MATCH REPORT: 2XV Away at Royston

After a disappointing result against Hendon, the mighty Finsbury Park 2XV were looking to right the wrongs of the previous week. The opposition was Royston, home of Fame Academy’s Carrie Grant and only £14.80 via public transport. This seemed steep for a certain Vincent Hiribarren who decided to wing it, but was quickly put in his place with a £44 fine.

Not deterred by the tropical monsoon that was sweeping across the home counties, the team started assembling in the changing rooms, an air of confidence building as people saw the strong 2s side. A heated discussion as to whether to warm up in the changing rooms broke out, with captain Nick Tewson making the executive decision that we should probably do it outside.

Kick off. The Fins showed early dominance, storming down the pitch through ruck plays and balls off 10. It took just 5 minutes to break Royston down, with a mysterious Fins second row using his freakish strength to storm over the line from five ten meters out. It also only took 5 minutes for the first casualty of the day, Liam Todd destroying his ankle. This made way for Roscommon man Richard Jameson, who along with Tom “Pampers” Kemp, dominated the breakdown and put in a great shift in the back row.

Not to be outdone by the forwards, it was now the backs turn to shine. Toby “Shia Labeouf” Birkett took inspiration from his doppelganger and decided to “just do it”, stepping multiple Royston players and scoring twice from his own half in quick succession. It was starting to look ominous for Royston. Good distribution from James Pattison and Nick Tewson allowed Bertrand Debeuf to crash through the defence like a cuillère through a crème brulee, scoring his first of two tries.

The wet day called for a territory game, with high balls pummelling both fullbacks. Shin Ando didn’t falter and linked up well with algae fan Matt Booth, often finding themselves venturing deep into the opposition half. This territory allowed the forwards to again play tight to the ruck and Stephen Morse crashed over the line for his first try back after 18 months out through injury.

Half-time 29-0 to Finsbury. A rousing cry of “turn the screw” kept the intensity high going into the second half, and Toby Birkett quickly crossed for his hat-trick. Tired bodies led to dropped balls, and the real heroes of the day emerged. The front row of Alex Thomas, Salvador Peya and Stephen Morse, along with Andy Wilde in the engine room, tore the scrums to pieces, turning over multiple Royston balls. This gave the backs a huge platform to work with and speed demon John Startin crossed the line twice.

Getting weary of crunching his opposite number in defence (and trailing his weighty flatmate in tries for the season) PC Dan Cunningham decided to run over him instead, scoring under the posts. Another try for Stephen Morse and the thoughts of the team started to turn to DOTD. Up step Tom Smart. After a great turnover from the pack, the replacement scrum half, who had so far put in a stellar performance, had visions of smashing the ball 50m down the pitch. This was not the case and the kick travelled 2m into the air and 5m backwards. Quite an achievement.

Royston were not thinking of the after party in the showers yet and had a sustained period of pressure in the Finsbury half, using their meaty pack to good effect. The line didn’t budge, with Michael Godfrey stepping up from his usual wing into the 7 shirt to put in some great hits. Wave after wave of Royston forward carries battered the defence and eventually broke through. A late consolation try for Royston.
Not wanting to finish the game on a sour note, Bertrand Debeuf crossed for his second. James Pattison subtly drop kicked the conversion wide from in front of the posts and the referee blew the final whistle. Full time Royston 2XV 7 – 67 Finsbury Park 2XV. The Fins will carry this momentum and intensity into their next game against Hertford on the 20th October, which will prove to be a true test of where this team is at.

There were huge performances from many of the Fins players, but MOTM was given to Toby Birkett for his hat trick. DOTD was Tom Smart for his wonder kick.