Red Ants now 80 minutes away from HQ!

Spartans travelled to Calne and put in a dominant performance to win 50-7 and advance through to the Semi-Final of the National Junior Vase, where they will host Old Whitgiftians on Saturday 15th April.

Having gone through many tough encounters to reach this stage, Spartans came up against a team that didn't possess the same quality as previous opposition and whilst Calne were brave in defeat and fought to the final whistle they struggled to live with the power and pace of the Red Ants.

Playing up a slight slope and into a fierce cross wind, Spartans started nervously and some early unforced errors allowed Calne to win early field position, however there narrow attacking game plan was comfortably dealt with by a strong defensive effort from the Red Ants.

Eventually Spartans settled into their game and as soon as they were able to secure multiple phases they found gaps in the hosts defence. They had 2 kickable penalties in the 1st 15 minutes however wing Paddy Knight was off target with both. They kept up the pressure however and centre Aaron Fowke opened the scoring, dummying his way through from the 22 before rounding the full back to touch down. Regular kicker Ashley Lewis took over the tee and knocked over an excellent conversion into the wind.

The momentum appeared with Spartans however a lapse in concentration soon after the opening score allowed Calne to draw level. A hopeful kick over the top from Calne was fielded by Paddy knight and a moment of indecision allowed the onrushing hosts to charge down his kick and the bounce of the ball fell kindly for them to score what would be there only try of the game. The conversion was made and the scores were now level.

This could have knocked Spartans off course and despite the noise levels from the home crowd lifting, the visitors got back on track immediately and it was Knight who put them back in front. a 22 drop out from Calne was excellent taken by the outstanding Elliott Mayer and going blind the ball made its way to the wing who brilliant danced with the touchline to score in the corner. Lewis again knocked over a superb touchline conversion and then added a penalty to give Spartans a 17-7 lead.

With the slope and elements now favouring them Spartans never looked back and they were in total control in the 2nd half. Firstly Wing Brad Dunn cut an excellent line to burst through and unselfishly pass to knight for his second try. This was quickly followed By Luke Foran going over for his first try of the season where he found space down the blind side to canter over.

Not long after Dunn himself got onto the score sheet, firstly outstripping the Calne defence before brilliantly stepping the full back for an excellent individual score.

Calne continued to battle and did have a 5 minute spell where they carried hard into the Spartans defence, but the Red Ants stood firm and eventually they turned the ball over. Centre Nick Rhodes noticed an empty back field and punted the ball upfield and Knight won the race to the ball, hacked on and touched down to complete his hat trick.

In the closing moments The Ants closed out the game with their 7th try. Calne continued to defend bravely however after numerous phases they simply run out of defenders and second row Lee Martin strolled over, although his celebratory swan dive left a lot to be desired!

The dream lives on but the Semi Final will be a massive challenge against a team who have been in dominant form themselves in recent months. It is sure to be an almighty battle so come along to Lansdowne Road to support the Ants