Photos courtesy of @lilylouisa.photos
A first win in the Champ for Blackheath and one not only much needed, but also fully merited.
With the pain of last week’s, last-ditch, defeat still smarting, the Club fell into a 12-point deficit in as few minutes, but such is the spirit and resilience of this current Blackheath outfit, that they were able to work back and claim a memorable triumph.
Indeed, on another day, the margin of victory may well have been greater.
‘While it’s great to get the win, I think we left four or five tries out there’, said Tom Stradwick.
‘We were held up across the goal-line twice, knocked-on over the line and missed a couple of overlaps’
‘But overall, the performance was excellent in terms of the grip and physicality,’ continued the Blackheath head coach. ‘There’s more to come from this team.’
Mistakes early on, however, allowed the Yorkshiremen the initial grip, and as the big Doncaster forwards dented the defence and won a scrum penalty, Penaia Tagatu was put across in space out wide.
Second-row Ben Glanville drove over in the opposite corner to give the scoreboard its initial ominous look, but as carries from Archie Smeaton and Rory Marsh gave the hosts momentum, Sam Morley got the Club off the mark with three points as the visitors were caught off-side.
More phases saw the ball held up across the goal-line for the first time, but as a lineout maul was steadied, Luke Pollock threaded a neat line for Blackheath’s first try.
Doncaster responded as Zach Kerr collected a deflected kick and produced a lovely offload for his opposite wing Tagatu to swat away defenders and score his second try, but Telusa Veainu’s unnecessary sprint across field to inflame a minor fracas would result in the Knights’ skipper and full-back, and former Tonga international, leaving his side a man short up to the interval.
With a penalty finding touch, former Knight Ehize Ehizode, a now towering presence for Blackheath throughout this warm and sunny Sunday afternoon took possession, and with Billy Harding peeling away, the Club skipper bouncing off defenders, Archie Holland burrowed his way across the goal-line reducing the deficit to 19-17 at the break.
Iwan Price-Thomas opened the second period with a 60-metre kick to touch, and although Blackheath were held up for a second time, the Club full-back’s out-of-hand kicking would set the platform for the phase when they might have put the contest beyond reach.
Harding sent Kegan Christian-Goss bursting through the midfield, the inside-centre offloading for Jordan Burns to score, giving Blackheath the lead, and as Doncaster rapidly lost two further players to the sin-bin, it was only poor handling that stopped the hosts moving clear.
As it was, Morley added two successful penalties, and as a further strike rebounded off the upright (the only blemish on an otherwise perfect goal-kicking display), the Club fly-half was quickly offered another opportunity from a scrum penalty and duly obliged for a 33-19 lead.
It wasn’t over. Upping their game in the closing stages, Doncaster produced a gap for Veainu to slip over for a converted try, and a late penalty found touch five metres from the Club’s goal-line.
But the throw was wayward, and as Blackheath moved ball off the scrum, Ed Dunford hoofed the ball over the South Circular to claim the win.
Blackheath now have just five days to recover before heading for Coventry on Friday night. Kick off at the Nick Newbold Stadium is at 7.45 pm.
Blackheath
Tries: Pollock 28, Holland 40, Burns 45
Conv: Morley 28, 40, 45
Pens: Morley 18, 51, 70, 77
Doncaster Knights
Tries: Tagatu 7, 32, Glanville 11, Veainu 79
Conv: Dolly 7, 32, Wilkinson 79
Attendance: 879
| 15 | . | Iwan Price-Thomas |
| 14 | . | Tom Hughes |
| 13 | . | Luke Pollock |
| 12 | . | Kegan Christian-Goss |
| 11 | . | Noah Ferdinand |
| 10 | . | Sam Morley |
| 9 | . | Jordan Burns |
| 1 | . | Archie Holland |
| 2 | . | Bill Harding (Capt) |
| 3 | . | Rory Marsh |
| 4 | . | Ehize Ehizode |
| 5 | Archie Smeaton | |
| 6 | . | Josh Smart |
| 7 | . | Noah Sloot |
| 8 | . | Kieran Curran |
| 16 | . | Ben Chapman |
| 17 | . | James Cornish |
| 18 | . | Kabous Bezuidenhout |
| 19 | . | Tom Johnson |
| 20 | . | Harry Taylor |
| 21 | . | Kyle McGhie |
| 22 | . | Ed Dunford |
| 23 | . | Jake Hennessey |
Graham Cox
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