Hang On To Yourself

Harborough were powerful from the off and settled into the game quickly. Each side was sizing up the other and possession was hotly contested. Will Nijjer made his presence felt with the first score, carrying a tap penalty over the line like a steamroller. The very strong wind was a factor throughout the game and made conversions all but impossible.

Oakham came back with a good deal of pressure in the Harborough half, and some vocal support from the touchline. There was no question about commitment from either side. Oakham really had the upper hand, but a clearing kick upfield by Keiran Silcott and concerted pressure from the chasing players resulted a try for Ed Duggan on the left wing.

The home side’s centre pairing caused trouble for Harborough all game and a break on the stroke of half time looked certain to give them a try, but for a courageous covering tackle by Ross Primrose. The score stayed at 0 – 10 at half time.

Oakham continued the pressure early in the second half and were unfortunate not to score, but Harborough’s defence held firm, with some tackles of the brick wall variety by Max Dalby, Adam Stamp and Nijjer. The Harborough forwards were dominant now and kept the ball alive through a number of phases before shipping it out to the backs when the gap appeared, for Jack Woodward to take the score to 15 – 0. Despite the scoreline, the game remained very close, and there could be no let up.

The back row combination of Will Hallam, Harry Grimmett and James Melody was a well oiled machine, and the power of the tight five meant Harborough were in control. Cameron Jordan was imperious at the line out and Oscar Kay won ball against the head; another score seemed inevitable. It was Huw Davies running powerfully through the opposition who took the score to 0 – 20. Fittingly, the final score went to a Harborough forward when Hallam dived over the line.

A 0 – 25 result doesn’t do justice to the effort Harborough had to make to win this game. There were outstanding performances on both sides, and Harborough were tremendous in denying Oakham any score. The forwards in particular worked extremely hard, testament to their work in training. On to the final.