On the hottest day of the year, a disciplined performance in the face of an over-aggressive Hemel outfit was enough to see St Albans reach the final of the East League Cup.
In the extreme heat, the game was played in four quarters to allow for additional water breaks. So fierce was the tackling in the first quarter between the keenest of local rivals, that it ended without troubling the scoreboard. However, the Centurions had had the better of the exchanges and shortly after the first-half re-started, Kieran O’Shea made this dominance count by weaving through the Stags’ defence to score the opening try, converted by Will Curtis. Stout defending kept the Stags at bay and only slip-ups close to the Hemel line prevented the Centurions from extending the lead. Inevitably, on 34 minutes, St Albans added a deserved second try when Brad Webber powered through to cap another faultless performance. Half-time 10-0 to St Albans. Refreshed after the break, Hemel were able to dominate possession and territory early in the second half and, eventually, the Centurions’ line broke to concede a converted try. But St Albans soon re-exerted control despite a succession of high tackles and niggling fouls. On 55 minutes Alex Curtis smashed over the line, soon followed by Peter Strain’s superb run which saw him break tackle after tackle to score in the corner. Hemel caught St Albans out when they recovered their short re-start kick and set up an instant reply. With 5 minutes to go, however, St Albans restored its 12-point lead as Dale Gardner danced his way through the Hemel backline to score his customary try, which Will Curtis converted. With Hemel’s short re-start knocked on by the Centurions, they recovered the ball again and from the resulting scrum added a third converted try to bring the score to within 6 points with just 3 minutes to go. Thoughts of a tie and golden-point extra time were put to bed when Hemel knocked on to concede possession. Before the scrum could be taken, the referee blew for full-time and St Albans emerged victorious. Sadly, an incident off-the-pitch left St Albans’ physio, Len McMain, with a nasty head injury to bring an unsavoury end to what had been a feast of summer rugby. The matter is under investigation. Coach Mupamhanga was delighted with the victory: “make no bones about it, this was a tough local derby. Hemel were in our faces from the outset and discipline was key. Our defence was exceptional throughout and in the end we should have won by more. These are the standards we have to maintain for the rest of the season.” The Centurions are next at home on Saturday 13th July. They face Brentwood Eels in the Cup Final on Saturday 20th July at Bedford Tigers’ ground. Both games start at 2.30pm. final score: St Albans Centurions 24 Hemel Stags 18 Sat. 29th May, 2.30pm k.o. at Toulmin Drive, St Albans Comments are closed.
|
Categories |