Dorking Colts had a Fantastic day on Sunday the 28th January.
Teddington u 18 vs Dorking Reds – Match Report, 28 January 2024
Dorking Colts continued their winning ways in the Harlequins Cup with a win over Teddington at Bushy Park on Sunday. The Colts fielded two teams over the weekend and with both fixtures away at different times the resources were stretched but both sets of boys delivered.
Dorking Reds after round 1 were leading the top tier of the Quins Cup having beaten Cobham convincingly at home the previous week. Teddington and Guildford played out a tight game the week previous and Dorking were aware that Teddington at home would be a stern contest.
The game started with Dorking demonstrating real hunger at the breakdown, a little too much hunger as we were penalised for going off our feet and Teddington immediately opted for the posts and converted a kick in a slight cross wind. 3-0
That early lapse galvanised the Dorking boys who started to play with real pace and were sensibly taking territory. After a great line out steal the ball was flashed quickly across the line with high pace to allow Will Simpson to come around the edge and score in the corner. A difficult kick from wide was missed. 3-5
Off the restart Dorking were in the mood and after some great work in the tight, leading to a turn over again the pace of the back line was relentless and with some clever taps through the Captain Christian Styles touched down in the same corner with a wide conversion narrowly missed. 3-10
From the restart Teddington struggled to control possession and this time Dorking were to run the blind side which caught Teddington napping and with some great acceleration from Tom Harper and an ‘Ash Splash’ under the posts he was to convert his own try. 3-17
It is fair to say that Teddington were shell shocked at this stage and started to stand off the Dorking boys which only invited more incision from the backs. Charlie Aldridge made a number of breaks up the midfield and with some deft hands and hard clearing the ball was again to find Aldridge who powered through a couple of Teddington defenders to score under the posts. Harper had an easy tap over. 3-24
With 10 mins to go in the first half Dorking started to run the ball from all corners and frankly lost their concentration and structure. This invited Teddington into the 22 and with a number of penalties conceded allowed Teddington to have the last word in the first half and score under the posts with the conversion to follow. 10-24
Dorking gathered their thoughts and frustrations at half time but had handed the momentum to Teddington who came out with a simple game plan and an early Dorking infringement trucked their maul up the mid field and continued to batter the Dorking defence. After a sustained period of defence in the tight Teddington moved the ball out to some bigger men waiting to drive, touchdown Teddington and conversion missed. 15-24
The next phase of play Dorking returned to basics and the back row who were excellent including player of the match Sam Whittaker took control of the ball. Our structure re-emerged and with some incredible tackling and rucking against a resurgent Teddington Liam Patterson won a turnover ball and penalty in the mid field. Dorking reverted to a simple catch and drive and after forward recycling Dave Terry was to make a barn storming run carrying two defenders on his back over the line, conversion missed. 15-29
Following a brief pause as some rutting deer invaded the pitch the match entered a stop-start period with neither team grabbing control. Teddington had some belief after a couple of scores, but although Dorking had lost some structure they were always in control. The match finished with the referee over ruling the linesman and offering Teddington a line out and later a penalty for backchat in the bottom corner. Teddington were to drive over the line and that was the game. 20-29
Having amassed over 80 points after two games Dorking Colts are an overwhelming force in the Quins cup but credit to Teddington who taught them a lesson in momentum and the need for game management. Next up is a friendly against Canterbury followed by Quarter Finals of the National Cup the week after
Wimbledon u 18's Bs vs Dorking Whites – Match Report, 28 January 2024
After a narrow bonus-point defeat to Rosslyn Park last week, the Dorking Whites team headed up the A3 to Wimbledon on Sunday in good spirits, having trained really well together during the week. This was another chance for Dorking Colts to show their strength in depth, with the Reds team facing Teddington.
Dorking began playing into the wind and into some rare January sunshine. Wimbledon, fielding a big pack and some powerful runners in the backs, soon began to pressure the Dorking line. A quick tap penalty and some slow line-speed in defence saw the big Wimbledon prop pile over from short range. 0-7
Dorking were up against it early on. Losing Jai Kamaluddin to injury and pressed back by the powerful Wimbledon forward runners. However, Dorking were beginning to find their mettle in defence and held up another Wimbledon attack over their own line.
The tide was beginning to turn as Dorking upped their intensity in defence and their speed of attack. From two quick tap penalties in a row, Dorking moved the ball left and tight-head prop Rory Mathers popped up in the centre to score his first Dorking try from short range. Josh Spooner added the extras to bring the scores level.
Dorking continued to maintain their pressure on the Wimbledon line. Lacking a bit of composure, they were unable to convert further penalty opportunities. Instead, they scored next from a scrum, with Mathers and colleagues starting to get the upper hand in the set piece. Centre Rufus Graham-Mow, who was starting to cut some holes in the Wimbledon defence, made a half-break and fed fly-half Spooner to score. 12-7 Dorking at half time
Dorking were now playing with a slight breeze in the second half and made the conditions tell. From a high, hanging Wimbledon kick, centre Sam Cox expertly gathered and quickly started another attack. A lovely flat pass from stand-in scrum half and captain Matt Young put Graham-Row into space. With defenders closing in, he sensibly fed supporting flanker Nick Humphreys 20 metres out. He showed impressive pace to out-strip the defence and score just to the left of the posts. 19-7
Wimbledon responded and scored again, as they did in the first half, from a tap penalty close to the Dorking line. With the conversion missed, Dorking still led by a score. 19-12
Dorking remained in the ascendancy, however, and kept the ball in the Wimbledon half. A couple of tap penalties saw Dorking forwards held up over the line and frustratingly unable to dot the ball down. Eventually the pressure told and a line break from the excellent Jude Goodyear saw him score just to the left of the posts. Spooner added the extras for a 26-12 lead.
That was pretty much it as Dorking saw out the last few minutes in relatively calm fashion.
This had been an excellent performance by the Dorking Whites in difficult conditions, playing against a big, physical team and with three injuries over the course of the game. To come away with a bonus-point win was a great result and testament to the hard work the boys had put in at training during the week.
There were a number of stand-out performances but player of the match went to Nick Humphreys, who led the defensive effort throughout and scored the pick of the Dorking tries.
