128 to 1: How Dorking Colts won the National Under 18s Cup
Dorking headed to Sixways on Sunday morning in great spirits. With an early departure from the club, the boys stopped off just outside Worcester for some food and a stretch of the legs before heading to the former premiership ground.
After their resounding victory over Rams in the semi-final, Dorking were quietly confident. Their opponents, Newport Salop, were a bit of an unknown quantity as the two clubs had never met before, although their seniors play at the same level as Dorking’s. What intelligence Dorking had gathered suggested that their opponents would bring a very powerful pack of forwards with them and some strong runners in the backs. They were not to be disappointed.
Coachloads of Dorking supporters filled the main stand, with trumpeter Ian Stott coordinating the singing. Newport’s fans occupied the opposing stand, creating a great atmosphere.
And so to the rugby. Newport kicked off and came out firing all the shots, tapping the ball back and setting up numerous phases of play with big runners crashing into the Dorking defence. After an infringement at a breakdown, Newport were awarded a penalty and kicked for the corner. A clever lineout move up the blindside was halted by great Dorking defence. However, the Newport flanker was on hand to dot the loose ball down and open up a 5-0 lead.
For the first 20 minutes it was all Newport as Dorking just could not get going. That all changed, however, thanks to a moment of brilliance from winger Will Simpson. After tackling his opposite number out wide, the ball came loose at the ruck and some wonderful footballing skills gave him the smallest of gaps. That was all he needed as he scooped the ball up, stepped one way and then the other to beat two defenders and set off from half way. The Newport fullback – and their man of the match – chased hard and looked like he would haul Simpson down just short of the line. However, a strong hand-off to the chest and a dive for the line allowed Simpson to stretch out and score one-handed. 5-5
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Disaster then struck for Newport. From the restart, Dorking hooker Reuben Pilbeam collected the ball under pressure from the Newport defence. The Newport centre came in too high and a swinging arm ended Pilbeam’s final with a broken nose. He was distraught but was consoled by the fact that he had done so much to get Dorking to this stage of the tournament. The officials gathered together for a long discussion and eventually settled on a red card for the Newport player.
Dorking now began to enjoy a bit of territorial advantage and it was Newport who started to concede a string of penalties in their own 22. Dorking opted for a scrum on the last of these. Moving the ball to the blindside, captain Alex Power was hauled down just short of the line. Newport managed to steal the ball but their resulting kick was charged down. After a couple of forward drives Dorking moved the ball wide left. Fullback Charlie Nichol was hauled down just short of the line. A quick recycle saw centre Chris Styles fend off two defenders and dot down for a 10-5 lead at half time.
The second half began with both teams trading blows again. Newport, despite the numerical disadvantage, were looking to run the ball at every opportunity. Dorking, however, were defending as if their lives depended on it. Newport broke down the right and some last ditch defence allowed Dorking to turn the ball over and kick to space. The Newport counterattack was hauled back after a forward pass, giving Dorking a scrum on their own 10-metre line.
Centre Will Darbishire made ground, breaking into the Newport half. His miss pass found Nichol hitting the line at full speed, taking Dorking all the way into the Newport 22. A quick recycle, and with penalty advantage, saw Dorking switch back to the left. Another miss pass from Darbishire found prop Ryan Kelly out wide. He drew his man and fed Charlie Aldridge to score in the corner. Nichol somehow slotted the kick from out wide for a 17-5 lead.
Newport were not done yet, however, and after a series of strong forward carries, Dorking eventually ran out of numbers in defence and the Newport replacement centre broke the line from five metres out. With the conversion missed, the Dorking lead was cut to seven points. 17-10
Newport knew that a converted try would win them the cup as they had scored first in the game and so they were looking to attack at every opportunity, still finding space in the wider channels. With the clock running down and the tension ramping up, Dorking continued to repel wave after wave of Newport runners.
With a scrum on the last play, Newport tried to break from their own 22 and chipped ahead. Nichol was first to the ball and threaded a lovely grubber kick back towards the Newport line. Power chased the kick and cut the Newport defender down. The ball popped forward and straight into the hands of the chasing Dorking Number 8 Sam Whittaker who dived over the line to bring the cup home. Nichol added the conversion and the referee called time. 24-10.
Against a much bigger and stronger Newport side, Dorking had yet again found a way to win. This was a victory based on defence, heart and sheer will to win. At various stages in this competition Dorking have been up against it, none more so than on Sunday. The resilience of this group of players is just incredible and will serve the club well for years to come.
Newport were very gracious in defeat, rightly highlighting Dorking’s defence and counter-attack as the deciding factors in such a tight contest.
Dorking head coach Dom Brockes paid tribute to Newport’s efforts and highlighted the fine margins between victory and defeat. He said “Newport were, without doubt, the best all round team that we have faced all season, which made for an electric final. They kept us under severe pressure for the whole game despite going down to 14 for much of the match. The Dorking lads defence was immense throughout. Whatever else they achieve in life I hope this day stays with them forever”.
After a quiet bus journey home and the promise of an early night, Dorking returned to the club house to be greeted by a guard of honour and some raucous celebrations.
Having set out in September as one of 128 teams in the competition and overcoming a formidable range of opponents, the journey was finally over. For a number of the squad, this was their last game of youth rugby. What a way for them to finish.
Big thank you to the coaching and support team this season and on the day.
Dom Brockes, Dom Smales, Gareth King, Jeremy Henshaw, Mike Maddick, David Power, Patrick O Grady, Armand Roux, Lana Crouch and Manon Delton
Not in Picture is Daniel Mackenzie and Richard Simpson.
