Round 7 Review
A round-up of the weekend's action in The Championship.
The Championship signed off with a bang on Saturday with all 12 teams in action as we prepare to head into the cup in November.
Hartpury 17 - 27 Jersey Reds
Jersey Reds continued their impressive start to the season with a seventh-straight win to ensure they will occupy second pace when the league restarts in December. Ben Wollett and Antonio ‘TJ’ Harris crossed for the Reds in the first half, but Mitch Eadie powered over to cut the deficit to seven points just seconds after the restart. Brad Denty and Alex McHenry then traded tries, with Russell Bennett’s second conversion of the afternoon taking the score to 10-19 with an hour on the clock. The prolific Tomi Lewis flew over in the left corner to secure a try bonus point for the Reds, but again Hartpury hit back, this time through Sam Lewis. Heading into the final 10 minutes, Jersey forced a penalty and opted for a kick at goal, which Bennett duly converted to give the visitors a 10-point margin and another valuable bonus-point win on the road.
Doncaster Knights 35 - 19 Ampthill
Sixth-placed Doncaster Knights banked a bonus-point victory against seventh-placed Ampthill. Will Holling rumbled over early on for the Knights before Joe Margetts and Sam Daly added to the scoreboard, with three successful conversions opening up a 21-point lead inside half an hour. Aleki Lutui crashed over to peg one back for the visitors, but the Knights hit the bonus point when Maliq Holden darted over after good work from George Simpson. Morgan Strong powered through a tackle and over the line two minutes after the restart, and Cai Devine scored Ampthill’s third on the 65-minute mark. With the clock ticking down, Knights replacement John Kelly ran over to put the result beyond doubt, as Doncaster claimed their fourth win of the season.
Cornish Pirates 32 - 0 London Scottish
Cornish Pirates turned on the style at The Mennaye, running in five tries en route to a bonus-point win over London Scottish. The Pirates opened up a 10-point lead inside eight minutes via a line out drive and three points from the tee, and followed that up with further scores from Harvey Beaton and Joe Elderkin. Jack Andrew barged over 15 minutes after the restart to bring up the bonus point, and while Scottish showed plenty of attacking intent, the only other score of the second half was a late close-range try from substitute James Fender. The win sees Pirates climb to seventh in The Championship while The Exiles remain rooted at the foot of the table.
Caldy 18 - 27 Coventry
Coventry recorded their fifth win of the campaign at Paton Field, with left wing Shea Cornish bagging brace for a second week in a row. After Patrick Pellegrini and Benjamin Jones exchanged early penalties, the in-form Suva Ma’asi crashed over for the game’s first try on 20 minutes. Cornish followed that up with two scores in six minutes to put the visitors into a 13-point lead. Will Rigg’s converted try on 46 minutes opened up clear daylight between the sides, but Josiah Dickinson responded five minutes later with Caldy’s first try. Elliot Gourlay crossed twice in the last 10 minutes to cut the deficit to nine points, but it wasn’t enough to secure a bonus point, as the newly promoted Ravers slip to 11th following Richmond’s win against Bedford Blues.
Ealing Trailfinders 64 - 33 Nottingham
Ealing Trailfinders and Nottingham ran in 15 tries in a high-scoring encounter at The Trailfinders Sports Club, as the hosts scored 10 to secure a seventh-straight bonus-point win. Ealing ratcheted up 33 unanswered points in the first half – the same number that Nottingham scored in the second. Jonah Holmes scored a hat-trick inside 17 minutes, with Jordan Burns and Reuben Bird-Tulloch making it five before half time. Jordan Burns added to the tally two minutes after the restart, but a blitz riposte saw The Archers score three converted tries in four minutes through Lewis Chessum, Kehinde Olowofela, and John Neville. Simon Uzokwe struck back for the hosts on the hour mark, and that was followed by a penalty try for the Trailfinders. Jack Dickinson and debutant Jack Grant traded tries in the closing stages, but the final say went to Harry Graham, who flew over to score Nottingham’s fifth. The Trailfinders continue their run at the top of The Championship and will head into December two points clear at the top of the league.
Richmond 36 - 33 Bedford Blues
Richmond backed up last season’s three-point win against Bedford Blues with a victory by the same margin in a thrilling match at The RAG. Richmond scrum half James Lennon scored under the posts against his old club after just five minutes, and Alex O’Meara followed that up with a well-worked try in the corner. The Blues responded with tries from Joel Matavesi and Tui Uru - with Maisey’s two conversions edging the visitors two points in front after half an hour - before Dean Adamson and Alex Day crossed in quick succession to bring up the bonus point. Bedford were then awarded a penalty try, opening up a 16-point gap, but the hosts were about to mount a stunning fightback. O’Meara crossed in the corner for his second of the afternoon just before the hour mark, and Tobias Saysell crashed over in the 69th minute to set up a knife-edged final 10 minutes. The decisive moment came in the 79th minute when Zuriel Makele darted over in the right corner to seal the comeback and spark rapturous scenes at The Athletic Ground. The bonus-point victory sees Richmond leapfrog Caldy into 10th place in the league with their second win of the season.