Rugby Result - Harlequins Amateurs 3 Chiswick 24
The Middlesex Bowl was not sufficiently alluring for a full attendance from either team, but the spectators were treated to an entertaining game, with Quins trying to attack right up to the final whistle. The first twenty minutes was all Chiswick, although the only score came when fly half Keith Luckman and centre Ben Hinze combined to give flanker Alistair Pickering a sight of the line. Pickering, who was prominent throughout the match, forced his way through a couple of tackles, and stretched over the line to score a good try, the first of the season by a flanker. Luckman converted.
Lock Marko Chraplewczyk had a couple of good runs, the second getting him over the line, but he was held up. Centre Dan Coffey also had some thrusting bursts as the threes combined well, although the finishing was poor.
The Chiswick half back pair did well working behind a retreating scrum as Quins upped the pressure, but remained pinned in their half. Captain Ben Maguire did well to prevent the Quins No.8 developing attacks from the scrums, and the Chiswick mid-field defence coped adequately with the large home lock on the occasions when he came into the line.
Prop Chris Betts set the next score up, presenting the ball quickly from open play for Hinze to give a neat inside pass to full back Lee Miller, who was steaming up on his inside shoulder. Conversion was no problem. With Quins mauling well, Chiswick started conceding penalties, and after a near miss from the half-way line, their kicker slotted one easily from 35 yards. Roman Zakrevski and Al Pickering both came close to scoring in the right corner when Chiswick got back up-field again, but the ball was retained, and Hinze dummied and crashed through for the third and final try, again converted.
After an early penalty success in the second half, Chiswick maintained their form, but failed to score again as Quins defended manfully. A clever cross-kick found the Quins right wing as they finally broke from their half but Chiswick just got back in defence, where scrum half Ian Walker and wing Graham Robbings performed well the whole game. Mike Sampson replaced Chraplewczyk, only to receive an early blow to the head. The Chiswick defence remained very solid, and the team never looked like handing this game back.
Chiswick team :- Donaldson ( Johnson ), Parsonage, Chraplewczyk ( Sampson, Pickering E ), Williams, Maguire, Pickering A, Smith, Walker, Luckman, Robbings, Hinze, Coffey, Zakrevski, Miller
February 8, 2006
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