Hardy St Hugh’s lay Corpus to rest
A St Hugh’s player forces his way through the Corpus defence
As the sharp January sunshine faded and dark clouds loomed overhead, the afternoon was given a new lease of life by a passionately contested and entertaining game of which St. Hugh’s emerged deserving winners by 18 points to 6. A depleted Corpus-Somerville team were undone by several noticeable absentees and an ominous display of dominance from the Hugh’s pack.
They provided a sturdy platform for an unassailable first-half lead, and though Corpus/Somerville rallied well in the second period there was to be no score whatsoever after the interval. Following several handling errors on both sides, the Christmas cobwebs were soon shattered by a blistering scrum from the Hugh’s forwards, setting a high standard they were to maintain for the half.
Soon after, Ed Ronan made an enterprising burst, Alex Gregory plucked the ball from a difficult position and then fed Will Hardyment, who scored a try in the left corner. The blow was doubly compounded as first Jo Thornton converted and then Corpus/Somerville lost their influential captain Ben Morton to injury. Corpus/Somerville refused to buckle, yet it was only through the wealth of skill available to stand-off Lawrence Harris that they were able to register any points at all.
In a mesmerising ten-minute spell he sent over a penalty from wide on the left, hauled a marauding Hugh’s player to the earth and promptly conjured a drop-goal from nowhere. A bewitched Alex Topouzoglou justifiably described Harris as “all over it”. Unfortunately his colleagues were unable to match his attacking verve and Hugh’s were allowed almost uninterrupted possession.
Poverty in their handling restricted the scoreline until confusion in the unfamiliar Corpus/Somerville defence led to a penalty, expertly dispatched by Thornton from almost half-way. Hugh’s found the try-line again in an impressive move from left to right, the ball passing through many hands until it found the decisive grasp of Gregory in the corner. Rich Scott bravely commandeered the resulting kickoff, but was unable to stem the black and yellow tide.
Another loose ball inexplicably eluded the Corpus/Somerville defence and, while Thornton appeared to have left even his support in his wake as he meandered across the field, a needless penalty was conceded. With one swing of his right boot, Thornton duly completed the scoring. Hugh’s had benefited from dangerous running all through the backs, especially the swift Hardyment and muscular Amer Shafi.
Ultimately, though, they had to rely on errors and inexperience in the opposition ranks to inflict the score-line their forward dominance deserved. The evenness of the second half was a timely reminder of the obvious talents of some of the Corpus/Somerville individuals, notably the all-action unit that is John Easton in the second row.
His tackling and running set up a great deal of possession in dangerous areas, while Scott continued to fight tooth and nail for balls he had no right to win and former captain Guy Baker gave no quarter throughout. Lamentable composure on the floor, however, meant that their good work restored only pride rather than parity in the scoring stakes.
Corpus/Somerville were repeatedly penalised for holding on, and Topouzoglou was lucky to avoid admonishment for an elbow in the face of Hardymant, though both were admittedly focused unerringly on the tackle at hand. Hugh’s flanker John Barnes brilliantly demonstrated his art as he nimbly stooped to steal a turnover ball uncontested from what had looked a threatening Corpus- Somerville position.
Though Hugh’s victory was more or less assured by halftime, it is to both teams’ credit that the match continued as a spectacle until its conclusion. However, Hugh’s will require distinctly more creativity all through their team if they are to become credible challengers and realise honours in this league.
Corpus/Somerville, meanwhile, must surely strengthen the spine of their side if they are to fulfil the ambitions of those in it capable of really competing at this level, and give them the chance to achieve what they have the potential to.
19th Jan 2006