Old Gs 9 v 16 Beccehamian

Kent County RFU Vase Final

THE unbeaten champions of Kent Division Two lost out to the undisputed champions of Kent Division One in a thrilling Vase final.

Old Gravesendians put up a resilient battle but fell to Beccehamian's injury-time winner after having a man sent off for a second yellow card.

Beccehamians kicked off and the early exchanges were fairly even with Beccs' dangerous scrum half Shaun Welch making a good early break which tested Old Gs' defence to the full.

Both sides struggled to settle down and touch kicks were missed and balls were spilled as the defences took control.

Beccs opened the scoring when Welch's long pass to Sam Painter left the winger with a fairly easy route to the line for an unconverted try.

Old Gs came back strongly and although they missed a penalty chance, another penalty was tapped and Matt Coomber found the space to run in a try.

However, cheers from the Old Gs faithful were cut short as the referee disallowed it after he was distracted by a minor scuffle.

Undeterred and following good running from Marcus D'Cunha and Mark Fenton-Smith in the backs, Old Gs secured another penalty and this time Richard Oxtoby kicked it open Old Gs' account.

Beccs were soon back on the attack and an excellent driving maul from their organised pack drove 30m towards the Old Gs line only to be stopped by solid defending.

However Old Gs' over-eager backs were caught offside allowing Beccs to slot the penalty and restore their five point advantage.

A late and dangerous tackle put Fenton-Smith in the sin bin but Old Gs' 14-man defence held out until half time.

Old Gs started the second half ready to take the game to their illustrious opponents and Beccs conceded an early penalty, which Michael Hodge converted.

This was followed by Oxtoby's 50m kick to leave Old Gs close to the Beccs line and eventually lead to a penalty which Hodge converted to put his team ahead by a single point.

Beccs got a break when Fenton-Smith was sent off for a second yellow card offence and they faced 14 men with 20 minutes still to play.

Sensing victory, Beccs worked towards the Old Gs' line but they were penalised for handling on the ground.

A word from an Old Gs player was enough for the referee to reverse his penalty decision and to the consternation of all Old Gs supporters, the penalty was converted giving Beccs a slim 11-9 lead.

Old Gs were not finished as they piled on the pressure, with both forwards and backs unsettling their opponents and forcing Beccs' defence to scramble to protect their line.

D'Cunha, Mark Thompson, Oxtoby and Dave Boyer all went close with close range drives and Beccs had Welch to thank after he stopped D'Cunha with a last ditch tackle following a 50m break.

The result was sealed with almost the last play of the match with Welch inevitably having a say in the final score.

His kick ahead was chased by centre Neil Stubbings and he won the desperate scramble to score a try.

Olds Gs John Oxtoby said: "Our wonderful spirit cannot be faulted and the players absolutely gave their all.

"They will have no fears of the challenges ahead in Kent League 1 next season."