Floodlight robbery team strikes again!
By AlanQuin
October 30 2002
It’s becoming a habit. Once again, in almost the last minute of injury time, Tom Williams collected the ball on the left wing some 30 metres from the line, shimmied past two defenders & apparently won the race to touch down a deft little chip over the head of a third opponent to the corner.
By AlanQuin
October 30 2002
It’s becoming a habit. Once again, in almost the last minute of injury time, Tom Williams collected the ball on the left wing some 30 metres from the line, shimmied past two defenders & apparently won the race to touch down a deft little chip over the head of a third opponent to the corner.
The try was awarded, although many players and spectators were of a contrary view. Had there been television it would have been disallowed. It was enough to bring the score to a win for Harlequins 2nd XV by 13 – 17. The conversion was missed.
The Blues, with five Old Blues on the pitch and another on the bench, started briskly. Quick, concerted attacks with forwards driving and the ball spun back and forth along their back line was a feature of their play in the first half. Shortly after Seb Fitzgerald missed the first of a number of kicks at goal. Indeed, he was only successful with the conversion of the first of Harlequins’ tries scored by Tom Williams after twelve minutes. Penalties and conversions were all missed and this was not an auspicious return to Oxford by the former Blue.
The Blues stepped up their attacks and they showed good handling skills and ran hard with ball in hand. The result was a penalty that Honeyben kicked with ease. A series of fast attacks by the Blues over several minutes resulted in a try in the 20th minute by the hooker David Griffiths duly converted by Honeyben. 10 – 7 to the Blues.
Harlequins sought to reply by kicking to the corner on the right, but the resulting lineout allowed the ball to be cleared well up the field. The Blues mounted another series of attacks including one flowing backs move which left them with a three man overlap down the right wing only to see the pass from the centre miss all three and drop tamely into touch with the line at their mercy.
In the 36th minute Seb Fitgerald’s miseries were added to when he was shown a yellow card for killing a ball in the ruck . Shortly afterwards another successful kick by Honeyben took the match to half-time with Quins trailing by 13 – 7. The Blues had played good and entertaining rugby with their front row and their two centres particularly prominent.
Shortly after the restart a lineout deep in the Blues 22 on the left, following a penalty taken by Matt Powell resulted in a lineout drive and a push-over try for hooker Sam Walton. Williams, undertaking kicking duties in the absence of Fitzgerald in the sin-bin, pushed the ball wide to the right. So 13 – 12 remained the score until the final minute of the game.
It seemed that the Blues had either run out of steam or the Quins forwards upped the work-rate, for the Blues only once more came into the Quins half of the field in remainder of the game. Quins began to attack and eventually tempers frayed and resulted in a yellow card to the Blue lock, Lubans.
Quins continued to try to attack and one mazy run by Monye was only stopped three metres from the line when an attempt by his support to try to push him over the line resulted in a scrum against Quins and the ball was cleared. With only some five minutes left on the clock a superb run by Tom Williams in which he beat four or five opponents and delivered a perfect pass to Seb Fitzgerald who should have crossed the line within three strides. It was part of Fitzgerald’s nightmare game that the pass was spilled forward. Williams shoulders, viewed from the rear spoke elegantly of his deep disappointment.
So to the last act by Tom Williams and an unlikely victory. Possibly one that was not deserved, but one that will have gratified the Quins who continue to show much promise for a side mostly under 21 years of age.
OXFORD UNIVERSITY
Tim Barlow , Will Rubie , John Allen, Andrew Willett, Karrelle Dixon, Matt Honeyben, Graham Barr , Kevin Tkachuk , David Griffiths , Henry Nwume, Dave Lubans, Charlie Edwards, Fraser Gemmell [C] Richie Woods, Ben Durham,
Replacements: Nick Wood, Deri Hughes, Rob Sugden, Llywelyn ApGwiIym, Dan Taberner, Nick Edwards
Stuart Douglas, Will Ellerby
NEC HARLEQUINS
Tom Williams Ugo Monye Tom Allen(Rep. Hammond 44) Andrew Reay. Henry Barratt Seb Fitzgerald, Matthew Powell (Rep.Beamand 63) Bruce Starr, Sam Walton, Pablo Cardinali, Simon Miall, Jim Evans Darryl Griffin Gavin Heart Kai Horstmann Replacements: Jon Dawson, Karl Rudzki, Tom Parker, Scott Bemand, Adrian Jarvis, Jon Hammond
Scores: OXFORD UNIVERSITY: 13
Try: Griffiths (19)
Penalties: Honeyben 2 (13, 38)
HARLEQUINS: 17
Tries: Williams (2)(12 & 80) Walton (44)
Con: Fitzgerald (12)
The Blues, with five Old Blues on the pitch and another on the bench, started briskly. Quick, concerted attacks with forwards driving and the ball spun back and forth along their back line was a feature of their play in the first half. Shortly after Seb Fitzgerald missed the first of a number of kicks at goal. Indeed, he was only successful with the conversion of the first of Harlequins’ tries scored by Tom Williams after twelve minutes. Penalties and conversions were all missed and this was not an auspicious return to Oxford by the former Blue.
The Blues stepped up their attacks and they showed good handling skills and ran hard with ball in hand. The result was a penalty that Honeyben kicked with ease. A series of fast attacks by the Blues over several minutes resulted in a try in the 20th minute by the hooker David Griffiths duly converted by Honeyben. 10 – 7 to the Blues.
Harlequins sought to reply by kicking to the corner on the right, but the resulting lineout allowed the ball to be cleared well up the field. The Blues mounted another series of attacks including one flowing backs move which left them with a three man overlap down the right wing only to see the pass from the centre miss all three and drop tamely into touch with the line at their mercy.
In the 36th minute Seb Fitgerald’s miseries were added to when he was shown a yellow card for killing a ball in the ruck . Shortly afterwards another successful kick by Honeyben took the match to half-time with Quins trailing by 13 – 7. The Blues had played good and entertaining rugby with their front row and their two centres particularly prominent.
Shortly after the restart a lineout deep in the Blues 22 on the left, following a penalty taken by Matt Powell resulted in a lineout drive and a push-over try for hooker Sam Walton. Williams, undertaking kicking duties in the absence of Fitzgerald in the sin-bin, pushed the ball wide to the right. So 13 – 12 remained the score until the final minute of the game.
It seemed that the Blues had either run out of steam or the Quins forwards upped the work-rate, for the Blues only once more came into the Quins half of the field in remainder of the game. Quins began to attack and eventually tempers frayed and resulted in a yellow card to the Blue lock, Lubans.
Quins continued to try to attack and one mazy run by Monye was only stopped three metres from the line when an attempt by his support to try to push him over the line resulted in a scrum against Quins and the ball was cleared. With only some five minutes left on the clock a superb run by Tom Williams in which he beat four or five opponents and delivered a perfect pass to Seb Fitzgerald who should have crossed the line within three strides. It was part of Fitzgerald’s nightmare game that the pass was spilled forward. Williams shoulders, viewed from the rear spoke elegantly of his deep disappointment.
So to the last act by Tom Williams and an unlikely victory. Possibly one that was not deserved, but one that will have gratified the Quins who continue to show much promise for a side mostly under 21 years of age.
OXFORD UNIVERSITY
Tim Barlow , Will Rubie , John Allen, Andrew Willett, Karrelle Dixon, Matt Honeyben, Graham Barr , Kevin Tkachuk , David Griffiths , Henry Nwume, Dave Lubans, Charlie Edwards, Fraser Gemmell [C] Richie Woods, Ben Durham,
Replacements: Nick Wood, Deri Hughes, Rob Sugden, Llywelyn ApGwiIym, Dan Taberner, Nick Edwards
Stuart Douglas, Will Ellerby
NEC HARLEQUINS
Tom Williams Ugo Monye Tom Allen(Rep. Hammond 44) Andrew Reay. Henry Barratt Seb Fitzgerald, Matthew Powell (Rep.Beamand 63) Bruce Starr, Sam Walton, Pablo Cardinali, Simon Miall, Jim Evans Darryl Griffin Gavin Heart Kai Horstmann Replacements: Jon Dawson, Karl Rudzki, Tom Parker, Scott Bemand, Adrian Jarvis, Jon Hammond
Scores: OXFORD UNIVERSITY: 13
Try: Griffiths (19)
Penalties: Honeyben 2 (13, 38)
HARLEQUINS: 17
Tries: Williams (2)(12 & 80) Walton (44)
Con: Fitzgerald (12)
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