1st XV
Matches
Sat 21 Sep 2019  ·  London 3 South East
Old Dunstonian RFC
1st XV
26
38
Vigo
Vigo Victory Exposes OD’s Own Fault Lines

Vigo Victory Exposes OD’s Own Fault Lines

Anthony Proctor1 Oct 2019 - 12:14
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The opposition’s second half revival in last week’s fixture was once again in evidence at the first home fixture of the season, as a purposeful but far from convincing Vigo outfit managed to overhaul the Langley Park side after halftime.

The opposition’s second half revival in last week’s fixture was once again in evidence at the first home fixture of the season, as a purposeful but far from convincing Vigo outfit managed to overhaul the Langley Park side after halftime.
Once again, the Old Boys were competitive in the first period when Vigo attacks were easily absorbed by an organised defence and Dunstonians looked secure on the ball. They assuredly opened the scoring with some neat inter-passing on the left flank, that put centre Fran Pannacchia over the line, with Ubee converting into 7 points. Despite a quick response from the Vigo forwards effort which resulted in an equalising try, OD’s went ahead again with a second try in consecutive weeks from the improving loose-head prop Austin Raleigh who, once again, showed good finishing instincts close to the try line. This was undoubtedly OD’s best period, underlined by a deliciously languid solo effort from debutant winger Ayo Ajiboye. Another conversion from fly half Ubee registered a commanding 19-5 lead, especially with the West Kent visitors struggling to create any effective plays despite plenty of possession. The OD grip crucially loosened just before half time when they conceded a soft 7 points to give Vigo hope for the second half.
As OD’s lost concentration and physicality, Vigo stepped up their intensity and played a faster more direct game. Helped by some sloppy tackling, the visitors broke out of their own half to score under the posts soon after the resumption, bringing the scores level at 19-19. At this stage, OD’s seemed unable to keep the ball for any sustained period or get themselves into safe field positions, but just as home supporters began to fear the worst, the Beckenham side rallied through the pack, who, having had a good return all afternoon from scrum and lineout, solidly worked themselves back into the opposition half and reclaim the lead with a strong supporting run from number eight Pete Jefferys, resulting in a fourth bonus point try.
Almost on the hour, OD energy seemed to drain away as if someone had pulled the bath plug and the rest of the game belonged to Vigo who rattled up 3 tries in the final quarter of the match. Some good individual performances, particularly from the industrious Charlie Smith and rumbustious Nick Keppe, were unable to translate into a cohesive game plan and Dunstonians must find a way to spend longer periods in the game with the ball in their opponents half.
Tries: Pannacchia, A.Raleigh, A,Ajiboye, Jefferys
Conversions: Ubee (3)
Man of the Match: Nick Keppe – good physicality and kept going for 80 minutes.

Match details

Match date

Sat 21 Sep 2019

Kickoff

15:00

Meet time

13:30

Instructions

Meet at the club for 13:30

Competition

London 3 South East

League position

6
Old Dunstonians
7
Vigo
Team overview
Further reading

Team Sponsors

Seniors Sponsor - Stadium Support Services
Seniors Sponsor - Speargold