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Sat 11 Feb 2017 · Shepherd Neame Kent 1
Cranbrook
1st XV - Lancers
46
14
Lancers V Cranbrook
Glen Boevink15 Feb 2017 - 19:01
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The Pink Panther Plays in the Snow
The journey is long my friend. The journey is even longer when you need to travel down to Cranbrook during a blizzard, wondering for a good two hour period whether or not the game will be on, whether the pitch is frozen and then honestly, whether or not your fingers will fall off. But that’s Kent Rugby boys and our lads have played under tougher conditions, though we can’t remember when.
We arrived at Cranbrook with time to spare, and set about business. By the time kick-off came, the lines on the pitch had been cleared of snow and we were ready to rumble. For the first time this season the opening stanza was a tough fought battle and the for the first ten minutes the match could have one either way. Cranbrook looked very switched on and the battle was going to be 5 yards clear of the breakdown, with the Panthers running some excellent lines. Not for the first time in the game, and certainly not the last, some slack discipline handed Cranbrook a penalty and they cleared the line about 5 yards out from our tryline.
For the first of many such plays, Cranbrook went to a five man lineout and drove through to completion. 5 – 0. The kick off was returned and for the next ten minutes we were in the game, however a combination of dropped balls, ill-discipline and slipped tackles allowed the Panthers to cross the line again. In fact, the less said about this half the better, with few key Lancers making any real dent in the Cranbrook defence.
At half time there were a few speeches made about how we came back from the depths of defeat to snatch glory at the Cage in round 1. We believed. From the off however, Cranbrook were just too strong, continually beating our defensive line in the first up tackle and making the yardage they needed to punish us.
If there was a few good points to make about the game.
1) Tristan DeMuth showing what a finisher he really is
2) Our scrum looks the business, pushing Cranbrook back at will
3) Kurt Greatorex has settled into 10 really well and is promising prospect
4) We were bloody glad Jamie Burman was there when Kurt Greatorex went down injured. Jamie had a commanding game
5) With 20 minutes to go, the Chancer spirit really came to the forefront, with Jack Hooper making the call to throw the sink at it. Some worked, a lot didn’t but it was a good fun way to end the game.
Lastly, but by no means least, a special mention for James Hill. Put simply, if you don’t want to get in a verbal stoush with the Lancers, best bet is to not antagonise a lawyer. There were some good humour by some pretty sore Panthers, but that’s why we love to play them in Kent 1.
Fair play to Cranbrook on a tough day for the Lancers, it’s a fair assessment that we didn’t turn up, but also that Cranbrook were really up for it, so well done to them. I guess we will have to leave it at 1 – ALL for the season.
We arrived at Cranbrook with time to spare, and set about business. By the time kick-off came, the lines on the pitch had been cleared of snow and we were ready to rumble. For the first time this season the opening stanza was a tough fought battle and the for the first ten minutes the match could have one either way. Cranbrook looked very switched on and the battle was going to be 5 yards clear of the breakdown, with the Panthers running some excellent lines. Not for the first time in the game, and certainly not the last, some slack discipline handed Cranbrook a penalty and they cleared the line about 5 yards out from our tryline.
For the first of many such plays, Cranbrook went to a five man lineout and drove through to completion. 5 – 0. The kick off was returned and for the next ten minutes we were in the game, however a combination of dropped balls, ill-discipline and slipped tackles allowed the Panthers to cross the line again. In fact, the less said about this half the better, with few key Lancers making any real dent in the Cranbrook defence.
At half time there were a few speeches made about how we came back from the depths of defeat to snatch glory at the Cage in round 1. We believed. From the off however, Cranbrook were just too strong, continually beating our defensive line in the first up tackle and making the yardage they needed to punish us.
If there was a few good points to make about the game.
1) Tristan DeMuth showing what a finisher he really is
2) Our scrum looks the business, pushing Cranbrook back at will
3) Kurt Greatorex has settled into 10 really well and is promising prospect
4) We were bloody glad Jamie Burman was there when Kurt Greatorex went down injured. Jamie had a commanding game
5) With 20 minutes to go, the Chancer spirit really came to the forefront, with Jack Hooper making the call to throw the sink at it. Some worked, a lot didn’t but it was a good fun way to end the game.
Lastly, but by no means least, a special mention for James Hill. Put simply, if you don’t want to get in a verbal stoush with the Lancers, best bet is to not antagonise a lawyer. There were some good humour by some pretty sore Panthers, but that’s why we love to play them in Kent 1.
Fair play to Cranbrook on a tough day for the Lancers, it’s a fair assessment that we didn’t turn up, but also that Cranbrook were really up for it, so well done to them. I guess we will have to leave it at 1 – ALL for the season.
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