Cobham Under 17A—Match Report vs Chipstead—April 23rd 2010
Result: Esher 15 pts Cobham 38 pts
A St George’s day game under the lights at Esher proved to be an exciting and competitive game with Cobham able to seal the Surrey League 1 Title by scoring 6 tries to 3.
The opening 10 minutes of the game saw Cobham control territory and possession with Stout making inroads and good ground being made. Following one such drive a good miss move in the midfield provided Burns with space to score, with Markham converting. Soon after a quick penalty gave Mathews room to straighten and score the second try with Markham again converting. The game then meandered somewhat with Cobham making mistakes and conceding penalties. However before half time a neatly worked move put Hughes into space and he steamed in from 50 metres.
Half time: 19-0
The second half started with a resurgent Esher side scoring first after a strong run. Then Cobham came back and kicked a penalty to the corner for Watkins to win the line-out and the forwards to drive over with Philip claiming the try (so he tells me).
Esher never gave up and the battle for the loose ball was consistently tight. Esher scored another try after a good run through the centre, and then it was the turn of Harty to get into the game by scoring 2 quick tries, one a good use of an overlap and the other an individual effort following a neat chip and chase.
The game ended with Esher adding another try after a bit of over ambition from Cobham.
We are grateful to Esher for putting the game on under lights which made it a good occasion for the lads.
Given the Cup final next week this was always going to be a difficult game but the Cobham lads did well with a changed team. Stout and Markham provided good experience to the side (such a pity they are not allowed to play in the Cup) and it was good to see the foraging Watkins back. In the backs Williams passed well, Mathews hit the line well and Hughes was always dangerous with his pace as was Burns.
Thus Cobham are Surrey champions for the seventh year in a row. Coupled with the B team winning the Division 2 title this makes for an excellent season. An excellent performance and result in the Cup final against Bedford would be a resounding way to end the season for this exceptional squad.
Let’s enjoy the week…….
NM
