Greene King IPA Championship - All you need to know ahead of Round 9
Fergus Mulchrone scored in London Irish's seventh straight victory of the season last weekend
©PA
The newly-formed Premiership Cup competition is in the spotlight this weekend, but the Greene King IPA Championship rolls on and Connor Hickinbottom has the latest news from the second tier.
Round Eight
Yorkshire Carnegie 5 - 17 London Scottish
Yorkshire Carnegie’s woes continued as they slipped to a sixth straight defeat at the hands of London Scottish.
The result was never in doubt as London Scottish dominated, scoring three tries to Carnegie’s one.
Rob Stevenson, the Exiles man of the moment over the past few weeks, kicked the scoring off with yet another electric finish. From there, it was plain sailing for Scottish as the visitors added a second moments later as Miles Mantella finished off a well worked try for his first of the afternoon.
An error in defence from the Exiles allowed Carnegie to score their solitary try of as Chris Elder scooped up a loose ball to race in.
The second-half was rife with errors as both sides struggled to adjust to the blustery conditions, but it was Carnegie’s errors that proved costly. The hosts gave away a scrum inside their 22m line allowing the Exiles to produce a perfectly executed move from the training ground. Mark Bright picked up the ball from the back of the scrum giving it straight to Rory Brand who put Mantella in for his second securing the victory for Scottish.
Ealing Trailfinders 60 - 25 Coventry
Ealing Trailfinders extended their outstanding start to the season with a nine-try victory over Coventry, making it seven wins in a row with seven try bonus points.
It was arguably the best performance of the Trailfinders’ season so far and the hosts took control from the first whistle with the victory never looking in doubt. They were three tries to the good within 12 minutes as Pat Howard grabbed a brace in between an Alan Walker try and a penalty for Coventry.
Ealing’s blistering start was rudely interrupted when Coventry scored through Anthony Fenner. Unfortunately for the visitors, Ealing scored another trio of tries in quick succession. Segundo Tuculet, Rayn Smid and James Cordy Redden went over for the three scores in the space of four minutes.
Coventry once again responded with a try of their own as Max Trimble dotted down for his first score of the game. A penalty on the stroke of halftime from Peter Lydon meant the hosts went into the break with a 41-12 lead.
The second half was much closer than the first, but still Ealing controlled the game as they added three more tries through Peter Lydon, Jordy Reid and Ollie Stedman. Coventry played their part to make the game competitive with tries from Trimble and Heath Stevens, but there was no hope of overcoming the halftime scoreline.
Richmond 21 - 35 Nottingham
A late surge secured a fantastic victory for Nottingham against tough opposition in Richmond.
The Green & Whites left it late to get the victory, relying on two tries in the final 10 minutes from Josh Poullet and Oisin Heffernan to guarantee the win.
The lead switched hands throughout the game but, despite ultimately losing the match, it was Richmond who controlled much of the proceedings. The hosts went in front through Jono Woodward, but subsequently lost the lead following a Shane O’Leary penalty and a Jordan Coghlan try.
Richmond replied with a try and a penalty of their own to secure a 15-10 lead at the break as Jordan Simpson-Hefft powered over from close range after some excellent place kicking from Rob Kirby, who added a penalty shortly after.
Nottingham started the second-half at breakneck speed scoring just minutes into the half. Jack Spittle produced an outstanding 60-metre run to beat three Richmond defenders for a superb individual try to put Nottingham back in front.
A series of three penalties, two from O’Leary and one from Kirby, put Richmond 21-20 up with a quarter of the game remaining.
Richmond could not hold onto the lead as Nottingham scored a drop goal and two tries in the final 10 minutes to earn a bonus-point victory. O’Leary once again showed his class with a well struck drop goal before Poullet and Heffernan both powered their way over.
Doncaster Knights 17 - 26 London Irish
London Irish continued their unbeaten start to the season despite a spirited second-half display from Doncaster Knights.
Irish stormed the first-half, securing the try bonus-point before the break thanks to tries from Blair Cowan, Ben Loader, Fergus Mulchrone and Motu Matu’u. It was far from easy, though, as Donny put on a resilient second-half display.
Cowan kicked the game off for Irish with a try inside eight minutes, but the Knights kept themselves within arm’s reach when Kurt Moragh landed a penalty.
The Exiles furthered their lead through Loader as the speedster caused problems for the Knights all afternoon.
Once again, the Knights responded as Josh Tyrell made an excellent break through the middle to put Tom James in for the try.
Two tries in quick succession extended Irish’s lead. Mulchrone and Matu’u powered over from close range to secure the try bonus point before the break.
Irish were unable to crack a resilient Donny defence in the second-half as the hosts searched for a comeback. The only try after the interval came from the Knights via Lloyd Hayes, but it was too late to worry Irish.
The Knights continued to push, but Irish remained solid ultimately denying the hosts of a losing-bonus point.
Hartpury 14 - 52 Jersey Reds
Jersey Reds put Hartpury College to the sword with a dominant display, notching their fourth win in a row.
The Reds scored seven tries on their way to an excellent victory over Hartpury, albeit overcoming several obstacles.
Charlie Maddison got the game started as he finished from a powerful driving maul only for Hartpury to answer with a try of their own through Harry Cochrane. The Reds retook the lead when Callum Waters finished from close range.
Despite two of their players being shown yellow cards, the Reds were still able to amass a further two tries as Leeroy Atalifo and a second for Waters increased their stranglehold on the game.
At this point, the match was well and truly wrapped up. The Reds went on to add a further three tries in the second-half from James Newey and two from Brett Herron cemented the victory.
Hartpury grabbed a late consolation try when Sam Leeming crossed the line, but even with another Reds player in the sin bin, it was far too late for a miracle comeback.
Cornish Pirates 29 - Bedford Blues 30
Bedford Blues scraped a one-point victory for the second game running as they narrowly defeated Cornish Pirates.
The Blues relied heavily on the boot of Will Hooley for the win, the ever-reliable fly-half scored 15 of the Blues’ 30 points.
Hooley grabbed his first penalty of the afternoon after six minutes only for the Pirates to respond immediately with a try from Sam Matavesi.
The Pirates struggled to find their rhythm following Matavesi’s score and began making mistakes. This allowed Hooley the opportunity to notch a further two penalties, either side of a Richard Lane try, to build a decent lead for the Blues. The 16-7 advantage was cut to 16-10 at the half when Will Cargill struck his sole penalty of the afternoon.
There was plenty of action in the second-half as both sides went all out for the victory. The Pirates got the first lot of points when Kyle Moyle spotted a gap in the Blues defence to race through.
Moyle’s try started a back-and-forth between the two sides as four tries flew in within the space of 12 minutes. Ryan Hutler went in under the posts to pad the Blues’ lead, but the Pirates would not be deterred as Moyle went in for his second, racing in from halfway.
A momentary lapse in concentration proved costly as Dean Adamson intercepted during a promising Pirates attack as he showed the onlooking defence a clean pair of boots to race in.
The Pirates would not give up and within two minutes, they had closed the gap to one-point again. Alex Schwarz benefitted from some good play from Javier Rojas Alverez to score Cornish’s fourth, securing a try bonus point in all but one of their games this season.
The hosts continued to press but could not find another way through the stubborn Blues defence.
Round Nine
Friday 26th November
Nottingham v Ealing Trailfinders
Ealing Trailfinders travel up north looking for their eighth straight victory against fourth-placec Nottingham.
The Trailfinders have been in imperious form since their opening day defeat to London Irish, securing a try bonus point in all seven of their victories.
It is safe to say this game should produce tries. Ealing have scored over 30-points in each of their past seven games with opposition defences struggling to stop their outstanding offloading game.
Nottingham have also been in fantastic form as they sit in the top four and 10 points behind their opposition. The Green and Whites have been excellent when playing at Lady Bay and will be hoping that home advantage can come into play as they go in search of their third victory in a row.
The Green & Whites must find a way to stop the relentless Ealing attack or it could be a long night for the hosts.
Prediction: Ealing by 21
Saturday 27th November
Bedford Blues v Hartpury
Bedford Blues host Hartpury College as they look to make it four victories in a row.
The Blues will be hoping for a more convincing triumph over Hartpury after winning by just a single point in their last two games.
Despite the less than convincing victories, the positive for Bedford is that they are still winning even when underperforming. There will be no room for a below-par display when they host a Hartpury side desperate for a victory.
Hartpury come into the game on the back of four straight defeats, sitting just three-points above bottom of the table Yorkshire Carnegie as they go in search of their first win away from home all season.
The visitors must put on a flawless performance to overcome Bedford, rectifying a number of defensive mistakes they have shown over the past several weeks.
Prediction: Bedford by 11
Coventry v Yorkshire Carnegie
Coventry play host to a struggling Yorkshire Carnegie side who are without a win since their second game of the season.
Yorkshire have been in horrendous form and fully deserve to sit at the bottom of the table after eight games. They will be desperate to get back to winning ways when they travel down to face the Championship new boys.
Despite being put to the sword in their last outing against Ealing, Coventry have had a relatively good start to the season. Sitting in 8th place, 11 points ahead of their opposition, Cov have quickly settled into life in the Championship and can be quietly confident in securing their fourth win of the season against Carnegie.
Coventry will be filled with confidence when looking at Carnegie’s away form. The Leeds-based outfit have been conceding tries by the boatful away from Headingley, losing 72-5 in their last away outing against London Irish.
Prediction - Coventry by 12
Jersey Reds v Richmond
Richmond travel over to Jersey for a showdown with an in-form Reds side.
Jersey’s season is now certainly underway. The Reds lost their first three games, but a return home proved to be the catalyst needed to kick start their season. Since then, Jersey have been excellent, winning their last four games in comfortable fashion.
A dominant away victory over Hartpury in their last outing showed the quality Jersey possess. They dismantled their hosts with a phenomenal offensive performance to win 52-14 and it is this type of performance they will be looking to produce against Richmond.
Richmond are looking to get back to winning ways after back-to-back defeats against Nottingham and Ealing Trailfinders.
The London-based outfit suffered narrow defeats to both sides and will be looking to rectify this albeit against tough opposition.
Prediction: Jersey by 14
London Irish v Cornish Pirates
London Irish are looking to continue their perfect start to the season when they host the Cornish Pirates.
A few weeks ago, this fixture was being looked at as the must-see match of the season. The Pirates were storming the league and looked unstoppable, but a trip to Ealing Trailfinders put an end to this. The Pirates have since slipped to three defeats in their past four games.
The Exiles, on the other hand, have continued to look superb. Irish have won all seven of their games this season and have shown exceptional skill throughout as they aim for a return to the Premiership.
Irish have, however, been frustrated by several teams which is something the Pirates will be looking to do this weekend. There is no room for mistakes if they are to do this as the Exiles are able to conjure something from nothing.
Prediction: London Irish by 7
London Scottish v Doncaster Knights
In the final game of the weekend, London Scottish play host to a struggling Doncaster Knights side.
The Knights are without a win since the 15th of September and have lost six games in a row. This has left them in 10th place, six points ahead of local rivals Yorkshire Carnegie.
Donny will travel down south with a lot to work on, but a strong second-half display against London Irish in their last match will provide vital positives. The Knights might have lost the fixture, but performed valiantly to hold the Exiles to a 26-17 scoreline.
Now, visiting another set of Exiles, the Knights will be relentless in their pursuit for a victory. They will need to rely on their defensive abilities if they are to see off the challenge of London Scottish and their star man Rob Stevenson.
Stevenson has been brilliant in recent weeks, scoring four tries in the past two games for Scottish. Halting Stevenson may look like the key to stopping London Scottish, but there is strength throughout thethe home side, something they will look to show to their visitors.
Prediction: London Scottish by 7
