Cam maintain push for top spot with 6 try win at Farnham

Following both sides outstanding wins last week this game was always destined to be a disappointment for one of the clubs and in the end a very ill disciplined black and ambers side just had too much power for their local rivals in a very scrappy derby played in bright sunshine but with a cold breeze blowing directly down the pitch makinng kicking in particular very difficult.

With both sides forced to make multiple changes in this rearranged fixture we saw Cam starting with a new 9/10 combination plus changes in the pack and threequarters, it was clear to the Watchetts faithful that this game was a definite banana skin but despite making hard work of things, particularly in the first 40, the black and ambers eventually did enough to claim their 5 point maximum and maintain their pressure at the top of the table.

The game saw the home side kicking off into a stiff breeze which H took advantage of by putting the ball into touch on the Farnham 10m and with Cam pinching the Farnham throw things looked promising but despite the first scrum collapsing Farnham managed to get the ball back into the Cam half. Cam again stole the ball and we saw H make a thrilling 40m break only for the final pass to go forward when it seemed easier to score than not.

Farnham then threatened briefly but great D and a couple of pens saw Cam move back into the Farnham 22 and a great drive from the lineout saw the ball suddenly played out wide with Liam setting up George for the first try on 13 mins.
Cam were soon back on the attack following a break by Fireman George and a clever kick pass by Liam almost made it to Oyoni but play moved back to halfway with Cam conceding far too many penalties but when The Warrior's smash tackle created a turnover we saw Jaid pick a great line and take the ball deep into the redzone before Birdy claimed his first of the afternoon with just 19 mins played.
The rest of the half saw both sides struggling to settle into the game with far to many silly errors with new combinations on both sides struggling for some sort of fluidity and with the black and ambers clearly not managing the official at all they were forced to play the last 8 mins with 14 men.
Despite this we did see a great break by Ash supported by BLS but the flanker, fresh from his dose of Covid, just running out of gas a couple of meters short with official blowing for the break.

The second half saw Cam again conceding penalties and with 7 mins played an interception by the Farnham winger saw him out gas the Cam defence to score a converted try and bring the game to within 1 score.

However Cam reclaimed their restart through Shawa and the ball was moved out to Jaid who, spotting loads of space behind their backs cleverly chipped ahead for George, again taking play back into the Farnham redzone.
We then saw a series of scrums with the official deciding that the home side were offending and after several resets their prop took a yellow for the team.
Skipper Birdy opted for a scrum at each penalty award and finally the home side were driven back over their line for another touchdown for Birdy and even a smile on the face of that old, retired Camberley hooker who was still pacing around on the touchline with his kit in the car JiC, and with Liam's kick into the wind successful the score moved to 7-19 on 53 mins.

Things were still very scrappy overall and the penalty count was far too high but next we saw a simple move from a solid scrum, missed pass and winger Oyoni pinning his ears back on the home 10m line to cross in the corner. A magnificent kick by Liam, considering the very strong breeze in his face, saw the lead move to 19 points and the tbp claimed.

The Farnham restart saw them win a line out on the Cam 5m line but we saw Shawa collect the overthrow and charge up to halfway and quick ball and good hands saw Fireman George trot over for his second of the afternoon and another great conversion saw the score move to 7-33 on 33 mins.
To their credit the home side didn't roll over and sloppy play by Cam saw Farnham intercept on half way top score their second of the afternoon.

Again from the restart Cam recovered their kick and quick thinking by Jaid, with the Farnham backs advancing far too quickly, we saw the centre carve through like a knife through butter and good hands again meant that this time Ash got onto the scoreboard with an excellent try and with Liam again adding the extras the score moved to 14-40 with 8 mins left.
Farnham did manage another try in the dying minutes but this was just not enough for them to claim anything for their afternoon's efforts.

So overall a good result for the black and ambers but a pretty scrappy, ill disciplined performance which the coaches will clearly need to work on if their objectives for the remainder of the season are to be achieved.

Debutants Tom at 9, Liam at 10 and Ben who came on for the injured H all showed why they are pushing for a more permanent place in the side.

Next week the 1s entertain London Cornish ko to be confirmed but likely 2.30.

And Finally – yes another great night for the C&Ws as they, in the end, beat the Oirish comfortably, 24-7 giving an excellent exhibition of how to stay in a game when you don't have any possession for long periods and this also without 5 players on international duty - things are looking better for Castle Grim and its inhabitants

Pic by Dinger shows debutant Tom passing to another new boy Liam