Habs Win Arm Wrestle in a Bog!

London Cornish lost their 7th straight league game, the last 5 of which have been away from home, at Old Haberdashers Borehamwood HQ in Regional 2 Thames on Saturday when they could not lift themselves from the double body blow of losing both their Skipper and hooker in the opening 25 minutes, then becoming mired in the heavy conditions as the heavens truly opened in the 2nd half when they were chasing the game. To compound the felony, Habs then ran out of real ale before the teams hit the bar post match!
Torrential rain in the hour leading up to kick off rendered the pitch a bog in parts but both sides were rightly determined to play. In blustery conditions the exiles opened up playing into the elements and towards the clubhouse. Will Carew-Gibbs is a dab hand at winning penalties for holding and right from the kick off Cornish penned OH in their half before the back row won his sides first pen of the match. George Kimmins kick was true but into the wind it drifted left, smacked into the far upright and landed inside the 22 for lines to be cleared. Early forays by Robbie Mackay and Mike Edworthy saw Cornish called back for forward passes but on 6 minutes a dropped ball was fly hacked on by the home side who won a kickable penalty, landed by their kicker with the strong wind at his back. The exiles had a decent day in the lineout, buoyed by the return to action of Tom Carr who was nuisance on the home throw ins all afternoon but his side was pinged again for not releasing the tackled player on the half-way line, the long distance kick well converted by the OH kicker. Cornish needed to respond and they did exactly this on 20 minutes, Mike McEwen snaffling an OH lineout just inside the home half then setting off on a barnstorming run, fending off tacklers left and right, riding the full backs tackle and then crashing over for the try 10 in from the right hand touchline, Kimmins learning from his previous kick to give his side a 7-6 lead. It was clear that hooker Tony Pellow was struggling with a shoulder knock and he could not continue, Dave Chalkley on and a wholesale reshuffle of the pack required. Within 3 minutes Skipper Alex Davey reeled back from a ruck having taken a head knock, him staggering around before he too was replaced, Jimmy New on for his debut at prop to allow Ciaran Slater to move to hook, Francis Birch standing in at 8. This double blow seemed to unsettle the exiles for a period and they were penalised for a scrum offence on 23 minutes, which gifted the lead back to Herts outfit. Within 3 minutes OH took full advantage to send one of their number through a gap and over by the posts for a converted try to suddenly stretch the lead out to 16-7. Cornish worked hard to narrow the gap, a Kimmins chip in behind on 32 minutes fielded by Kieran Rodda but him tackled into touch 10 out from the OH line. When Slater pinched the lineout, the exiles had a chance but they did not protect the ball at the ruck and were penalised. On 36 minutes Chalkley demonstrated why his return to fitness will be so important for the exiles, him claiming a lineout just inside the home half to launch a huge rolling maul, which saw OH pinged for pulling it down. Frustratingly, the ball was knocked on in the subsequent passage of play, the half time whistle sounding with the exiles well in the game given the elements at their back in the 2nd half.
Two things combined early on to make the Cornish task a whole lot tougher during this second period. First OH scored an opportunistic try wide right when one of their centres showed a clean pair of heals from distance to sashay his way over for an unconverted try on 43 minutes. Then, despite forecasts suggesting no more rain due, the heavens opened to pour torrential rain down on the pitch, rendering coherent passages of play nigh on impossible and negating the wind advantage the exiles now enjoyed. It also made note taking absolutely impossible for the remainder of the match so this section is shorter than normal! On 46 minutes Kyle Hughes won a penalty, which Cornish kicked to the right hand corner. Chalkley claimed the lineout and the exiles set the maul only to be held up over the line. From the drop out Mackay returned the ball with interest and Cornish laid siege to the OH line for a full 5 minutes, the home side losing a man to the bin in the process. On a couple of occasions when a kick or lineout might have been the wiser option the visitors chose to run the ball, twice knocking on 5 out to great frustration from all exiles players and supporters alike, some of the latter huddled under a tree for shelter with the action taking place right in front of them. On two more occasions the exiles fashioned 3 on 2s and 2 on 1s but could not execute as the conditions deteriorated, both sides doing well to stay out there let alone play. Cornish withdrew Matt Hakes for George Jackson in the final quarter of the match, the backs reshuffle seeing Dan Phoenix move to 15 and Edworthy to the wing. Though Jackson brought his own zephyr like qualities to the game, his side were now having to play from deep as OH sensibly walloped the ball down the field whenever the opportunity arose. The final minutes of the match saw the home side on the attack, pinning their visitors in the top corner near the ground entrance, though equally unable to force their way across the line as the game ground to a wet halt. When the referee (who had a fine game) blew his whistle for no man, Habs celebrated like they had won the Cup final whilst those watching rushed for cover.
The win lifted Old Habs out of the bottom 2 and they demonstrated plenty of heart in this match. The battle to avoid the drop may well go down to the final week and the matches against the sides now below them will clearly have a huge impact.
Cornish will finally be able to seek home comforts this coming weekend having not played at home since November 12th and with 4 of their remaining matches being played at the REMPF will also feel their destiny remains very much in their own hands. The odd tweak here and there will see the side return to form soon, though in truth any kind of win will do just now!