Old Albanian vs Ealing Trailfinders

Match Report

Ealing Trailfinders scored seven tries on their way to a convincing win against Old Albanian on Saturday.

Ben Ward’s side scored four times before halftime to ensure that they returned home with a bonus point win, though OA’s fightback midway through the second half meant they had to maintain their focus to the end when captain Tom Brown wrapped up the victory with a try on the stroke of the fulltime whistle.

Former Ealing Trailfinders player and youth team product Will Magie started the match and moments later opened the score with a well struck penalty.

Ealing Trailfinders’ scrum carried on their excellent work from a year ago and from one squeeze won a penalty that James Love struck narrowly wide from the OA 10-metre line.

After both teams enjoyed the chance to attack Ealing took the lead through more good work by the forward pack.

Debutant Michael Walker-Fitton caught the line out and as the pack drove forward with Arthur Ellis tucked in the back, ready to add to his two tries from last week, the OA pack infringed, brought down the maul and the referee awarded a penalty try that Love had no problem converting.

Good attacking play by the OA three-quarters took them close to Ealing’s 22 and after an infringement at a ruck Magie hit his second penalty to bring the hosts to within one point.

From the restart Tom Wheatcroft broke the OA line with some sharp footwork, but after linking up with Ellis was adjudged to have passed forward to Brown.

Soon after though Brown scored his first try for the club when he picked up from the back of the scrum and powered his way through the OA defence.

Phil Chesters grabbed his first try of the season with a classic poacher’s effort when he picked off a loose pass to run in unopposed. He added a second soon after when Alex Walker took a quick tap from a penalty, flung the ball wide to his left from where Chesters raced home to the corner from the halfway line.

Ealing Trailfinders picked up where they left off after halftime and almost immediately Love broke the line and while he off-loaded to Brown, the captain was unable to control the pass with the line beckoning.

However, Danny Kenny scored the visitor’s fifth minutes later. Matt Jarvis wiggled free in midfield to pop a pass that allowed the Dubliner a straightforward run in to score.

OA hit back immediately when Billy Johnson charged down Walker’s kick and had the easy task of collecting the ball to drop over the line for a score that Elliott Reeder converted.

It boosted OA’s confidence and Johnson was again the beneficiary when he found a kink in Ealing Trailfinders to add another try that Reeder again converted. Wing Mike Allan then found space to go over and with Reeder adding a conversion and penalty the hosts drew to within three points.

Ealing calmed down and began to build their phases. It was a plan that worked well and twice the pack managed to gain valuable yards with the driving maul. On the second the ball went through the hands and prop Alex Penny was popped up on Wheatcroft’s shoulder to plunge over the line.

As the clock wound down there was one last chance for the forwards to flex their muscles and drive their opposite numbers backwards to allow Brown to score his second.

Old Albanian
Ollie Marchon, Chris May, Jimmy Spiers, Max Wilkins, Mike Allan, Will Magie, Jordi Pasqualin; Charlie Hughes, George Warner, Biyi Alo, Ross Hamilton, Billy Johnson (captain), Jacob Conner, Ollie Copper-Millar, Don Barrell
Reserves
Mungo Strachan, Andy Berry, Nick Stevens, Jack Daly, Elliott Reeder
Scorers
Tries (Johnson 47, 51, Allan 60), Conversions (Reeder 48, 52, 61), Penalties (Magie 2, 22)

Ealing Trailfinders
James Love, Chris Kinloch, Ronnie McLean, Tom Wheatcroft, Phil Chesters, Matt Jarvis, Alex Walker; Will Davis, Andrei Radoi, Nathan Buck, Carwyn Jones, Michael Walker-Fitton, Danny Kenny, Arthur Ellis, Tom Brown (captain)
Reserves
Kevin Davis, Alex Penny, Llewelyn Jones, Alex Bradley, Ben Ward
Scorers
Tries (Penalty 17, Brown 26, 78, Chesters 30, 32, Kenny 45, Penny 69), Conversions (Love 18, 28, 30, 70, 78)

Referee – Veryan Boscawen