NEC Harlequins 50-10 Earth Titans

By Heath Quinn
March 13 2006

I’m going to start with a small apology. I had quite a hard time understanding the decisions Lander was giving, this is not to say that he was wrong, (ahem) more that I couldn’t see what he had given it for, and that his signals were erratic to say the least.

So rather than guess, I’ve simply stated what I did know.

Harlequins take the kick off, Rotherham field and drive up the pitch, they then kick ahead and Tom Williams takes the ball into contact, from which Rotherham turn the ball over. Rotherham take the ball through a series of phrases, crossing the gain line on each phrase and protecting it well. This takes the play into Quins 22 where Quins are penalised for being offside. Mike Whitehead slots over the penalty to make it 0 – 3.

Earth scrum ©Barquin Mad

Two minutes gone and we trail, Rotherham field the kick off, and again drive up the field with some direct running, taking the ball into Quins half. Mr Lander then gives Roth a penalty for Lorne Ward not rolling away. This time Whitehead misses on the right hand side.

AJ takes the 22-drop out, kicking it long. But Rotherham again protect the ball well and cross the gain line at will. I made a note about first up tackles either not being made, or not stopping the man, but this is probably a bit harsh on Rotherham, who were running hard and straight to great effect. The result of this passage of play was Rotherham again getting into to Quins 22, where Gavin Duffy put his man in touch.

Ceri Jones gets his man ©Barquin Mad

The resulting line out was a very messy affair, as Roth got bodies and hands into disrupt Quins ball, they then secured the loose ball to be awarded the put in at the resulting scrum. Simon Keogh put in a great tackle when the ball came out and Rotherham were penalised for not rolling away from the tackle area. Ten minutes had now passed and Quins had hardly touched the ball at all, Rotherham were running hard and making good ground and were well deserving of their lead, which could and should have been higher than the three they had.

AJ cleared from the penalty and Quins won the line out, the ball came back and Gavin Duffy kicked down field, unfortunately his kicked missed touch and Rotherham returned the favour. This kick was taken by and interesting combination, as AJ and Tom Williams both seemed to go for the same ball. Lander then awards a penalty, but I have no idea what for. AJ Kicks to touch and Quins are finally in Rotherham’s half. Nick Easter won the lineout and drove up field. Quins are awarded another one of the Lander penalties (?), and AJ steps up to make it 3 – 3.

So'oialo waits to take the ball from the back of the maul ©Barquin Mad

From the kick off Quins keep possession and Steve So’oialo box kick up the field, they then manage to turn Rotherham over and AJ kicks for the corner. The Rotherham winger fielded the ball, but just had his foot on the line giving a chance for an attacking line out. From the catch and drive Rotherham were penalised for pulling the maul down, and Quins opt for more of the same. At the next catch and drive, Rotherham again attempt to pull the maul down, but this time Steve So’oialo splinters off with the ball. TRY. AJ makes the conversion. Now I was checking the scoreboard which clearly read J0 – 3.

Adrian Jarvis converts ©Barquin Mad

Tony Diprose catches the kick off and AJ kicks an up and under. George Harder, back in the team after a great display against Nottingham, (Your hair looked great George) managed to get up and disrupt the Rotherham jumper, causing the ball to be spilled, which we then claimed. The ball is then spun wide and our extra pace tells with Tom Williams going over in the corner. TRY. AJ converts J7 – 3. 20 minutes gone.

George Harder going for the high ball ©Barquin Mad

Simon Miall catches the kick off and the ball is again spun wide putting Simon Keogh in space, who runs half the length of the pitch, to be brought down just short of the try line. The ball comes loose and Rotherham kick it off the back of the pitch. From the Quins 5m scrum Will Greenwood is penalised for not releasing and Whitehead clears up the halfway line. The Rotherham lineout is again disrupted and Harlequins steal the ball, driving into Rotherham’s 22. From the next phase Strauss intercepts a pass and runs the length of the pitch to score under the post, despite a good effort from Gavin Duffy and Simon Keogh to get back. TRY. Whitehead slots over the conversion. J7 – 10. 25 minutes gone.

Dippy, Sherriff, Miall, Evans ©Barquin Mad

Quins hold onto the kick off, but it is slow ball so they drive round the fringes, the ball comes back and is spun wide with Simon Keogh again getting the better of his man but this time he gets turned over, and from the resulting Rotherham scrum, Rotherham are awarded another of those penalties which wasn’t clear to me why it was given. Rotherham tap and go but then get turned over. Simon Keogh kicks ahead and is taken out late, Lander give the penalty, which AJ kicks to touch. Quins win the line out, but are turned over in the ruck. Whitehead clears, but misses his touch, unfortunately Simon Keogh drops the ball into touch and Rotherham get a line out just inside our half. Quins then managed to steal the Rotherham line out and drive into the Rotherham 22. 30 minutes gone and we have our first case of handbags. I couldn’t see who it was, or what it was, but Lander gives Quins the scrum. Rotherham get a good scrum and the whole thing wheels Tony Diprose picks up himself and is penalised.

So'oialo breaks ©Barquin Mad

Rotherham tap and go, then kick ahead. The ball breaks to George Harder who with great footballing skill half volleys it back to Steve So’oialo (maybe a bit lucky?). Steve runs back inside down in front of the Lexus and a great handling move involving Steve So’oialo, George Harder, Tony Diprose and Tom Williams finally puts AJ over the line. AJ converts. 24 – 10.

While this was going on Gavin Duffy was down clearly in some distress. I was reliably informed that he had thrown up on the pitch, but I didn’t see it myself. I had the chance to question Gavin about it after the game and he asked me not to mention it. So I won’t.

So'oialo passes the ball wide ©Barquin Mad

Rotherham’s kick off did not travel the required 10m and from the half way line scrum Rotherham were penalised for popping up, which AJ kicked to touch. Quins won the line out in Rotherham’s 22 drove forward the passed out, but this got us only a scrum to Rotherham, which resulted in one of the penalties I can’t explain. Whithead kicked to touch, giving Roth a line out on the Roth 10m line. But the throw in wasn’t straight giving Quins a free kick. Will Greenwood then tried a cross field kick, which Tony Diprose nearly collected, which would have resulted in a try, but sadly he knocked it on. From the scrum Lander awarded Rotherham a penalty, which was quickly taken allowing Gilian Carruthers space to run and he made good ground.

Williams stands in at scrum half ©Barquin Mad

At a subsequent breakdown Quins were penalised for not rolling away, but when the players cleared the area Tom Williams was clearly in distress, an was unable to stand. When he did get to his feet he was staggering around, unable to get much balance. But he did decide to play on. Shortly after Lander blew for half time.

Rotherham started the second half with a long kick, which Nick Easter caught a drove back up the pitch, when the ball came back AJ cleared up field which Carruthers, the Rotherham winger, tried to control with his feet, but missed. Rotherham won the line out and cleared into touch from within their own 22. From the line out George Harder choose a lovely line and off loaded in the tackle. My notes here get a little unclear, quite possibly because I was shouting. It simply read “LANDER RUBBISH”. Anyway, penalty to Rotherham on their own line, which they kicked to touch.

Sniping So'oialo ©Barquin Mad

Rotherham secured their own line out ball but was turned over at the next contact area. A lovely snipe by Steve So’oialo to get good field position sets the ball up and Gavin Duffy cuts back inside. The ball comes back to AJ with not much on so he kicks an angled grubber through the defence. John Holtby gathers it for Rotherham and he fights hard to avoid be bundled into touch right on his own try line. Tony Diprose gets to him, strips him of the ball and dives over in the corner. TRY. BONUS POINT. AJ converts from the touchline. 31 – 10.

Rotherham took a long restart, Quins returned the kick, but were penalised for being offside. Rotherham kicked to touch. 9 minutes into the second half and the substitutions start. First to go was the Rotherham outside centre, Strauss. From the 5m line out Rotherham went for the catch drive. But some great defence saw the ball being turned over, then run back before AJ cleared to touch.

Guest replaces Dippy ©Barquin Mad

11 minutes in saw the first Quins replacement. Tom Guest replaced Tony Diprose leaving to huge applause from the Lexus. Just after this a promising Quins attack was ended when Tom Williams knocked on. From the Rotherham scrum Simon Keogh put in two great tackles, which I was busy writing down when Mr Lander penalised Quins for using hands in the ruck. There was a huge amount of outrage from the Lexus stand, and I have to admit that even though I did not see what happened, I didn’t let that prevent me from joining in. Lander’s face was a picture, if a bit pasty by his own standards, with a grin from ear to ear, and look that said,” Yeah Yeah Yeah, bring it on.”

Rotherham again took a quick one, but then knocked on inside the home 22. From the scrum AJ cleared giving Rotherham a line out in our half. Before this was taken Lorne Ward was replaced by Ricky Nebbett. Rotherham won their own ball and ran through a couple of phases before kicking ahead to give a home line out on our 22. The ball is won and Gavin Duffy clears into the other half. Mel Deane, with Gavin Duffy dropping back to full back, now replaced Tom Williams.

Gavin not throwing up! ©Barquin Mad

Quins then attacked the Rotherham half, with Gavin Duffy coming into the line to make the break, he delayed his pass just long enough to commit the defender then release George Harder to sprint over. TRY. AJ missed the conversion. 36 – 10.

Rotherham kicked off long again and Quins returned the kick, Quins were then penalised at the line out for something (?), which was quickly taken and Quins were penalised again (?). This time it was kicked to touch inside the Quins 22. Rotherham won the line out and were awarded another penalty (?) this was also taken quickly, unfortunately this resulted in an accidental offside and a Quins scrum.

So'oialo tells the forwards which way to the try line ©Prof

Hendre Fourie was then taken off and replaced by Chris Hala’Ufia, who if you believe the rumours will be at the Stoop next season. So we had a chance to make up own minds on him. While this was going on a few of the seagulls had taken up residence in Rotherham’s half, reminding us not only of how much like a beach the pitch was, but also how long Rotherham had been on the attack.

Another Rotherham attack ended in disaster for the away team, when Nick Easter, who may have been having a breather, read the oppositions intentions perfectly and stepped up to intercept, and then run almost the length of the pitch to score under the posts. TRY. AJ Converted. 43 – 10.

65 minutes into the match and Andrew Mehrtens came on for AJ and Ugo Monye came on for Steve So’oialo, with Simon Keogh moving to scrum half.

Rotherham went long with the kick off and Lander penalised the Quins for being offside, which was kicked to touch. Rotherham then went for the catch and drive and Quins were Penalised (?). Rotherham decided to take the scrum. Before this could happen Joe Bedford the Rotherham scrum half was replaced by Morne Jonker. The scrum then went through 90 degrees and a penalty was given to Quins (?).

After a couple of minutes of both teams kicking for position came the moment of the match. Or the “Knob Of The Week Moment” (thank you Nick). The ball broke out the blind side of the ruck, on the half way line in the shadow of the Lexus stand, and Ugo Moyne picked it up and raced clear, with nothing between him and the try line apart from a couple of seagulls. The Rotherham defenders realised that it was over, and declined to give chase. Ugo looked back and suddenly stopped running, put the ball on the floor and started to trot back. Lander waved play on and suddenly the Rotherham defenders saw hope where previously there had been none. Ugo realised his mistake picked the ball up and tried to have another go, but was held by the defence. Fortunately Simon Keogh was racing up in support and took the pass to cut inside and beat one defender to score under the post. TRY. Andrew Mehrtens converted 50 – 10.

There are a number of theories as to what happened. There was talk of a whistle being blown, but no body I spoke to heard a whistle at that time, there is another thought that because all the Rotherham players stopped Ugo thought a whistle had been blown, but personally I think that this was yet another example of the now legendary Harlequins arrogance. You be the judge.

In the final couple of minutes neither team really threatened the try line and the game finished 50 – 10 to the Quins.

In my final assessment, Rotherham turned up and played, their willingness to tap and go and shift the ball wide made for a good spectacle, and their line out held up much better than many previous visitors to TW2. But the one thing they lacked was genuine pace out wide, and this was, IMHO, one of the main differences.

NEC Harlequins
Ceri Jones (Aston Croall, 74 mins), Jimmy Richards, Lorne Ward (Ricky Nebbett, 55 mins), Jim Evans, Simon Miall (Pablo Bouza, 74 mins), Nick Easter, Luke Sherriff, Tony Diprose (Tom Guest, 51 mins), Steve So'oialo (Ugo Monye, 65 mins), Adrian Jarvis (Andrew Mehrtens, 65 mins), Simon Keogh, Gavin Duffy, Will Greenwood, George Harder, Tom Williams (Mel Deane, 57 mins).
Replacements: Aston Croall (Ceri Jones, 74 mins), Ricky Nebbett (Lorne Ward, 55 mins), Pablo Bouza (Simon Miall, 74 mins), Tom Guest (Tony Diprose, 51 mins), Andrew Mehrtens (Adrian Jarvis, 65 mins), Mel Deane (Tom Williams, 57 mins), Ugo Monye (Steve So'oialo, 65 mins)

Scorers: Tries: George Harder, Nick Easter, Simon Keogh, Steve So'oialo, Tom Williams, Tony Diprose, Adrian Jarvis. Conversions: Adrian Jarvis (5), Andrew Mehrtens (1). Penalty: Adrian Jarvis (1)

Earth Titans
Jarleth Carey (Jamie Kilbane 66), Neil Hanna (Nigel Conroy 66), Adam Hopcroft (Sam Walsh 77), Jannie Bornman, Gareth McComb (Louis McGowan 59), Hendre Fourie (Chris Hala’Ufia 63), Neil Cochrane (Capt), Scott Donald, 9 Joe Bedford (Morne Jonker 68), 10 Mike Whitehead, 11 John Holtby, 12 Lodewyk Strauss, 13 WP Strauss (Tom Allen 48), 14 Gillan Carruthers, 15 Errie Claassens
Replacements: Jamie Kilbane, Nigel Conroy, Sam Walsh, Louis McGowan, Chris Hala’Ufia, Morne Jonker, Tom Allen

Scorers: Try: WP Strauss. Conversion: Whitehead (1). Penalty: Whitehead (1)

Match Officials:
Referee: Steve Lander
Touch Judges: Rowan Kitt & Nick Clarke

Attendance: 7,823