Hove v G's

Having listened to the rain pouring down during Friday night, it was with some relief when we heard that, although the Vets game was off, the Hove first team pitch had passed it’s inspection. We were on!!

Our 1XV had not faced Hove in the league for a decade, so this was already a big occasion, but throw into the mix that it was Hove’s Christmas match with well over 100 Hove fans eating a festive platter before the match, and this was going to be a belter!

Saturday also marked the first meeting of the two sides since the death of Matt Ratana, who coached at both clubs before his tragic death. Su, Matt’s partner was also in attendance. She has spent many Weekends on the touchline at both Hove and EG over the years and so it was wonderful to hear her talk so fondly about both clubs. Having mopped up the last Pig in Blanket, we took to the touchline to watch a wonderful moment when Hove retired Matt’s number 3 playing jersey (I’m calling it a jersey, because Matt always insisted it was a jersey, not a shirt). Both sides lined up silently opposite each other until G’s youngest player, Ted Hardisty, walked slowly forward to the jersey layed on the centre spot, folded it quietly and returned to the team. A truly moving gesture from Hove which would have made Matt very proud.

Although the low sun was now shining brightly, the pitch was pretty deep with the peculiar red mud they have in those parts. This was going to be a heavy game and the forwards needed to stand up and be counted! And indeed they did! The set piece has seen some big improvements under Sandy’s tenure and this trend continued, particularly noticed in the first scrum when a huge shove nearly pushed Hove off their ball. This fired up the front row, so much so, that after some fantastic phases by the forwards, loose head and club hero Connor Leggat, smashed over the line, to commence the scoring and quiet the Hove hoards.

Five minutes later, the best play of the game, saw a delightful move straight off the training paddock. Spridell picked at the base of a scrum on half way, feeding his back row on a crash line, but a delightful offload, saw the ball pop to Dan Billin, playing in the centre this week, who was charging at considerable pace, back against the grain. He burst through the line like a salmon leaping up the waterfall. With just the 15 to beat, a deft ball inside to the ever present Sam Spridell, saw the speedy scrum half canter through the mud to splash down for G’s second. Unfortunately, Dan’s ‘considerable pace’, was too much for the usual second row’s tree trunk legs, and his hamstring went pop (He said after the game that he would have scored himself if it hadn’t!!).

A slight reshuffle saw young Ted slot into the 13 channel and Chris Taylor take his place on the wing. While this was happening, a cheeky chip through, caught G’s napping and a few passes later saw Hove open their account. The mud was making things hard for the kickers, and the scoreboard at the first quarter was showing 5 - 10.

The mud was also making things hard for the ref, as all the players were slowly merging into the same reddy/brown hue. This didn’t stop Oli slotting a penalty and then converting a great score from captain fantastic, Ryland Thomas as he chased down a hopeful kick through, beating several defenders as he dived to touch down with outstretched fingertips.

The second half saw both sides struggling to cope with the conditions as the pitch was now more like a ploughed field. A brief highlight lifted Hove, as the ball was hacked through and chased by a load of players who all looked the same and appeared to be running very slowly in wellies. It turned out that it was a Hove lad who got there first as he managed to get his toe on the ball and flop on it over the line. This was a fleeting lifting of the spirits as the Hove lads started to lose the ref who lost patience with the backchat and Oli Billin gratefully slotted two penalties to make the game safe.

Several last attempts to grab the fouth, bonus point try came to nothing and the whistle blew for time with the score at 12 - 26, and a much needed 4 points which lifted G’s above Hove in the table. Next Saturday sees another must win against Trinity, knowing we would leapfrog them too with a good win.

Special mention to Ted for his first league start. It certainly won’t be his last!! Also, well done to Rory Evans making his debut off the bench.

A massive thank you to Hove for a fantastic day and delicious food. We look forward to hosting you back at HQ later in the season.