Canvey Island...............17
Eton Manor...................22
(London North East Div Three)
A spirited late comeback brought Eton Manor a hard fought and richly deserved win on Saturday. Showing commendable mental strength and resilience, Manor's superior creativity and willingness to attack eventually told against a limited Canvey Island team who had to rely on the kicking of Tony Matthews.
His four penalties gave the home side a 12-10 interval lead with Manor's points coming courtesy of an Adam Knight try and a Jon Dyke penalty and conversion.
Ten minutes into the second half Canvey Island extended that lead with a try against the run of play. Stuart McArthur's quick snap was followed up with a clever kick through and Alan Berry beat the defence to the touch down.
But Manor kept up the pressure and the cracks finally started to appear in the home side. A set piece 15 metres out saw the forwards create space for Simon Logan to power over from close range for an unconverted try.
And the sheer power and determination of the visiting pack told again when a rolling maul took Manor over the line and Mike Slogh crashed through the melee for the important score. Jon Pyke converted to seal the win.
Eton Manor's women destroyed Chesham in a pre-cup warm up to rack up their fourth consecutive victory of the season -- hot on the heels of last week's demolition of Harlequins Women.
The visitors were totally outclassed by their less than welcoming hosts as Manor showed the gulf in class from top of the second to the top of the third division of the National League.
Although it took a quarter of an hour to get points on the board, it was only a matter of time until the floodgates opened.
Former Manor favourite Assunta Debiasa, who moved to Saracens last season, returned as a guest to battle through the Chesham defence for the game's first try, Elidh Smith quickly added the second and third and a fine team move brought the fourth for Leonie Phillips. Number eight Rachul Meates made it 25-0 at the break.
The pattern continued after the restart with the home forwards winning a succession of good lineout and scrum ball for the backs to exploit.
Helen Minton shrugged off the attentions of four defenders to add the sixth, Debiasa added her second and Clare Green made it eight tries without reply. Smith completed the scoring and a memorable hat-trick with the final try of the game late on.
Manor expect a tougher test against Carlisle in the first round of the Cup at Nutter Lane this Sunday.
Bancroft......................10
Shelford......................18
(London North East Div Three)
Battling Bancroft fell to a narrow defeat to league leaders Shelford on Saturday. They were hit initially on the break before both sides exchanged penalties.
But the visitors grabbed a killer try before the turnaround to leave the home side trailing 15-3. A Karl Burns try, converted by Levoir, saw Bancroft pull back to within five points. A last gasp penalty killed off any hopes.
Bancroft take a break from their league campaign when they take on London division one side Woodford in a daunting NPI Cup match at home on Saturday.
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