Dorking Women 2s put in a dominant, physical and often electric performance against Burgess Hill, running out convincing winners in an action‑packed NC3 league fixture.
First Half
Dorking started with intent, immediately putting pressure on Burgess Hill from the opening phases. Although the first few set pieces were a little scrappy – an early not‑straight lineout and a knock‑on leading to a Dorking scrum – the home side quickly showed their defensive steel.
Suzie set the tone early, reading the play superbly to intercept a Burgess Hill attack and turn defence into attack. At the breakdown, Alice produced a textbook jackal to win a penalty, which was then kicked to touch to gain territory. From the resulting lineout, Dorking were unlucky to be pinged for another marginally not‑straight throw, but the intent and structure were clearly there.
The back row continued to cause havoc, with Susie (and Suzie) repeatedly over the ball, disrupting Burgess Hill’s possession and forcing turnovers. One such turnover led to a Dorking scrum, and soon after, a brilliant carry from Suzie punched through the defensive line. Dorking created a huge five‑player overlap but couldn’t quite convert, knocking on with the line beckoning – an early warning of how dangerous their attack could be.
It didn’t take long for that danger to turn into points. Spotting an opportunity from a loose Burgess Hill pass, Suzie pounced again, intercepting and racing away to score the opening try. The conversion was good: 7–0 to Dorking.
Momentum stayed firmly with the home side. A huge defensive hit from Nat McCall earned Dorking a penalty. Taken quickly, Laura Lopez backed herself, slicing through the defence to score. The conversion drifted wide, but Dorking were well on top at 12–0.
Burgess Hill then suffered a blow, dropping to 14 as Michelle was forced off, and Dorking ruthlessly exploited the space. From deep in their own 22, Suzie decided to take on the entire opposition line, handing off two defenders and going the length to score a stunning solo try. 17–0 and Dorking were flying.
Erin then showed her pace with a strong run down the touchline, only to be bundled into touch just short. From the reset, Nat crashed through the Burgess Hill defence to add another try, extending the lead to 22–0.
The Dorking scrum began to really assert dominance, shunting Burgess Hill back a full 10 metres and winning clean ball, though a slight knock‑on led to a reset. From the ensuing play, a kick was well claimed by Suzie, and continued pressure saw the scrum again marching Burgess Hill backwards. This time, the platform was fully used, and Georgie finished off the move to take the score to 27–0.
Burgess Hill finally found a response, their 11 making a strong run that was halted by a solid tackle from Suzie on Dorking’s 22. The visitors kept the pressure on, and their number 2 eventually crashed over to get them on the board. The conversion went astray, and the sides went into half time with Dorking leading 27–5.
Second Half
The second half started with a pause for an injury stoppage, but once play resumed, Dorking picked up exactly where they’d left off. A turnover in midfield was swiftly moved wide, and Laura finished clinically down the line to extend the lead. This time the kick was good: 34–5.
Dorking’s forward power continued to tell, and on her debut, Hannah made a real statement. After sustained pressure close to the line, she powered over to score, pushing the lead out to 39–5 and capping a hugely impressive first outing.
There were some lovely passages of structured rugby from Dorking. After going to ground, Harriet provided an excellent seal at the breakdown, allowing quick ball out to Hannah, who carried strongly before feeding Caroline. Caroline made good metres, but Dorking were unfortunate to be penalised for crossing just as the attack looked threatening.
At the other end, Laura produced a crucial try‑saving tackle after Burgess Hill’s dangerous 11 broke free again, showing that Dorking’s work rate in defence matched their ambition in attack. The turnover that followed saw Amber carry and then intelligently relieve pressure by kicking into touch.
Laura then turned defence into attack with a smart kick‑and‑chase, smashing the receiver and forcing a knock‑on to give Dorking another attacking platform. Burgess Hill briefly threatened when a kick to touch went very close to Dorking’s try line, and a penalty was awarded against Dorking for not retreating 10 metres. Burgess Hill ran it back towards halfway but were pinged for holding on, handing the scrum back to Dorking.
Caroline and Laura combined again with some sharp running, but a forward pass handed Burgess Hill a penalty. Still, Dorking’s defence and breakdown work remained relentless. Michelle put in a big tackle, and Suzie was on hand yet again to snaffle the ball and finish off another try, taking the score to 44–5.
Dorking almost had the perfect final flourish with a beautiful link‑up between Suzie and Caroline that sliced through the Burgess Hill line. The ball was shipped wide and looked certain to be grounded, but it was agonisingly knocked on right on the try line. Whether it was Yaz or Laura who spilled it remains a mystery – even a watching father couldn’t be sure – but it summed up the ambition and attacking intent Dorking showed all afternoon.
