Visits to Eastbourne are always tasty affairs and with both of last season’s matches being won by less than two points, EG knew it was going to be a close game.

The first few minutes gave a hint of what was to come in the backs for both attack and defence. EG created a good opportunity on the outside which probably would have resulted in a try if the final pass had gone to hand. When Eastbourne had a similar opportunity the defence drifted well and covered the threat.

Penalties dictated much of the first half. The first points went to Eastbourne from a penalty for a high tackle before G’s missed a long-range kick in return. A much-improved line speed (possibly because I watched the Veo on 2x speed) meant Eastbourne made little ground with ball in hand but repeated penalties allowed them to set up a maul in the corner, which dragged in the defence and allowed them to score out wide.

Another improved feature of G’s play was their reaction to line breaks. The scramble back was much better and the defensive line reset quickly after poor defence around the ruck allowed the scrum half through. More penalties ensued, however, and EG went 14-3 down.

The first half ended much more positively. Strong carries by the likes of Max Crawley-Moore and Ryland Thomas set up Oli Billin to give a cut-out pass to Jake Radcliffe who scored in the corner. Soon after, great ball retention in the opposition 22 brought EG close to the line again and allowed Noah Roberts to salmon over the top of the ruck for try number two. There could have been a third before half time but EG settled for the consolation of a simple 3 points to take the lead at the interval 14-16.

A solid kick chase, big tackle by Chris May-Miller and uncompromising carry from Dan Billin set the tone for the first half. Jake set off on one of many marauding runs through the middle – he was almost unplayable at times – and won a kickable penalty which again could have been more if a pass had gone to hand.

Eastbourne’s frustration started getting the better of them. A penalty for shouting at the ref allowed EG to turn defence into attack. The rolling maul dragged in players and slick interplay between the backs led to one of the best team tries you’ll see this year, Ted Hardisty’s dummy and offload giving Ali Moffat the chance to finish in the corner and a great conversion from Oli added two more to make it 14-26.

Two mistakes is all it took for that good work to be undone as a knock-on gave away possession and a missed tackle around the ruck allowed Eastbourne straight back into the contest. Another contender for try of the season soon followed as great footwork from Ted and fantastic hands from Noah set up Jake to make another 50 yards before offloading to Dan then Ben Tottman who scored out wide, but soon after was given a yellow card for a high tackle. Eastbourne capitalised on their extra man in the scrum to give them possession and penalties, one of which was taken quickly and a try was scored.

Reinstated to 15 men, Eastbourne couldn’t cope with relentless G’s pressure and were lucky not to have a player of their own in the bin as they gave away lots of red zone penalties which eventually resulted in another try for man of the match Jake in the corner.
EG have been on the wrong side of narrow scorelines this season so even at 26-36 there were nerves which were compounded by errors at the lineout giving away the ball. The game ended with a try for Eastbourne which earned them two bonus point, but job was done from East Grinstead’s perspective with a 33-36 bonus point win on the road against their rivals getting the season back on track.

The performance turnaround started against Twickenham but was converted into points today and there’s a feeling around the squad that this is a side on the up. They will need to be at their best when top of the table Trinity visit next week.