Belfast Harlequins RFC notes I XV 13 v Dublin University 8 REPORT

Sat 23rd Nov, 2:30pm. Division 1B. Belfast Harlequins 13
– 8 Dublin University

Quins 13-8 Dublin University
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It was a case of winning ugly for Quins as they had to battle for their third successive victory in the league over a lively Trinity side.

BELFAST HARLEQUINS 13
DUBLIN UNIVERSITY 8

BY MARTIN SAVAGE

IT was a case of winning ugly for Belfast Harlequins as they had to battle for their third successive victory in the league over a lively if inaccurate effort from basement club Trinity who have now lost all six games.

Indeed had the students’ centre Rory Kearns had his kicking boots with him the visitors may have secured their first win of the campaign but his three first half penalty misses were to prove very costly and gave a misfiring Quins – who had Ulster player Neil McComb stood down before the game due to Mark Anscombe’s injury crisis – their opportunity to ultimately secure the result.

Quins only led 3-0 after a fairly dire first half of rugby but then the home side finally put some continuity together six minutes after the resumption to score their first, and as it proved only, try of the encounter.
Out-half Liam Cambridge – who had kicked Quins’ first half penalty – put in a perfectly weighted kick towards the Trinity corner flag and with the home side having the throw to a lineout near the line, their pack secured possession and rumbled forward.

After a couple of phases, centre Mark Best hit the line at pace and his strength saw him force his way over from close range. Cambridge kicked the conversion and at 10-0, Quins seemed to have control of the game.

But with their scrum creaking throughout most of the game, and their failure to secure quality possession clearly hurting them, Quins were forced to rely on their pretty solid defending for most of the remainder to keep the students at bay.

After Cambridge kicked a second penalty in the 54th minute, the students – who always looked far more dynamic with the ball – worked full-back Jack Fitzpatrick over the line though Kearns was unable to add the extras.
Cambridge then badly scuffed a 61st minute penalty before Kearns finally managed to nail a kick, after Mark Kettyle’s 81st minute sin-binning, to at least give Trinity a losing bonus point.