2nd XV
Matches
Sat 23 Apr 2016
Eton Manor III
Tries: Unknown
5
15
Thurrock RFC
2nd XV
Tries: I Farrell, D Munke, M Murphy
THURROCK 2s WIN ESSEX MERIT TABLE FINAL!

THURROCK 2s WIN ESSEX MERIT TABLE FINAL!

Colin O'Flaherty24 Apr 2016 - 16:11
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Thurrock 2s deservedly won a tense final against Eton Manor III...

Thurrock II, as they have done for so many matches this season, totally dominated up front, despite struggling in the early scrums. With Ross Noakes jumping well at the front of the line-outs and hooker Dan Ulph throwing in accurately and gaining ascendancy in the scrum due mainly to the power of prop Taylor Bramley, Ts dominated both possession and territory for the majority of the match. It was an awesome forward performance, with picking and driving a feature of their play. After 10 minutes, some robust carries by the forwards allowed the backs to spread the ball quickly and with full back Dan O'Flaherty joining the line, winger Ian Farrell touched down in the corner, the only score of the half to make the half time score 5-0 to Thurrock.

The second half continued in the same vein, with Ts dominating by continually picking and driving, which Eton Manor struggled to deal with. When Eton Manor did gain possession, strong tackling from Thurrock prevented their opponents from gaining too much ground. The back row of Kevin Everitt, Remy Seakins, Ross Noakes and Dean Munke continually threatened turnovers and second rowers Christian Cunningham-Wood, Reece Levy, Billy Ellis and Tom Travers were a constant nuisance to Manor. Whenever the ball reached the backs, Dave Harries and Caolan Watts-Adams showed good distribution skills and Earl Gorman and Ahmed Aminu were a constant threat, with crash balls dragging Manor's defence in to give opportunities to others. Eleven minutes into the second half, Thurrock won a scrum on Manor's line and drove them back for Dean Munke to go over to make the score 10-0 to Thurrock.

With only 7 minutes of normal time left, some powerful mauling and strong carries by the forwards allowed prop Matthew Murphy to make the game safe with a try to make the score 15-0.

With guidance from scrum half Robert Murphy and fly half Dave Harries, the domination of the Thurrock pack was so complete that Eton Manor were starved of genuine try-scoring chances until the last minute, when they went over in the corner to make the final score 15-5.

The mixture of experience and youth produced probably the best performance of the season by Thurrock II against a strong Eton Manor side. Great credit must go to Ant Pease for some great leadership during a great season for Thurrock seconds.

A magnificent team performance!

Thanks to Paul Cooper for the training shirts, an inspired and inspiring idea!

Thanks to all those involved in the seconds this season!

Congratulations to Thurrock II on being Essex Merit Table Cup winners!

Match details

Match date

Sat 23 Apr 2016

Kickoff

15:00

Meet time

13:30

Instructions

I will confirm times etc. as soon as possible. Club will be supplying coaches, due to leave from the club at 10am and 1pm.
Team overview
Further reading

Team Sponsors

Club Sponsor - Ream Partnership
Player Sponsor - Ascalon Building Services
Partner - Hughes & Associates FM Ltd