Haverhill’s game plan proves Sutton Hoo’s woe
By Jim Morgan at Castle Playing Fields on Tuesday, 24th January 2012.
On a day with a constant wind, a very wet pitch and an expectant crowd from the east coast, the team who wear the burial mask of Sutton Hoo on their shirts came over to assuage the memory of the week before and put Haverhill to the sword.
Haverhill’s scrum had some changes, with Simon Potter filling the number eight shirt vacated by Chris Flannery’s injury and centre Micky Lansdowne filling the lock position vacated by Ratty’s retirement.
This being said, the scrum, though not as dominant in all facets of the set piece, was performing well in the loose.
Playing against the wind, Haverhill were pressured from the start, with the Woodbridge side putting in some good hand work in the backs and strong rucking and mauling in the forwards.
Haverhill defended well, but the pressure eventually told, with the Woodbridge prop finally getting over the line in front of the posts for a converted try on eight minutes.
With the difficult wind, Haverhill’s line-out ball was often awry, but thrower George Foley took no prisoners on the Woodbridge short ball hitting player after player extremely hard, dumping them unceremoniously into touch with alacrity.
Haverhill were guilty of chatting to the referee and this could have proved expensive if it had continued, with penalties being awarded for transgressions.
On 15 minutes a great catch and drive from Dave Quinney started to apply pressure, leading to Haverhill getting into the Woodbridge half for the first time.
Good play in the forwards, with Alex Hieatt, Adrian Cooper and Lansdowne all putting in the yards in the rolling drive, built the pressure on Woodbridge.
Finally, with a gap opened on the wing, a lovely floated kick from Gavin Hope saw a full speed Brad Gibson time his run perfectly to pick up and, evading two tacklers on the line, to touch-down on 19 minutes in the corner for 5-7. With the wind, the Adam Hunt kick was wide.
Haverhill continued to pressure with Harry Marsh troubling the Woodbridge line jumpers, winning ball against the throw and Haverhill’s three-quarter line of Jury, Stewart Newman and Hunt proving difficult to get past and dangerous when having ball in hand.
Woodbridge, even with the wind, were rarely able to cross into the Haverhill half and after another sustained period of play, a ten-metre scrum for Woodbridge was taken against the head where Potter broke off the back and, evading four players hanging from him, crossed the line to score for 10-7 at the break.
With the nearside of the pitch looking like a Glastonbury festival and both teams' kit being a muddy colour, winger Dom Farnell’s pristine kit at the change round was cause for mirth from the large crowd, but his first tackle of the half put paid to that.
The wind just proved too much for Woodbridge in the second half as they never crossed the Haverhill ten-metre line throughout.
Haverhill pressurised Woodbridge, with great play from Jury, using the wind expertly to put Farnell through to almost score. Not to be outdone, Hope repeated the chip kick, leaving the Woodbridge defence for dead with Hunt charging through and almost gaining the ball for a certain try.
On 50 minutes, Foley pressure on the full back led to a penalty for Haverhill in a good kicking position, but Haverhill took the quick kick and lost the ball. Sometimes taking the points is more important than personal glory.
Halfway through the second half, a great line-out catch from Marsh with a driving maul ensuing saw Lansdowne break out from 15 metres and cross the line for 15-7. The Jury kick, floating in on the wind just scraped the wrong side of the post.
The remainder of the game saw Haverhill attacking the Woodbridge line and Woodbridge defending well enough to keep Haverhill from crossing the whitewash again or the Haverhill move breaking down.
A great 40-metre run from Mike Woods, returning a Woodbridge clearance, was a good example, with the move finally breaking down when the ball was knocked on. A clearance on 78 minutes saw Quinney charge the ball down near the Woodbridge try line and the resultant drop goal attempt from Jury just missed.
In the final minute, Brodie Patrick came on for Dom Farnell, but he was never called on before the referee blew for time.
A great win against a side two leagues ahead, the day was topped off with news that Haverhill’s return to Eastern Counties Division Two is confirmed for next season.
Haverhill will play Clacton at home on February 11 at 2pm in the quarter-final of the plate competition.
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