1:15pm Tuesday 9th March 2010
CHARLTON Park plumed the depths of mediocrity with their most inept performance for a long time against a highly-committed Hastings side trying to escape relegation.
In a match which saw long breaks in play while a number of injuries to players had to be treated, Charlton were unable to put any real continuity into their play due to the stop start nature of the game.
Throughout the first half, they did not help their cause by making numerous errors in handling and giving away a number of penalties.
Hastings deservedly took the lead, when following an attempted penalty kick which drifted wide, Charlton were unable to clear satisfactorily and the home side went on the attack to score a try.
Playing on the back foot, Charlton tried to break out of defence but without any real penetration across the gain line.
When they gave away another kickable penalty, Hastings took the opportunity to extend their lead.
It was not until the second half when Charlton began to create a renaissance in their play.
But both sides were hampered by the referee not spotting a number of indiscretions, although it was Charlton who were to suffer the most, as they were prevented from obtaining quick ball by methods both legal and illegal.
Following two substitutions, Charlton for the last 20 minutes started to show some improvement as their lineout began to function and they started to string together a number of phases of play.
Neil Collins finally scored Charlton’s first points when he finished off a move to help himself to a try, which Sam Naden converted to narrow Hastings’ lead to one point.
The last 15 minutes saw much biting of nails by both sets of supporters, as Charlton tested the home side’s defensive capabilities.
But once again, various idiosyncratic decisions from the referee helped the home side believe the win was within their grasp.
Throughout the second half, Charlton had attempted three attempted penalty kicks in front of the posts.
All three efforts had missed and it was with some trepidation when, seven minutes into injury time, Charlton attempted a fourth kick from a far more difficult position.
To Naden’s credit, he put his previous misses behind him and made a successful kick to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
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