Dorking vs Chobham Match Report – 22 September
Dorking Colts began their defence of the National Cup on Sunday, hosting Chobham in a hastily rearranged tie after their original opponents, Horsham, had opted out of the fixture. Dorking were unsure of what to expect from their opponents and, with a number of injuries and late withdrawals for Dorking, this was expected to be a testing fixture.
After the torrential overnight rain had eased and the sun almost broke through, Dorking began playing down the slope. After a long pre-season and a couple of friendly fixtures, Dorking began confidently, pinning their opponents back in their own half. The first 20 minutes were a cagey affair, with Dorking probing their opponents’ line, with one promising catch and drive from a short-range lineout collapsing just short.
Eventually the Dorking pressure told. Chobham conceded a penalty 15 metres from their line. Quick thinking by scrum half Jack Burke saw him tap the penalty and feed centre Toby de la Hoyde to power over for the opening score. 5-0 Dorking.
Dorking then scored again just before half time. Winger Sam Cox was growing more influential in the game, stepping his way through the Chobham defence. After two quick breaks by Cox, the ball was moved up the blind side for the outstanding Josh Spooner to score in the far left corner. 10-0 at the break.
The second half, initially at least, followed a similar pattern to the first half. Dorking enjoyed the territorial battle for the first 20 minutes, despite playing up the slope. The backs and forwards were really starting to gel but couldn’t quite break the line, with prop Josh Krango held up by some stubborn and committed Chobham defence.
The breakthrough finally came with a real team try. Two dummy forward runners managed to draw in the Chobham defence, creating space out wide. The Dorking backs moved the ball quickly, with De la Hoyde breaking the line and feeding fellow centre Rufus Graham-Maw to score wide right. 15-0
Dorking then scored the pick of their tries. Fly half Woody Aldridge broke in midfield after great work by substitute James Gorton-Lee, and twice fed De la Hoyde who then powered over for his second. Man of the match Spooner added the extras for a 22-0 lead.
With the game all but won, and after a number of substitutions, Dorking then took the foot off the gas. Credit to Chobham who were battling hard at the setpiece and in defence and never gave up. After some sustained pressure, and despite two textbook chop tackles from skipper Reuben Pilbeam, Chobham bundled over from short range just left of the posts. 22-7
Chobham weren’t done yet and a penalty allowed them to kick deep into the Dorking 22. From the subsequent lineout, the Chobham centre cut through the Dorking defence to score on the final play. 22-12 at the end.
The disappointment of conceding two late tries should not detract from this performance. This was the first experience of the National Cup for a number of the boys, with a large contingent of u17s in the squad who were playing their first competitive game at Colts level. This was an excellent all-round performance, with everyone contributing and lots of positives for the coaching team to build upon.
Dorking’s reward is a return to Sevenoaks in the next round, with the RFU deciding to mirror last year’s National Cup fixtures. This will be a very tough test, with last year’s Colts producing one of their best performances of the season to beat one of the pre-tournament favourites. But with players returning to the squad after injury and some real depth in all positions, Dorking can head to Sevenoaks in confident mood.
