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Sat 26 Jan 2019 · London 3 Essex
1st XVBraintree
22
19
MASSIVE WIN
Eddie Gooby28 Jan 2019 - 19:03
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A great game by two good teams with East London winning 22-19
Last ditch try snatches vital victory
A try at the death by replacement forward Ben Stern earned East London a deserved 22-19 victory over Braintree at the Memorial Ground in West Ham on Saturday (26 January).
Coach Eddie Gooby described the win as “an example of grit, courage and determination” because the home side looked to have given the game away with less than five minutes to go.
Added Gooby: “This was a great match between two committed sides that began the day third and fourth in the league table. The result is a massive statement for us for the remainder of the season.”
With Chelmsford, currently second in London 3 Essex, losing away at Old Cooperians, the win puts East London back in with a chance at challenging for promotion. Their next league game is away at the team immediately above them with just five points the gap.
East London opened the scoring on 11 minutes. Fly-half Alex Pearmain found a gap in the Braintree defence before throwing a dummy pass that enabled him to score under the posts. He converted his own try.
The home side almost added to the lead. Right wing Sean Cooper was eventually bundled into touch after a dash that began in his own half.
With no quarter given by either side the score remained the same until two minutes into the second-half. Hooker Lewis Bourke broke a series of tackles before popping a pass to scrum-half Will Brown to score. The conversion was missed.
Despite some solid home defence the experienced Braintree pack helped fashion a try on 55 minutes, but the conversion was missed. Pearmain held his nerve on the hour when a penalty from distance extended the East London lead to ten points.
Braintree came back with a converted try on 66 minutes to narrow the gap to three points. Ten minutes later the ball was lost on the Braintree line as East London looked for the score to secure the match. The visitors went the length of the pitch for a converted try and a four point lead with time almost up.
East London heads didn’t drop and with the pack making ground, replacement forward Ben Stern found the space to score in the left corner. Pearmain converted from out wide for a three point win.
Said coach Gooby: “We spoke before the game about staying strong and we had to dig deep at the end. The win was more important than the performance and we can be confident about our remaining matches. We have some big games to play and exciting times ahead.”
East London 1st XV versus Braintree: 1. Mantas Urbonavicius; 2. Lewis Bourke; 3. Paddy Coman; 4. Matt Schofield; 5. Luke Staples-Preston; 6. Nick Parrott; 7. Simon Edscer; 8. Dan Bracken; 9. Will Brown; 10. Alex Pearmain; 11. Jack Roach; 12. Bill Brown; 13. Kevin O’Donoghue; 14. Sean Cooper; 15. Max Stanyard. Replacements: 16. Dave Gibson; 17. Ben Stern; 18. Ben Hogan.
A try at the death by replacement forward Ben Stern earned East London a deserved 22-19 victory over Braintree at the Memorial Ground in West Ham on Saturday (26 January).
Coach Eddie Gooby described the win as “an example of grit, courage and determination” because the home side looked to have given the game away with less than five minutes to go.
Added Gooby: “This was a great match between two committed sides that began the day third and fourth in the league table. The result is a massive statement for us for the remainder of the season.”
With Chelmsford, currently second in London 3 Essex, losing away at Old Cooperians, the win puts East London back in with a chance at challenging for promotion. Their next league game is away at the team immediately above them with just five points the gap.
East London opened the scoring on 11 minutes. Fly-half Alex Pearmain found a gap in the Braintree defence before throwing a dummy pass that enabled him to score under the posts. He converted his own try.
The home side almost added to the lead. Right wing Sean Cooper was eventually bundled into touch after a dash that began in his own half.
With no quarter given by either side the score remained the same until two minutes into the second-half. Hooker Lewis Bourke broke a series of tackles before popping a pass to scrum-half Will Brown to score. The conversion was missed.
Despite some solid home defence the experienced Braintree pack helped fashion a try on 55 minutes, but the conversion was missed. Pearmain held his nerve on the hour when a penalty from distance extended the East London lead to ten points.
Braintree came back with a converted try on 66 minutes to narrow the gap to three points. Ten minutes later the ball was lost on the Braintree line as East London looked for the score to secure the match. The visitors went the length of the pitch for a converted try and a four point lead with time almost up.
East London heads didn’t drop and with the pack making ground, replacement forward Ben Stern found the space to score in the left corner. Pearmain converted from out wide for a three point win.
Said coach Gooby: “We spoke before the game about staying strong and we had to dig deep at the end. The win was more important than the performance and we can be confident about our remaining matches. We have some big games to play and exciting times ahead.”
East London 1st XV versus Braintree: 1. Mantas Urbonavicius; 2. Lewis Bourke; 3. Paddy Coman; 4. Matt Schofield; 5. Luke Staples-Preston; 6. Nick Parrott; 7. Simon Edscer; 8. Dan Bracken; 9. Will Brown; 10. Alex Pearmain; 11. Jack Roach; 12. Bill Brown; 13. Kevin O’Donoghue; 14. Sean Cooper; 15. Max Stanyard. Replacements: 16. Dave Gibson; 17. Ben Stern; 18. Ben Hogan.
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