One of Beckenham Rugby Club’s proudest boasts is that they have the tallest Rugby posts outside the Premiership; and on Saturday, this was probably one of the more interesting aspects of Cobham’s latest away trip to Kent; as Cobham came away with the win after a fairly sterile and ambition free match that gave neither sets of supporters a great deal to cheer about.
Cobham, forced to field a side with a number of changes, were at least able to welcome back open side Simon Ackroyd, and it was probably his influence that proved the difference between the sides; scoring once and having a hand in Cobham’s second try; whilst his tackle count and work-rate were exemplary.
Kicking off with a deceptive breeze behind them, Beckenham started well enough, pinning Cobham back in their own half for the early minutes of the game before fly half Jack Forrest put them ahead with a penalty after 4 minutes. From the re-start, Cobham then took a grip on possession and territory, and it was no surprise that following a shortened lineout ten minutes later, quick ball saw flanker Simon Ackroyd pop up at inside centre, and bursting through two tackles, broke through to score the opening try, converted by Tim Green.
The remainder of the half, however, was pretty dull fare. Kicking into the breeze meant Cobham consistently failed to gain sufficient ground with the boot, whereas Beckenham were always able to relieve any pressure by hoofing the ball downfield. Cobham’s traditional area of strength, the scrum, was being frustrated by the referee’s interpretation of what was acceptable in the drive, and the line out, perhaps hampered by having only one real solid option, lock Tom Webb, became a little predictable.
The second half was little better. Cobham repeated kicked possession away, hoping perhaps to gain advantage from the wind behind them, only to see the ball go time after time straight into the hands of the Beckenham back three. Beckenham, bizarrely, seemed able to gain precious yards with the boot into the breeze, where Cobham had failed in the first half; and were able to gain much the lion’s share of territory; and it was no surprise when, 15 minutes in, fly half Forrest slotted a penalty to take them to within a point.
Cobham did manage to string one good spell together. From a breakdown in mid-field, turned over by the promising young blind side Josh Brown, some good driving from 8 Jack Davison and open side Ackroyd put the Beckneham defence on the back foot, and quick ball saw scrum half Patrick Disley-May put fly half Arran Cowell through a blindside gap for a well taken try, again converted by winger Tim Green.
The remainder of the match saw Cobham largely on the defence. Both sides struggled with the inconsistency of the refereeing at the breakdown; and Beckenham in particular will have been frustrated at his pedantic refusal to let them take quick penalties on no less than three occasions. Cobham, meanwhile, kicked too much away, and kicked poorly; and also fell back into their early season habits of conceding penalty after penalty: and given the penalty count, it was surprising the yellow card was never produced. Under territorial pressure for much of the half, Cobham’s defence was good, and although almost on the final whistle Beckenham eventually put flanker Luke Aylward in for a try, it was too late to make a difference.
Cobham will have been pleased to take the points, after the disappointment of last week’s efforts against Dover; and certainly the performance of the two players from last seasons U18’s, flanker Josh Brown, and scrum half Patrick Disley-May, was very encouraging. Lock Tom Webb, too, had a fine game; and given the many changes forced on selection, it is perhaps harsh to be over-critical of their lack of ambition. However, Cobham will need to ensure the big game players are back for the forthcoming matches against league leaders Gravesend and Sidcup, and will also need to vastly reduce the penalty count against them if they are to prove a serious challenge.
Next week Cobham host Tunbridge Wells, and having lost their thirteen month unbeaten home record last week to Dover, will be keen to re-establish their Fairmile Lane home as the fortress it had previously become.
Ian Johnson
