Ampthill suffered their first Championship defeat since late February, losing to runaway league leaders Ealing Trailfinders on a beautiful Saturday afternoon on The Olney Field.
The visitors got off to a flying start, scoring the opening try of the match in the first minute. The ball was shifted to the right hand side, and a smooth pass inside from Ben Harris created the space for Michael Dykes to cross the whitewash.
Despite dominating the territory in the early stages, Ampthill cut their deficit to 2 points in the 8th minute with their first try of the game. A box kick from Rory Morgan wasn’t dealt by Ealing, and his half-back partner Josh Barton grabbed the loose ball and dotted down.
Ealing responded well, and quickly pulled themselves away from The Mob, securing the try bonus point after just 25 minutes, and took a 5-26 lead into the half time break. After coming close with a dominant maul, captain Mike Willemse forced his way across the whitewash in the 12th minute. Jordy Reid peeled off the back of another maul and scored with ease ten minutes later, and Rob Farrar finished under little pressure in the right corner on the 25 minute mark.
The Trailfinders scored two early tries at the beginning of the second half to extend their lead to 31 points to all but secure the result. Winger Ben Harris applied the finish on both occasions, worming his way past multiple tacklers to ground the ball in the right corner two minutes after the break, and less than five minutes later he simply finished a flowing move off the back of an attacking lineout.
Despite the scoreline, The Mob continued to battle away and scored their second try of the match within three minutes of Ben Harris’ second try. After building the phases near the Ealing try line, Vereimi Qorowale managed to find space in and around the ruck and once he went through the gap he strolled across the whitewash.
Ealing continued to attack with intent and added two more tries before the last 10 minutes of the match to extend their lead to 12-48. Following uncertainty caused by a spinning Tom Collins kick, Angus Kernohan kicked the loose ball into the in goal area and dotted down in the 65th minute, and Rob Farrar scored his second try of the game five minutes later in the right hand corner.
The Mob scored their 3rd and final try of the match in the 76th minute, with a superb solo score from Valentino Mapapalangi, after breaking through numerous tackles from close range. Ealing had the final say scoring with the last attack of the match, with Ben Harris strolling across the line following a slick passing sequence to complete his hat-trick.
Speaking after his side’s defeat on Saturday afternoon, Ampthill head coach Paul Turner said, “We made too many basic errors today, and we’re certainly fully committed but it’s been the story of our season. We can’t make that many errors against teams like Ealing and expect to win, and I’m really disappointed that we conceded at the start of both halves”.
Ampthill Points Scorers
Tries: Barton 8, Qorowale 49, Mapapalangi 70
Conversions: Barton 50
Attendance:
