COLCHESTER Rugby Club missed out on Regional 1 South East runners-up spot after losing 43-12 to a fired-up Hertford in their final match of the league season, writes EDWARD MARRIAGE.
It was a disappointing end to a highly successful first season back in the fifth tier of English rugby, and head coach Craig Burrows could not hide his frustration.
He said: “We were second best today.
“They outplayed us. No excuses, we need to be better.”
Colchester were handicapped by having 11 players unavailable, partly through injury but also because this postponed match was rearranged for what was originally a free weekend, with many players arranging holidays.
On an afternoon which started with steady drizzle on a mud-bath of a pitch and ended in spring sunshine, Colchester played up the slope in the first half.
Colchester kicked a penalty to the corner and from the line-out the ball was recycled through the forwards with Jimmy Mpailane breaking for his 11th try of the season. The full-back converted to give Colchester the perfect start.
But four minutes later, wing Josh Rudling scored the first of two quick-fire tries for Hertford in the left corner.
Back came Colchester. Jacob Bodkin and Joe Flexman were involved in a good backs move which led to Brett Cutbush, starting at fly-half, being held up over the line.
From the resulting goal-line drop-out the ball went through multiple hands before centre Ropati Sooalo scored to make it 12-12 midway through the half. Sadly that was the end of Colchester’s scoring.
Hertford grabbed two more before the break. From a five metre scrum, David Hale scampered over, and soon after a poor exit strategy by Colchester, with the ball kicked straight out, resulted in Sonny Swift putting the hosts 24-12 up at half-time.
The second half descended into a horribly scrappy affair, not helped by Colchester being reduced to 13 players as first Liam Pickett then Mpailane were shown yellow cards for high tackles.
The superior numbers told as Kyle Lemon scored in the right corner, but the visitors were back to full strength by the time Steff Jones went over in the opposite corner, though the try should have been disallowed as the scorer was in front of the kicker.
Such niceties hardly mattered as Hale went over for Hertford’s seventh try to complete the rout.
Changes in the second half saw Joe McMillan, Jack Buxton and Matt Parker all involved.
“We veered off our game plan and if you start playing something you haven’t trained for it’s not going to come off,” said Burrows.
“On a positive note, third in the league is not bad. New bunch of players, new coaching set up and we’re raring to go for next season.”
The four defeats at the end of the season should not detract from what has been a very impressive campaign.
Only the most demanding Colchester supporter would have expected more than 12 wins and a draw from 22 matches for a third-placed finish.
Now attention turns to the Papa Johns Cup. First up for Colchester is a trip to Syston in Leicestershire, on April 1.
Colchester: Mpailane, O’Reilly, Bodkin, Sooalo, Flexman, Cutbush, Tonge; A Mitchell, Rossouw, J Mitchell, Colcomb, L Pickett (c), Gerard, Kerr, Read. Reps: McMillan, Parker, Buxton.
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