Match report: Kearsney beats Hilton 31-17

Gilfillan Field in Hilton which must rate amongst the best school rugby venues in the country, played host to an entertaining 1st XV game. Visitors Kearsney won 31-17 after dominating the scoring in the second half. In many respects, the teams were very evenly matched but in execution of their respective game plans, where Kearsney were disciplined throughout, it was Hilton who deviated from a potential winning formula after halftime and paid the price, losing it 19-0 at one stage before scoring a late 7-pointer.

Hilton has some outstanding individual talents in their starting XV. In the first half good teamwork was evident and this allowed the hosts to maximise on the strengths of these special players. Recognised game-breakers caused Kearsney’s first line defence much grief and grew the missed tackle count. Two such game-breakers were Hilton no.8 Sebastien Desvaux de Marigny and outside centre Tristan Blewett, who both had several good carries. Both players had prominent roles in the opening try. Blewett made a useful midfield bust to generate go forward and from a ruck a bit later on near the Kearsney 22m line, it was Desvaux de Marigny who picked the right line to attack on the fringe. After collecting a short pass, he produced a surprising turn of pace and the necessary strength to force his way through tackles and over for a very a good try in the 7th minute.

Another Hilton player to catch the eye was under-17 scrumhalf Matthew Dahl, who plays very good all-round game. His kick over the top in the 18th almost resulted in a try when first arriving Blewett collected. A knock-on with the try-line in sight saved Kearsney.

In this match good kicking out of hand paid handsome dividends. When a Kearsney clearance kick was not backed up with enough pressure via the chance, Hilton left wing Darren McGhee carried it back and his chip into the corner proved to be the impetus for Hilton’s second try in the 20th minute. The hosts forced Kearsney out near own tryline. From the attacking lineout, hooker Bafana Motloi found the one of the star players of the day in the form of his captain at lock Jayson Gouws. Hilton mauled it well allowing flank Etienne Marx to plant the ball over the tryline with one hand.

Place kicking was an issue for Hilton. In the first half they left seven kickable points on the board which contributed to them being 2-points behind at the break. More concerning though was their poor scrambling defence which seemed to concede penalties at the breakdown every time Kearsney placed the home team under a defensive pressure in their own half. Kearsney’s flyhalf, captain and player of the match Tristan Tedder was in ominous form with the boot in the first half. His first penalty sailed over from 40m out and before halftime he had added a further three well timed efforts to keep Kearsney ahead at 12-10, even though Hilton had produced the more threatening plays of the half and scored the only tries.

Six minutes into the second half, another of Hilton’s major headache was exploited. At key times throughout the game basic ball catching skills had let them down badly and resulted in turnovers. On a set move attack using the blindside, a pass was dropped inside the Kearsney half. Kearsney fly-hacked the grounded ball ahead, Tristan Tedder then outstripped the defence, gathered the ball and only a really good tackle stopped him inches short of the tryline. Kearsney however had first arriving support in the form of centre James Tedder along with right wing Hlongwane Langa who picked up and dived over for the try, converted by Tristan Tedder to grow the lead to 19-10.

Hilton then squandered a golden opportunity to get back into the game in the 47th minute. A Blewett kick ahead bounced and sat up favourably for right wing Khathu Nematswerani to run onto it with a clear path to the tryline ahead of him but he unfortunately knocked it on.

By this stage it was noticeable that Hilton were not using ball in hand to challenge the Kearsney defence as they had in the first half. Kearsney ball-carriers were having a greater effect on the game. Tristan Tedder aside, other Kearsney players stood out as well. Big under-17 lock Tristan Dixon, who showed good physicality and speed with each of his midfield carries. Hooker Mzingisi Bam and Stephen Tedder, the third of Kearsney’s cousins in the 1st XV also made significant contributions in open play. Amongst the backs, Kearsney looked to have received a big setback when scrumhalf James Hall departed with nasty looking ear cut. Hall had produced a first half performance reminiscent of former Hilton star Cameron Wright, complete with big box kicks, outstanding pass from the base and a few strong carries around the fringe. However in replacement scrumhalf Vorster, who had been player of the 2nd XV match they found a very different styled, yet equally useful player. Left wing David Zondi also continued to impress and added value to several plays.

Dixon and Bam’s carries were instrumental in the gaining Kearsney the front-foot ball from which the team’s next try came on 56-minutes. After the ball was channelled left and Hlongwane came close to scoring in the corner, play was called back for a penalty close to the line. Kearsney opted for a scrum and from there the ball was passed to the dangerous Tristan Tedder who manipulated the Hilton defence using an angled to get between defenders. Once behind the defenders, the Kearsney captain offloaded to strong running inside centre Sebastien Pau, who judged the situation well, collected and dotted down. With the kick, the score was up to 26-10.

To follow from the restart was one of those x-factor moments. Tristan Tedder spotted a gap, backed himself and dodged tackle after tackle as part of a 60m run that saw him scoring Kearsney final try in the corner, extending the lead to 31-10.
Hilton’s final try underlined how effective they can be when working with ball in hand. Several very efficient recycles allowed them to play to their strong points again. Youngsters like Marx and Seb DdM featured with ground gaining carries and in the end, the most deserved and committed Hiltonian on the day, Jayson Gouws got in for the try. Although he played at lock Gouws defined the term mobility on the day and was in the thick of the action all game long.

It was an excellent result for Kearsney given their high injury count ahead of the game. The visitors had capitalised on just about all of their opportunities. For Hilton there are positives to take out of this match. There was evidence to show how good they can be when they retain possession. Also had they seized two more of their chances, this match would have gone down to the wire, suggesting that if they can work some technical chinks out of their game, there is no reason they cannot be very competitive during their huge game at their biggest rivals Michaelhouse next Saturday.