1st XV match reports

Worthing 41 London Scottish 12

Scottish again came unstuck in this corner of Sussex, where they followed narrow defeat and lucky victory in the past two visits with a thorough thumping. For a match against title-rivals Worthing, which they could still have lost had they played really well, Scottish instead  performed poorly as a side, and only two or three individuals could take any satisfaction from their own contributions.

The result was no fluke, though the scoreline perhaps flattered the home side somewhat. The visitors were as insipid on Saturday as they had been inspired a week before.

Still, Scottish retain top spot on points difference, but only by virtue of having run up scores against more of the lesser sides than have rivals Ealing and Worthing. With all three having lost one match, and all three having played each other and won once and lost once, there is at this stage nothing in it. With one to go up, one to go into a play-off and one condemned to another season in London One, there are some tense weekends to come - though no one will have predicted that with a third of the season gone Richmond would trail by four points and already be in danger of falling away from the promotion race.

Scottish had brought all the previous week’s squad of 18 bar prop Melvyn Lewis, banned by the club following his red card; in his stead Chris Johnstone made his first appearance and Matt Johnston started too. Rowan Brown dropped to the bench in a back row reshuffle.

But if the key to the victory over Ealing, had been ferocious midfield defence, critical on Saturday was their failure to control Worthing’s big centres Chris Yates (whom many remembered for playing for Gloucester against Scottish in the Premiership in 1999-2000) and Terry Butler. Together with fly half Jamie Stewart-McDonald (who really has quite the wrong sort of name for an opponent!), they made the best of the possession they got and continually threatened the Scottish line.

The tone was set early. Scottish in fact took the lead from the first real attack of the match, Worthing were penalised midfield for not releasing. Stuart Peel kicked for touch, the pack drove the maul 20m and then released for Matt Vines, looping round off the other wing, to take the scoring pass from Rory Greenslade-Jones. Jamie Whelan missed the kick but 5-0 inside two minutes looked a decent start. Worthing looked vulnerable out wide, but it was to be 50 minutes before Scottish tested them there again.

And the lead lasted no time at all. Scottish themselves conceded a penalty in midfield having missed a key tackle. Worthing kicked for the corner and though Scottish repelled the initial drive, Worthing persisted and worked several phases before Stewart-McDonald sent Pearse over. Coulson converted and crucially did so again to his own try, when Yates and Butler sent the ball wide for just about the only time in the match.  

So Scottish were suddenly nine points adrift and it could have been worse but for some sound defence. This was clearly not a performance to set before the President of the RFU, Bob Rogers, who was guest of honour at the game having, probably uniquely, played as scrum half both for Worthing in the 1960s and 1970s apart from an 18 month break to turn out for London Scottish. 

Worthing eventually increased the lead when Butler charged through some flimsy tackling, and though Peel stopped him short, he was able to offload to the supporting Pearse. Coulson missed the kick but already Scottish looked beaten as pretty much every aspect of their game was misfiring. Mathematically they weren’t out of it with the best part of an hour still to play, but Worthing now played with some swagger as befitted a team that had taken the game to their opponents, and for whom everything they tried seemed to be coming off. 

The next score was typical of Worthing’s approach: Scottish were perhaps thinking of getting to half time and plotting Plan B, but the fact that they had had so little decent ball was always going to be a problem. Worthing had plenty, and both the maul and the midfield crash – their main attacking ploys - continued to work for them. The next score was inevitable as, from a ruck midfield, Yates charged effectively unopposed into the Scottish half and offloaded to Stewart McDonald. Coulson nailed the kick.  

For the second half Scottish had the benefit of the wind largely behind them but any notion of  playing the game in home territory foundered because the visitors simply lacked enough decent possession to make the ground. Indeed they had hardly ventured into the home 22 since their opening try, and it was no surprise that the next score was a home one. Jerry Costeloe had gone off for repairs to the white bandage that was a protecting the head wound he opened last weekend, but was back by the time hooker Alcott capped seven phases of pressure by ripping the ball clear and powering over. Coulson missed but by now it was immaterial. 

That said, Scottish replied smartly with a well-made score. Jamie Whelan took a quick penalty in midfield, sent Vines away, and his pass found Charles Broughton in enough space to grab his seventh try of the season. Whelan also nailed the kick from tight on the touchline, but if the big travelling support thought this might signal a revival, Coulson immediately squashed the thought with a simple penalty.

Broughton did though get a second chance but was forced into touch right on the try line.  

Scottish had though salvaged some pride and proceeded to look more comfortable as the home side visibly eased off, not least because Mr Nicholas, who had a generally fine game, eventually lost patience with skipper Levett’s destructive tendencies and carded him.

Indeed  it was the visitors who were pressing for a final consolation score, mindful of the need not to lose by too many, when Costeloe’s hopeful long pass was anticipated by winger Farnes who, with virtually his only touch of the ball all game, ran 70m for an unkind cruel final score. 

London Scottish

15. Stuart Peel
14. Charles Broughton
13. Rory Greenslade-Jones
12. Josh Heke
11. Matt Vines (Ross Yiend 70 mins)
10. Jerry Costeloe
9. Jamie Whelan
1. Matt Johnson
2. Jim Kelly (Stuart Silvester 49)
3. Chris Johnston
4. Ben Butler
5. Lee Soper
6. Simon Devane (Rowan Brown 53)
7. Alex Alesbrook (c)
8. David Ramsay

Scorers: