On 20th September, Camberley hosted local, newly promoted rivals Farnham. League-wise prior to the match, Farnham were sat in 3rd place with Camberley 9th, and with so many familiar faces on the opposition, Camberley’s Alex Seers led the side for a fixture that was set to be abrasive from the start. Winger Fin Parker made his debut for Camberley as they chased their first win of the season in Round 3 of the league.

Farnham kicked off the match for Camberley to comfortably receive, before exiting their half. The first penalty of the half did swing in the favour of the visitors, as a scrum penalty gave them territory back within Camberley’s half. Collisions were heavy, as battle reined up and down the pitch, without the scoreboard itself moving, and even after a penalty kick, the score stayed level. The visiting side lucked out after an interception put Camberley over the line, only for play to be called back for a previous infringement. The visiting side did well to be the first to add points to the score board, after a driving maul got them close to the line, the forwards managed to finish it off (CAM 0 - FAR 7). The home side nearly struck back with their own play down the blind side, but this was held up by some last-ditch defence. However, the ensuing goal line drop out allowed the Camberley back line to spread the ball to debutant Fin Parker, who only could be stopped by a high tackle. This didn’t matter as the ball was spread from edge to edge for Matt Bowers to score in the corner (CAM 5 – FAR 7).

Following the re-start, Chris Ballard spotted space down the blind side of a scrum, where he showed his lightning pace fly up the pitch, only to be tap tackled and then hit hard by an opposing player. Farnham pushed back up the pitch earning themselves a lineout ten metres out. They drove over the line for their second try of the game and last score of the half (CAM 5 – FAR 12).

The weather began to turn in the second half, with the wind picking up. Camberley kicked off, but it was Farnham who took advantage of it, with a huge exit kick. Utilizing the wind, Farnham kept Camberley within their own 22m for a lot of the second half. This constant defensive set and pressure led to Camberley trying to fight their way out of the 22. The weather worsened ever more as the rain began to pour. Farnham jumped at an opportunity to get round the Camberley defence, but a forward pass prevented the points. Even in the wet weather, Cambo’s lineout began to function even better, with the platform giving the backline the platform they needed. Even though Camberley went a man down after a yellow card was awarded, a stable scrum enabled Fin Parker to step his way past two Farnham players to score from Camberley’s half (CAM 12 – FAR 12).

After Camberley went back up to 15 men on the pitch, they drove forward working left to right, before finally, Fin Parker broke through to score his second try of the day (CAM 19 – FAR 12). The conditions just got worse, as the rain got heavier and wind got stronger, and Farnham, now chasing the game, put more pressure on Camberley as they became trapped in their 22m before finally exiting. After a knock-on, Camberley had a put in for the final scrum of the game, won the penalty to close out the game with the finale score Camberley 19 Farnham 12.

Overall, a great a game for Camberley, their first win of the season over local rivals and many familiar faces. As for the league Camberley remain in 9th place however Farnham have slipped down to 5th in the regional 1 south central league. Next up Camberley face Maidenhead away at Braywick Park on 4th October.