Sat 17 Feb 2024
Isle of Wight 10-22 Fareham Heathens
Any flickering hopes of league glory for IW were extinguished by top of the table Fareham Heathens in a hard-fought match-up at Wootton Rec.
It was an attritional tussle between the two high-flying teams, with a rainy week resulting in heavy underfoot conditions and a slippery ball. IW started with wind advantage and early pressure gave them a penalty opportunity after 15 minutes, kicked by George Huish. The home side did not always make the best use of the elements in this period, and Heathens grew into the match, taking the lead with a converted try five minutes before half-time.
There was little between the teams in general play, both competing vigorously at the breakdown with Biffa man of the match Ian Bennett and Andrew Brown prominent. The second half remained scoreless until after the hour mark, when Heathens began to assert themselves in the scrum and pushed back IW, who compounded their issues with some errors in possession. A penalty goal extended the Fareham side’s lead to seven, before loose ball was pounced upon near the IW line for a critical score.
Little was going right in this period for IW, who now had to run the ball from deep against the wind and buoyant opposition. Another try was scored by the league leaders to seal the victory, before IW finished strongly with a sustained bout of pressure, Sam McQueen and captain Luke Blackman particularly effective. This was rewarded when scrum-half Finley Lockhart exploited the blind side and picked out Huish, who broke the line and crossed for IW’s only try.
IW travel to bottom team Alresford on Saturday in a re-arranged fixture.
IW: Ward, Rolfe, Huish, McQueen, C Browne, Young, Lockhart, Puzey, Butler, Newnham, B Martin, Blackburn, Brown, Bennett, Blackman, Jones-Evans, Wallace.
IW II 7-54 Fareham Heathens II
The clubs’ second teams played a friendly which was emphatically won by the mainlanders. Heathens had some late cry-offs and IW loaned them Karl Davey and Jayme Bishop so that the teams had equal numbers. Both played strongly, with Biffa man of the match Davey getting on the scoresheet for Heathens and Ravenprint man of the match Bishop carrying well.
In a match much more competitive than the final score suggests, both short-handed teams worked very hard on a full-size pitch, but Fareham held the edge in pace and power, and defended strongly when IW threatened. The high point for the hosts was in the first half, when outstanding scrum-half Dave Hanson scorched down the blind side from a scrum and touched down for an opportunist try. Kieran Leahy added the conversion and IW trailed 21-7 at that point. Heathens scored once more before half-time, and then sealed victory with some flowing rugby in the second half.
IW: Wynyard-Wright, Leahy, S Browne, D Bishop, Scandrett, Hanson, Tombleson, Jones, Stretch, Davey, J Bishop.
