Heath beaten by 14 man Dover

A miserable January Saturday afternoon was compounded by a miserable result for Heath as they lost in what was meant to be a 'home' fixture to Dover RFC, the side just one place behind them in the league.
Heath struggled to put their gameplan into action on SaturdayHeath struggled to put their gameplan into action on Saturday
Heath struggled to put their gameplan into action on Saturday

For the second home league game in a row the pitches at Whitemans Green were unplayable causing Heath to play the fixture at a neighbouring club. After playing at Brighton three weeks previously, Heath travelled to Horsham to entertain the Kent side.

Playing on one of the junior pitches with a steep slope, Heath started playing down the hill and on cue from the first whistle the rain arrived which set the tone for the afternoon. Heath actually started brightly with plenty of possession in the opposition half, although it was quickly clear that the visitors had arrived with a physical and forthright game plan which suited the heavy conditions. On 15 minutes the referee had to speak to both teams following an off the ball skirmish and when Heath couldn’t find touch from the ensuing penalty, Dover took full advantage cutting through Heath tackles to open up space for their centre to carve his way through for the opening try and take a 0-7 lead.

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Heath then upped their game and enjoyed their own spell of possession in the Dover 22. Energetic rucking from Heath was too much for one of the Dover forwards who decided to punch the Heath second row in front of the referee and was promptly sent off. So when, with an hour of the game remaining and Dover down to 14 men, Heath number 8 Nick Main crashed over to score from the scrum awarded from the penalty, it looked as if the home side would take control, even though still behind at 5-7.

Heath scored twice but failed to capitalise against 14-man DoverHeath scored twice but failed to capitalise against 14-man Dover
Heath scored twice but failed to capitalise against 14-man Dover

The Dover side resolutely kept playing their own game and shut out everything Heath threw at them and when the home side did create space for scoring opportunities, poor execution or decision making meant the chance went begging. The opposite was the case for Dover who when presented with an opportunity were in the mood to clinically take it, which is what happened on 35 minutes when their backs sauntered through the Heath defence for another try, taking the score to 5-14.

Heath turned around at halftime with a mountain to climb in more ways than one and after only 5 minutes of playing up the hill the mountain grew bigger as Dover scored their third try. After a Dover kick was taken over the try line and touched down by Heath the ensuing scrum allowed Dover a platform to run a slickly executed move for their full back to break the line at pace and score under the posts extending the advantage to 5-21.

Heath powered back and after numerous penalties conceded by Dover, forward pressure allowed second row Gareth Fergusson to smash his way through for a try. Peter Kerins converted to make it 12-21. Heath continued to enjoy possession but couldn’t make enough of it and were found sending isolated runners into contact with no support, meaning they were turned over at regular intervals. The line speed from the Dover backs down the hill closed down any space for the Heath threequarters, causing the ‘home’ side to play too laterally and not succeed in breaking the gain line. Even when the Dover fly half was binned with 10 minutes to go for a cynical knock on, Heath couldn’t wrestle back the initiative despite playing the match out 13 men.

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The last few minutes were played in the Dover 22 but for all of Heath’s grunt and effort, a continued lack of accuracy against a highly organised side meant there was no reward at the final whistle.

The win sees Dover close the gap between the sides in the league where Heath continue to occupy fifth place. Next week Heath plays a combined league and Bob Rogers Cup match at home against old Sussex rivals Pulborough, a fixture which will hopefully take place at Whitemans Green, weather permitting, with Heath looking to kickstart 2018 which to date has seen some rather uncharacteristic and stuttering performances. Kick off 2pm on Saturday – all support welcome as Heath is determined to make February bring better results on the pitch.

Heath 1st XV squad: Sam Beckett (Greg Palmer), Alex Wolfe, Duncan Liddell, Gareth Fergusson, Steve Doku, Wilf Bridges (Nick Miller), Max Drage, Nick Main, George Davies, Brett Menefy, Henry Warwick (Marc Cashman), Peter Kerins, Jack Lucas, Bobby Conroy-Smith, Robbie Fotheringham

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