Dorking 65-12 Worthing Raiders
Raiders Routed at The Big Field
By Kevin Beal
On a day made for running rugby, Dorking outscored Worthing Raiders by eleven tries to two with Toby McRae bagging four, Finn Osborne three and Max Coyle, Tom Hardwick, George Jackson and Adam Musa one apiece in a game where Raiders were overpowered in all departments. Craig Holland added five conversions in a contest where the result was never in doubt.
Worthing kept the ball from the kick off and spent the opening salvoes well inside the Dorking half as the Red & Whites, although defending well, struggled to get hands on the ball. Very much against the run of play Dorking were however first on the scoreboard as Coyle, following a Harry Elbrow charge through the midfield, touched down under the posts on the five minute mark. With Holland’s conversion good the home side were 7-0 up, but Raiders replied immediately from the restart as Jack Forrest retained the ball and wrong footed the Dorking defence for the simplest of run ins. So with Spencer Charles’ conversion also good it was all square at 7 apiece.
Retaining the ball at the kick off, but losing the ball in the ruck, Dorking hit back straight away as Coyle fielded Raiders’ clearance box kick, scorched up the right wing and fed the ball to Hardwick to put the home side back in the lead with the simplest looking of tries and with the conversion missed it was 12-7. Dorking were back on the attack almost immediately as Worthing secured possession but knocked on giving a scrum from which Osborne picked up and fed the ball out to Jackson to dab down for their third, again converted try. 19-7. This was followed by the first of Osborne’s hat trick of tries as supporting a Coyle break and a move involving all of the back line he was over next to the posts. Again, the conversion was good, and the score looked comfortable at 26-7.
Sensing that the game was slipping away, Raiders upped the tempo and mounted a succession of attacks through their back line, with the elusive Forrest leading the way. The home defence held firm but a momentary lapse of concentration in a 5m defensive line out gifted possession to Worthing’s hooker Jimmy Staples who crossed the line unopposed for an unconverted try. But that was the last time the Raiders troubled the scorers, as from then on the match was all Dorking. Osborne’s second, converted, shortly before half time came following a catch & drive lineout move and a succession of patient pick and goes from the pack, and gave the home side a comfortable 31-12 lead as the oranges beckoned.
Dorking’s set piece supremacy continued in the second half as playing downhill and with the wind they scored a further 6 unanswered tries. As the forwards took control in both the set piece and loose, the back line was free to spin the ball wide and probe for gaps in the defence, with Tom Howe, Max Coyle and Toby McRae particularly adept at finding space. Eventually the pressure told and as the visitors visibly tired, Osborne was in for his hat trick on the back of a set line out move. McRae then put the match to bed with probably the fastest hat trick this season. Three tries within five minutes; the first following a solid set piece scrum in midfield with quick ball through the hands of the entire back line for the score in the corner, the second, after a penalty at the restart, again in the left hand corner and the third, a carbon copy of the first from a set piece scrum called as Worthing’s re start kick didn’t quite make it to the ten metre mark.
With a quarter of the match still to play Raiders to their credit rallied hard, coming close on several occasions but the Dorking defence held firm and there was time enough for two further home tries. One fashioned by the backs, (McRae of course) with quick hands and feet creating the overlap following a lineout on halfway, and one for the forwards, a catch & drive try from a 5m lineout by Adam Musa in the final move of the game, emphasising the ‘whole team’ nature of the victory.
Final score 65-12
Director of Rugby Armand Roux commented:
Very pleased with the result and we simply executed what was in front of us and did so in ruthless fashion.
We still left some opportunities out there, but I can forgive them, as we were really going for broke from every opportunity so mistakes was always inevitable.
Thought Worthing had patches of solid attacking application breaking the line a couple of times early on.
Our focus now turns to Guernsey this weekend as we reach the last game of a 10-week block. We know what we need to go and do over on the Channel Island and hopefully we go and do so in style.
Teams
Dorking:
Cowell, Coyle, Howe, Holland, McRae, Hardwick, Jackson, Bristow, Watson, Stephenson, Scholes (C), King, Bloomer, Elbrow, Osborne. Replacements - Musa, Sheldrake, Howorth, Golder, Baldwin
Worthing:
Spencer, Miles, Forrest, Taylor, Rutherford, Meyer, Dobinson, Bruce (C), Dakin, Cook, Lake, Powell, Crowe, Ure, Price. Replacements - Gatford, Havers, Glass, Steele, Hartley.
Star Man – Finn Osborne (Dorking)
Referee Mr Peter Buchanan
Attendance 410
Scoring Sequence:
Dorking
Tries
Coyle 5. Hardwick 10. Jackson 13. Osborne 17, 35, 52. McRae 57, 59, 62,69.
Coversions
Holland 6, 14, 18, 52, 55,
Worthing Raiders
Tries
Forrest 7. Staples 26
Coversions
Staples 8.
