Hammers 1^st  team continued on the road this week with a ‘short’ commute out to Marlborough, for the clubs 2^nd fixture of 2024. The commute of course, included the traditional away bus quiz, in which Head Coach Mark, Lewis Litt (Big Josh) and Mad dog Maddigan took the win with a questionable 39/50 questions correct. The winning teams’ debateable proximity to the Quiz Master, Stephen Harris caused an outrage. It almost brought the tradition into disrepute and risked dividing the team before a minute of rugby had been played.

This weeks’ fixture was the second time the 1^st team had faced Marlborough RFC this season – some may remember (or have tried to forget) witnessing the Hammers drop in the final minutes and in typical Hammers fashion… losing at Home by less than a try. For the Hammers, it was an important game – going into the day, the Hammers remained steady on the ladder in 8^th place with 29 points, Brighton sitting above at 7^th with 35 points, and Maidenhead trailing closely behind on 21 points.

The day was clear, the air a brisk but thankfully dry 1-2 degrees. The Hammers lost the toss, forced to kick-off but running downhill.  Frustratingly, and is their way, they decided to also set themselves up for an up-hill battle, the opening kick-off going 10 meters backwards not forwards. “Never send a back to do a forwards job” could be heard from front row veteran and club stalwart, Rogan, celebrating his 38^th lap around the sun that week.

The first 20 minutes saw each team come away with a penalty goal, with VC Joe Carolan, (now 2^nd highest points scorer in the division (114)) knocking 3 points through the posts. Marlborough followed up quickly with an unconverted try, to which the Hammers quickly responded, with Tim Russel scoring not once but twice,  one under the post and one of the back of a driving mall. With both converted again by Joe, the boys started to feel comfortable.

It was not to be like that for long. Marlborough, known for their size and physicality, began to play to their strengths, putting several of the lads through their paces and testing shoulders and ribs. There was a notable late hit on James Maddigan, which could be heard from the sideline, however, the Hammers also contributed their fair share of questionable hits, with back row enforcer, Harry “Sid” Scarr sent to the bin in the final minutes of the 1^st half with a yellow card. This yellow could easily have been a red as, from some angles, Sid almost decapitated the opposition winger, but the Hammers managed to fight out the rest of the 1^st half without conceding another point (while being a player down). First half score 8 -20

What followed was a second half battle between the Hammers running rugby and Marlborough’s size and physicality. One more try from the Hammers, scored and converted by Joe. Not long after this, one arsey kick led to a late try in the 2^nd half for Marlborough, shifting the momentum into the hands of the home side. Hammers still had a marginal lead, which sensed a repeat of their first encounter with the home side and proceeded to lift accordingly. Our line was assailed, our sideline groaned – another late game loss was on the cards…

Que the bomb squad – the notorious and welcome return of Matt Killeen and Ricky Drewitt, who joined the game after both had a short stint away from the club. Putting out one of their better defensive sets of the season, and despite Marlborough scoring another (almost identical try) in the corner and almost levelling the score to 27-30. we managed to hold out and eventually see out the final whistle for the win.

Final score 27-30  to the Hammers.  Elation. Joy.  And Hammers ending the day with 33 points on the ladder.

Special mentions go to the Man of the Match – Alex Spicer who also celebrated his 50^th Cap for the Hammers 1^st team.

Game off was trending on X, formerly known as Twitter, but it was very much game on at Hurlingham Park as Hammersmith & Fulham welcomed Horsham. Both clubs in their first season in Regional 1 South Central, formerly known as National 3, and the Hammers were looking to avenge the result from the last time the two sides met in the league.

You’d be excused for thinking that the home side had stayed in the warmth of the changing rooms as they failed to turn up at kick off, with Horsham scoring an early try from a driving maul.

Hammers metaphorically warmed up and challenged the resulting kick off well with the two ‘arry’s, Barry Scarr and Garry Boyd, making life difficult for Horsham and winning the ball back. With momentum building, Hammersmith began building phases with the ball eventually going wide to Tim Russell. Russell smoothly got the offload away to Zander Stephen who was back in the team following a duo of self inflicted concussions to the duo of Josh’s in the last fixture against Camberley – Josh Smith on the receiving end of a people’s elbow from Scarr and Josh A-A being kneed in the head by Alex Spicer, an easy thing to do to such a small man. Anyway, you’re here to read about the Horsham game. Stephen smoothly gathered the ball from Russell, romping in from just outside the 22, evading multiple tackles and successfully holding off 3 defenders as he powered over. Others who saw this try say he was a matter of centimetres out, juggled the ball before eventually gathering and just got it down but there’s no Veo to prove the first wrong so we’ll go with that. Joe Caravan was on conversions for the day, securing 3 of the 5. This try was out-wide so every chance it was 1 of the 2 misses.

Another reclaimed kick off from Hammersmith, attempting to rewrite the wrongs of Camberley, saw momentum build. A penalty win lead to a kick going deep in the Horsham 22 and Scott VBL getting the ball in his hands, a successful jumpy jumpy throw catch to Scarr produced a secure maul with VBL, man-of-the-match-to-be Toby Hiram and the skipper chunky Tom Proctor jostling for the ball at the back. Proctor pulled rank and got the meat pie.

A 3rd secured kick off in a row, a new club record, saw another attack from SW6s finest. Play built down the left, down the right, back to the left before returning to the right. Russell, who had taken a week off from his velvet footwear, remembered he had pace and took off down the wing. This time he didn’t need an offload to Stephen and got a try of his own, number 50 in the red, white and blue of Hammersmith and Fulham RFC – a fine achievement from the former Havant youth.

Another kick off to receive, this time Spicer took charge. The Gilbert of the day was in his hands but the end result wasn’t the same. Whilst ball had been won in the air, the backs messed up their kicky kicky catch catch, a surprise given the amount of time spent on such exercises in training. A charged down kick saw Horsham react first and narrow the scores.

24-12 half-time.

As expected, Horsham came out firing second half, determined to narrow the deficit.  Hammersmith soaked up the pressure with some staunch defending. Eventually they got their break with some Barbarians-esque passing, Caravan finding Scarr with a little out the back offload. Scarr scuttled down the field with a 3 on 1 with the fullback, an easy try I hear you say. No. In what can only be described as a moment of madness, the former Bucks u16 regional back row come Sid look alike thought he was South West Londons answer to Sonny Bill Williams – spoiler here sports fans, he isn’t. Ball was flicked out the back of his hands to Spicer’s feet. Knock-on. Idiot. Stephen substituted at the resulting scrum, his day was up and so is the rest of the detail.

Horsham found their way back in to the Hammersmith 22 with Hammers eventually turning over the ball. What should have been an easy exit saw Dugdale pass to Ross Anderson, we hoped. Dugdale was looking to join in the fun of handing out friendly fire concussions with the ball rocketing off Ed Haynes head. Horsham continued to build pressure narrowing the gap with their 3rd try.

A different side after half-time and Stephen’s substitution, Hammers couldn’t find the rhythm of the first half. The sidelines were calling for composure or something special to calm the boys, or both. A breakaway saw momentum build with Caravan dotting down. This conversion was from in front of the posts, 7 points.

With the game nearing its conclusion Horsham pressed hard with a determination to get something from the game. Eventually finding themselves over the white line with 5 minutes to go. Conversion slotted, meaning they were taking 2 bonus points back down the M23.

31-24 the final score. A hard fought victory in near freezing conditions. Another 5 points at home and Hammersmith and Fulham find themselves at 7th at the half way point of the season.

MOTM – Toby Hiram
DOTD – Barry Scarr

Saturday. Where else would you want to be but at Fortress Hurlingham ready to watch Mark Jackson’s tricky Reds defend their patch? 

As the winter sun shone down; the boys donned the socks of their previous clubs in support of the Movember charity foundation. Raring to go, the boys made sure not to stop their charitable efforts prematurely – gifting the opposition an early 3 point advantage by giving away a penalty for ill discipline, which they slotted through the posts – London’s friendliest club! 

Back to our regularly scheduled programming – the hammers boys marched up the field with a series of heavy carries from our pack, fast running rugby from our backs and well placed kicks from Ross Anderson at flyhalf. A well executed lineout deep in the oppositions half saw Bournemouth pegged back in their own 22. A fierce driving maul from our forward pack saw us unfortunately turned over right at the try line to everyone’s surprise. The first warning shot had been fired, the boys showing a clear indication they had come here to win.  

The boys bucked up their ideas and went again. Another lineout executed to perfection followed by some heavy carries, set the stage for some fancy rugby to be played. A well timed change of direction saw Joe Carolan getting to the outside and going over the line to open the scoring, also completing the afters – Hammers 7-3 Bournemouth. 

Bournemouth however, came back firing; some patient build up and a composed dummy pass and offload, opening a gap in the Hammers defensive line, their winger eventually going through and scoring in the corner – Hammers 7-10 Bournemouth. 

Knowing that they had another gear to get up to, the hammers boys bucked up their ideas and went back out there. A well executed lineout deep in the oppositions half saw Bournemouth pegged back in their own 22. A fierce driving maul from our forward pa- wait a minute… sound familiar? Deja vu struck as the ball was once again turned over just short of the try line, just as surprisingly as the first time. However, the boys were unfazed and continued to leave their foot on the gas. An excellent passage of play saw the ball go from edge to edge in typical Hammers fashion, ending with Tim Russell finishing the move off in style. Hammers 14-10 Bournemouth. 

The boys were up and running now, carrying  with swagger and ferocity; Ryan Powter sending the Bournemouth defence on their way with a lethal fend, a lovely off the cuff chip and chase from Jack Watters, the Bournemouth 8 couldn’t resist but join in on the fun! Kicking the ball deeper into their own half for our Northern speedster Harry Boyd to hunt it down ahead of their fullback and dot it down in the corner. Hammers 21-10 Bournemouth. 

The Hammers attack on fire, it was time for the boys to show the Hammers faithful what it meant to defend their patch. On the brink of half time, a yellow card saw the boys down to 14 men and conceding a penalty on their own 5 metre line. A quick tap and go from the opposition led to what can only be described as a willingness to win. Over the next 7 continuous minutes; the boys unleashed a brutal front-up defence on the opposition, driving them all the way back to the halfway line where they had to settle for 3 points instead of the all but guaranteed 7 points on their minds  when they thought to tap and go. A solid end to a solid half from the boys. 

HT: Hammers 21-13 Bournemouth. 

The boys took the field for another half of fearlessness, ferocity and the finest form of joué. Harry Scarr rising like a salmon to steal the opposition lineout at the halfway line – the boys quickly turning defence into attack with a quick inside ball to Tim Russell for a strong carry – a prelude to the most beautiful form of violence one could bear witness to. Josh AA lining up the opponent before obliterating the opposition prop, punishing him for being offside at the ruck. Our winger-turned-flanker galloped into the open field, stepping round the covering winger with fancy footwork, trying to run over the opposing fullback (the young man still clearly confused about the position change) before being brought down after such a devastating carry. A quickly recycled ruck and an on the money missed pass out wide to take out three defenders – courtesy of Ben Dugdale – saw the ball finished in the corner by Joe Carolan for his second of the day after instinctually quick hands by Bryce Morgan. But enough about the backs, that carry from Big Josh was really something. Hammers 26-13 Bournemouth. 

Anyway, somehow Bournemouth then scored two tries and a penalty (???)  they were pretty good scored too actually. You can probably go read about it in their match report, but this one  is for the boys. Hammers 26-30 Bournemouth. 

The boys now with their backs against the wall and not long to go decided to turn it up another gear. 

Patient and continuous phase play accompanied with monster carries from the forward pack saw the ball flung wide and destined to be finished in the corner – if not for a cynical deliberate knock on from the Bournemouth scrum half. The ref rightfully awarding a Hammers penalty try and a yellow card to the scrum half for being a hater. Hammers 33-30 Bournemouth. 

With both teams turning up the heat and the clock winding down. The boys were looking for an inch of daylight to put the opposition to bed with another score. But those opportunities aren’t given, they’re earned. A lovely chip and chase well fielded by the Bournemouth back row agonisingly close to their own try line saw some space suddenly open up. A 20m break into open field had the hammers defence scrambling to get back – encouraged by expletives from the hammers faithful and coaches ordering for the breakaway forward to be stopped – the 40 year old (maybe even older) man from down under, Andrew Rogan, stepped up to the plate stopping the big Bournemouth counter dead in its tracks, sending their player tumbling into the turf. A brilliant display of defence fitting for a game of big collisions and big carries from both sides. 

Our stellar defensive work all day was rewarded with a final try epitomising Hammers running rugby: we are taught from a young age that 70% of earth is covered by water, but that’s only because it’s easier to explain than 100% of earth actually being covered by Marshall McLeod and the hammers back three. Our Scottish import at fullback sending Tim Russell bursting through the line once again with a well executed switch. Tim returning the favour with a nice pass back inside to Marshall who sent Ben Dugdale over the line to finish off a scintillating move. Hammers 40-30 Bournemouth. 

With the clock winding down (yes again, I’m running out of opening lines) Bournemouth missed a penalty and the final whistle blew. The boys had handled their business and come out with a big win, hoping to carry on their momentum into next week. 

FT: Hammers 40-30 Bournemouth 

MOTM: Ross Anderson – orchestrating the ever potent hammers attack for the full 80 minutes (apart from the 10 spent in the bin) with a sensational kicking game and even more exciting one handed dummies.  

Following on from last weeks victory at home, our 2’s set off on their first fun bus of the season and travelled to Romford to take on a team deep in bandit country. Essex.

The weather looked bleak, but this didn’t dampen the spirits of our squad as they warmed up with intensity and had that focus from the start of the game right until the end, despite the result, they made us proud.

Facing such a physical team, like Romford, can be intimidating for even seasoned players but we matched their attacking efforts play by play and every person who pulled a shirt on for Hammers on Sunday really put their bodies on the line.

The first half saw Romford receive the ball from kick off, and immediately bring that physicality. Our defensive efforts were strong, however a quick break from one of their speedy backs saw them put in an early (questionable try as everyone watching including their supporters are sure it was knocked on over the line, but we move) try against us. Bringing the score 0-5

We reset and go again, and after some solid defensive efforts from our 2’s, we manage to turn over the ball and finally gain possession, allowing our squad to make some magic happen. Our forwards worked hard, putting in pod after pod with some strong carries to make some space for our backs to do their thing with space and speed. Finally, a break from Natalie saw us gain our first try of the game. Score 5-5.

With the score tied, and not much left on the clock of the first half, we set to receive the ball and start doing the work to try and get that ball over the line again. However, it wasn’t mean to be thanks to some confusing line markings saw us just short of that magic line.

Romford came back to us, and once again our 2’s fought hard to keep them off of our try line for a good while, Romford finally put the pull over the line and failed to convert. The half time whistle finally blew with the score showing 10-05 to Romford.

I won’t go into much detail about the second half, Romford utilised their speed in the backs, and we just didn’t make the most of the opportunities we got. However, that said there was some incredible play from our squad, such as jackling technique demonstrated by Claudia, some incredibly powerful runs from the likes of Xanthe and Ottavia and new player Holly running on in the last few minutes and putting in some great tackles, showing what hard work and determination can really do. We didn’t come home with the win, but the fun bus was a celebration of all things rugby and I am so proud of the efforts of each and everyone of you and cannot wait to get back out there with you on game days and not be stuck watching from the side! Final score 32-5 to Romford.

We have a weekend off this week in preparation for round 4 of the Junior Cup, so make sure you’re down at training and have your availability updated for the upcoming fixture, which will be at home against Windsor.