“Clash of the titans” Richmond RFC 15 -15 Hove blues

Hove Blues held onto their remarkable three-year unbeaten run yesterday with a thrilling 15 -15 draw against reigning Surrey League champions Richmond. In only their second match in the highly competitive division, Hove showed both resilience and flair in wet, testing conditions at Richmond’s home ground.

For the second week running, the opposition were not able to produce enough players to allow contested scrums, but Hove’s forwards, led by Captain Gabriel H, put that frustration behind them as the match began at high intensity, Richmond pressing hard up the field immediately putting Hove under pressure early on before with Arthur R lead a charge out of defence with a crafty fly-hack that turned goal-line pressure into attack after just four minutes, but the Blues’ habit of getting off to a slow start needs to be addressed in future games, and with rain beginning to fall making handling difficult, an early turn over and a couple of missed tackles proved costly when Richmond crossed for the first try on nine minutes, duly converted for a 7–0 lead.

Hove struck back swiftly. Fly half George H, kicking from hand well, secure a penalty line-out deep in the Richmond 22 from which the Hove forwards mauled strongly towards the posts before scrum half Callum Mc whipped the ball left through four sets of hands for Ben W, earning his starting place on the Blues wing, to score a well-made try in the corner on 12 minutes. The conversion drifted wide, leaving the Blues trailing 7–5.

The first half continued at an intense pace. Hove’s defensive line was ferocious; driven on by the vociferous Krizs Sr and the ever-present flanking of Matanios Aand Jeff S. Time and again Richmond had to revert to the boot to try and get into space behind the Hove backline. Matt C covered hard on the right flank whilst Ethan G impressed with strong aerial takes and defensive hits and was a reassuring presence at fullback throughout the first half with Wilson alongside providing left side cover. But handling errors in greasy conditions elsewhere continued to dog Hove. Balls lost in possession gave up good attacking positions, and whilst Richmond failed to capitalise on those errors, they went into half time holding onto their slim 2-point lead.

The Blues emerged after half time with a handful of personnel changes and renewed purpose. With the Hove lineout working well throughout the game, the ball came off the top from Luca B to Chrissy Y now on at 9, with Hugh L playing outside half starting a sweeping backline move which released the electric Jude S, who powered down the wing to score after just two minutes of the restart and gave Hove a 10 – 7 lead.

Hove’s physicality was impressive. Archie R& Ollie O were enforcers around the rucks and Harry B, Luke O and Matthew C were continuously mixing it up with Richmond’s tight 5. Hove’s defensive line speed and some strong jackaling continued to force turnovers but decision making at times led to unnecessary pressure; too often slow support at breakdowns prevented further gains and isolated runners found themselves unable to retain possession. Opportunities were created but a delayed pass or running back into the pack instead of taking the ball wide saw chances to extend the lead go begging.

Conversely, 15 minutes into the second half, it was quick decision-making by Hampson that led to Hove’s third try. Having seen a Richmond kick go dead, the penalty back near the halfway line was taken quickly even whilst the opposition were setting up to receive a kick to touch. George set off on his own, charging into the oppo 22 before they had much of a chance to get close, before linking with Shuff who carried hard into contact. The Hove forwards piled in, securing a ruck in the left hand corner just a metre before the try line. The ball was secured and from the back foot, Stopwar picked and dived for the line. A tough conversion fell just short to leave the score at 15–7.

But Richmond refused to yield. A penalty in front of the posts narrowed the gap to 15–10. A missed touch after a turnover penalty proved costly, as Richmond launched from a line-out and struck back with a try on 25 minutes, levelling at 15–15.

The closing stages were tense and dramatic. Richmond camped on the Hove line, one effort was held up and another denied by the referee. With the clock in the red, Hove counter-attacked bravely from a scrum on their own 5m line, forever looking for the win. Three slick phases pushed them up to the Richmond 22, only for a fierce tackle on our runner to dislodge the ball and signal the final whistle.

Final score: Richmond 15 – 15 Hove Blues

For Hove, it was a battling performance — brave in defence, spirited in attack, and still unbeaten in three years.