Portsmouth travelled the very short distance to Havant on a bright and sunny day that was also unusually warm for the time of year.
Portsmouth welcomed back James Hebbard following a break after suffering from concussion. They also lost Brad Jewer on the morning of the match following illness. His place in the centre was taken by Will Dalziel who was due to play full back. The fullback position was taken by Ali Macdonald who came of the bench. Matt Hughes went onto the bench. The game was being played on the Havant 1st XV 4G all weather pitch.
Havant got the game underway and Portsmouth went straight into attack mode with a nice kick deep into the Havant 22. Fortunately the ball came off a Havant player so it was Portsmouth’s throw in. Havant managed to burgle the ball but Portsmouth managed to get it back and a good kick from No. 10 Solanki saw another line out about 5 metres from the try line. Havant worked the ball upfield but their kick went into touch just outside the 22 giving Portsmouth another line out. A good break by Dalziel saw him make inroads into the Havant 22 and was tackled just short of the try line. Havant soon got back on the attack and eventually they broke through to score a converted try giving them a 7-0 lead on 12 minutes.
The Havant pack, which was much bigger than the visitors, then managed to set up a maul and they crossed for their second converted try giving them a 14-0 lead on 16 minutes. Portsmouth were not to be outdone and a good run saw the visitors spin the ball across the backs with Solanki making a good run before passing to Sam Olie who ran through the defence to score close to the points. Solanki’s conversion was good and the score was now 14-7 on 20 minutes.
Portsmouth were now getting used to the pace of the all weather pitch and this showed in their running with the ball. A kick from Havant didn’t find touch and Ali Macdonald set up a counter attack. Following a kick ahead by Portsmouth saw prop Liam Avis gather the ball and cross for their second try, Solanki’s kick just went short, taking the score to 14-12 on 30 minutes. Havant hit back soon after with an unconverted try taking the score to 19-12 on 30 minutes. 5 minutes later Portsmouth were awarded a penalty following another good run by Dalziel which was only stopped by a high tackle, the kick was taken by Solanki taking the score to 19-15 with about 5 minutes of the half remaining. The remaining minutes saw both sides vying for territory but neither side getting the better of the other.
The second half got underway with Havant pressing but a penalty for going over the top saw Portsmouth clear their lines with a good touch kick. Havant then increased their lead with a well taken try scored out wide. The conversion missed and their lead increased to 24-15 on 46 minutes.
Ali Macdonald then came off to be replaced by Matt Hughes. Harvey Field has moved to fullback with Hughes taking his place on the wing. Portsmouth were under pressure defending their try line when Solanki intercepted a Havant pass and raced clear down the length of the field but was eventually tackled just inside the 5 metre line. However he had the presence of mind to offload the ball to Matt Hughes who had followed up his break and he crossed for his first try on his maiden appearance for the 1’s. The conversion missed and the score was now 24-20 on 52 minutes.
Liam Avis then came off to be replaced by Adam Parks-Dare in the front row. Shortly after this, Louis Bristow came off with a bruised neck. He was replaced in the second row by Ryan Bosher. Havant then added to their score following a good run by their backs. The try was converted taking the score to 31-20 on 68 minutes. Up till now Portsmouth had given an excellent account of themselves but the effort that had taken was beginning to tell. Havant then scored 3 converted tries in quick succession taking the score in the closing minutes to 52-20. Their final score came with a unconverted try and the final whistle went with the score 57-20
Portsmouth had given a very good account of themselves for about 65 minutes, showing great pace with ball in hand and some excellent defensive work. Good runs from skipper Beesley saw him taking on the opposition at every opportunity with Will Dalziel putting in a man of the match performance, both in attack and defence. I know this pitch is not to everyone’s taste but it does seem to suit our backs. They look very quick and dangerous in attack. The forwards also played their part despite being up against a much bigger and heavier pack. There will surely be some sore bodies waking up tomorrow. The whole squad should rightly feel very proud of their efforts today.
As a result of today’s fixture, Portsmouth slip down 1 place to 11th. Trojans have taken our place with a better bonus point tally. It just shows the importance of bonus points, they have 4 to our 2. Next week sees Portsmouth at home to Guernsey 2’s. They are just 3 places above us having won 2 games to our 1.
TEAM
LIAM AVIS, BRAD ATKINS, ANT FOOKS
JAMES HEBBARD, LOUIS BRISTOW
SAM FOSTER, HENRI DAVIES, AARON BEESLEY(C)
GEORGW WRIGHT, JAS SOLANKI
CONNOR CHARLTON, SAM OLIE, WILL DALZIEL, HARVEY FIELD
ALI MACDONALD,
BENCH=ADAM PARKS-DARE. RYAN BOSHER, MATT HUGHES