Late Try Gives 1st XV Confidence

A late try by flying winger Nikita Ermolenko gave Bablake's 1st XV confidence for future fixtures in yesterday's 5-12 cup defeat against neighbours KHVIII.

Form and confidence are never a good predictor of the outcome of any senior rugby fixture between these two Coventry School Foundation rivals and so it turned out yesterday at The Highway. Errors throughout both halves in handling and decision-making in particular made the contest a frustrating one for both coaches and the spectators.

With KHVIII taking a 12-0 lead in the first quarter of the game and there being no further score until the final play of the match, your reporter could be forgiven for finding last February's report and clicking copy and paste, except this time we lacked a thousand spectators and the spotlight of both floodlights and immediate peer reaction, amongst much more!

The Bablake players' frustration was apparent at their on-field post match assessment until Wasps RFC and Scottish international Nick De Luca, who is assisting our coaching team this season, stepped into the circle and told the team to relax and focus on the many positives which can be taken into our next direct fixture and the February meeting at Coventry RFC's ground.

Having taken the early lead, KHVIII turned round 12-0 ahead but not out of sight and, if Bablake had chosen to take three points from a penalty just before half time, preferring instead the gamble of a lineout deep in KHVIII's 22, the margin would have been less. KHVIII's momentum was tempered by the temporary loss of a forward to the sin bin, but Bablake did not translate pressure into points, and chasing the game brought increased hesitancy and further errors. Similarly though, when KHVIII's exciting backs were brought into the game, the lead could not be extended.

So, with Bablake a player down, all the efforts of the pack to keep Bablake in touch would have been unrewarded, until a very slick phase of play saw Nikita Ermolenko dive over in the corner with the final play of the game. Who knows, but this could just have been the turning of the tide for the next meeting in February?!