to cut loose but the combination of a gnarly, “never-say-die” home side and the aforementioned fine margin was to keep the Black and Whites scoreless.
Examples of the fine margin: Both Toby and Mike Salmon launched kicks that were on their way to delivering the much prized 50-22 attacking line out, only for the bounce of the odd shaped ball and a stiff breeze to take it over the deal ball line. Twice the final pass to put the try scorer in were intercepted. Both were eminently sensible offloads not hopeful long passes.
Fly half Farnes, after another assured performance, did put in a successful 50-22 but tweaked a knee as he chased the kick and Ollie Brown came on to fill his place.
Dartfordians had their say in proceedings. They did an excellent job disrupting the Farnham line out and their heavy pack kept the pressure on in the tight – although veteran replacement prop Jemi Akin Olugbade, who came on for Chapman at half time, did well to hold his side of the front row. The Darts half back pair effectively cleared their lines, as yet another Farnham attack broke down. And their centre was always a threat.
His line breaks were to keep the Farnham defence on its toes throughout the half and give the home side the field position from which the Farnham D was sorely tested. At the seasons end, this aspect the team’s play will rightly be recognised as the cornerstone of their success. However, 30 mins into the half, that defence gave way and the Dartfordian winger went over out wide. Conversion missed. 20-22 and spectators’ nerves were stretched along both touchlines.
The last ten minutes of the game told the story of the second half in microcosm. A fluent Farnham attack breaks down. Dartfordians counter-attack. Farnham defend heroically with notable turnovers from Ben Brown, Jonny Vincent and Tom Dullage and brilliant last gasp tackles by the back three - Stennett, Salmon M and Phillimore. Repeat until the final whistle.
As the travelling Faithful gathered to review what they had just witnessed, the consensus was that it somehow did not feel right that their team had posted five league points given the way the match played out. But five points it was! The Black and Whites keep their second place in the league with two games in hand over league leaders Horsham. A 13-point gap remains, but two good wins would close that gap to make for a thrilling season finale. Next Saturday will make or break that possibility as Farnham travel to Walton on Thames to tackle Reeds Weybridge who are one place below them in the league. All travelling supporters welcome to roar the boys on!
Dartfordians had that advantage at the kick off and immediately seized upon it. After just five minutes they were ahead by two unconverted tries to nil. Farnham had been caught cold, perhaps too mindful of the fact they had beaten Dartfordians earlier in the season and that Dartfordians sat second from bottom in the league.
However, the home side’s bulky pack, talented fly half and Esterhuizen-like centre gave them a go forward that was ably supported by the determination of the entire team to win this game. Once the more skilful Farnham side had recovered from those early scores, it made for a compelling encounter played at a frantic pace.
Farnham had started the game well as multiple phases penetrated up the hill into the Dartfordian 22. However, at the Darts line out, their bulky pack set the maul and took their Farnham counterparts back some fifteen meters. With the Farnham defence on the back foot and sucked into the maul, the Darts scrum half goes blind, draws the Farnham winger and releases his own speedster to sprint from halfway to the try line. The difficult conversion was missed.
The game at this level is defined by fine margins. Today, Farnham were on the wrong side of them on more than one occasion. Darts restarted deep into the Farnham half and the ball was spun to Toby Salmon who, from just outside his 22, kicks for a distance. However, the ball is caught in the wind and drifts out on the full and Darts have an attacking line out. Farnham held for a while but eventually conceded a penalty and Darts had the lineout five meters out. The catch, maul and drive over were almost a formality.
A good chase from the restart and Farnham were pressing on the Darts 22 when their hooker took what the watching Faithful described as a “cheap shot” on second row Bobby Mitchell. The hooker was lucky to only get binned for ten minutes. Meanwhile Mitchell left the field for the rest of the game – and possibly some more gams to come - with a dislocated shoulder and Tom Dullage came on.
There then followed two incidents when the ref’s shrill whistle blew at a point when both sides were on the verge of scoring, only from them to score the moment the game restarted. Farnham won their line out on the Darts 22 and a training ground move gave centre Tim Salmon the space to surge over. However in the midst of that surge, the whistle blew to halt the game for a Darts player down with a head injury. With no other pitch to adjourn to, there was a long delay while the player was treated and thankfully walked off the pitch. The ref restarted the game with a Farnham five meter scrum. Farnham attacked with some sharp phase play and the Darts 7 flopped over to kill the ball. Scrum half Harry West was quick to react and took a quick tap and quick hands released Jonny Vincent to go over. Toby Salmon missed the difficult conversion across the wind. 10-5 on 23 minutes.
The second incident saw the Dartfordian fly half take the penalty advantage with a long raking kick in behind the Farnham defence. However, as his winger gave chase with an open plain between him and the Farnham line, the Ref blew for the penalty and pulled him back. The disgruntled Darts flyhalf then put in a huge kick with the wind behind him to the Farnham 5 meter line and from the line out their huge No 8 powered over. Again, the conversion was missed. 15-5 on half an hour.
At this point, full back Mike Salmon returned to the fray after ten minutes in the bin having been adjudged to have made a dangerous tackle.
Man of the match Reece Stennett was instrumental in Farnham’s next score. Always aggressive in defence, he darted in to thwart a thrust down the blind side and forced a knock on. Farnham spun the ball wide from the scrum and Stennett punched into the Darts defence on the right. The ball is quickly recycled and props Chapman and Woodhams combined with strong carries and good hands to release Toby Salmon who went over out wide on the left. He failed to convert his own try. 15-10 and Farnham are very much in the game.
Toby Salmon’s next touch was a gem. The Darts chasers knocked on at the restart and Farnham had the scrum near their 22. Harry West popped the ball to Toby S who rounded the rear of the scrum and galloped up the blind side. Phillimore sprinting in support was the target for any number of dummy passes, as Salmon bamboozled the scramble defence, sprinted the seventy-five yards and dived over out wide. Again, he failed to convert his own try, but the game is now at parity 15 points all.
As the half drew to a close, a final Farnham attack put the visitors out in front. That man Stennett, when he’s not putting in last gasp tackles, terrorises defences with mazey runs up the touch line. After one such effort, he released the dynamic No 8 Oscar Henderson into the Darts 22 where he burst through a couple of tackles to jog in behind the posts for the bonus point fourth try. This conversion Toby could not miss. 15-22.
The second half delivered frustration for the travelling Faithful – not to mention their team – and genuine hope of an upset for the home support. With the wind and slope in their favour, Farnham had the chance to cut loose but the combination of a gnarly, “never-say-die” home side and the aforementioned fine margin was to keep the Black and Whites scoreless.
Examples of the fine margin: Both Toby and Mike Salmon launched kicks that were on their way to delivering the much prized 50-22 attacking line out, only for the bounce of the odd shaped ball and a stiff breeze to take it over the deal ball line. Twice the final pass to put the try scorer in were intercepted. Both were eminently sensible offloads not hopeful long passes.
Fly half Farnes, after another assured performance, did put in a successful 50-22 but tweaked a knee as he chased the kick and Ollie Brown came on to fill his place.
Dartfordians had their say in proceedings. They did an excellent job disrupting the Farnham line out and their heavy pack kept the pressure on in the tight – although veteran replacement prop Jemi Akin Olugbade, who came on for Chapman at half time, did well to hold his side of the front row. The Darts half back pair effectively cleared their lines, as yet another Farnham attack broke down. And their centre was always a threat.
His line breaks were to keep the Farnham defence on its toes throughout the half and give the home side the field position from which the Farnham D was sorely tested. At the seasons end, this aspect the team’s play will rightly be recognised as the cornerstone of their success. However, 30 mins into the half, that defence gave way and the Dartfordian winger went over out wide. Conversion missed. 20-22 and spectators’ nerves were stretched along both touchlines.
The last ten minutes of the game told the story of the second half in microcosm. A fluent Farnham attack breaks down. Dartfordians counter-attack. Farnham defend heroically with notable turnovers from Ben Brown, Jonny Vincent and Tom Dullage and brilliant last gasp tackles by the back three - Stennett, Salmon M and Phillimore. Repeat until the final whistle.
As the travelling Faithful gathered to review what they had just witnessed, the consensus was that it somehow did not feel right that their team had posted five league points given the way the match played out. But five points it was! The Black and Whites keep their second place in the league with two games in hand over league leaders Horsham. A 13-point gap remains, but two good wins would close that gap to make for a thrilling season finale. Next Saturday will make or break that possibility as Farnham travel to Walton on Thames to tackle Reeds Weybridge who are one place below them in the league. All travelling supporters welcome to roar the boys on!
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