Britannia Royal Navy College (BRNC) held out against strong opposition to become the winners of the Royal Navy Rugby Cup for the first time in 14 years.
The college team, coached by Petty Officer (Physical Trainer) Stephen Fidock, faced HMS Seahawk in the final, securing the win by 12 points to 7.
With the match played under the flood lights at Devonport Combined Services Rugby Club, in Plymouth, both teams made a scrappy start with a number of handling errors.
HMS Seahawk showed the dominance that would continue throughout the game in the scrum, with the lighter pack of BRNC repeatedly being pushed back.
However, in open play and at the breakdown, the determination and speed of the BRNC team allowed them to clear their lines and apply pressure, which led to a number of penalties being award against HMS Seahawk.
HMS Seahawk were the first to score after 17 minutes with a try and a conversion to make the score 7-0. Five minutes later a more focused Dartmouth side levelled the score at 7-7 when an accurate crossfield kick by Midshipman (Mid) Dane Smallbone put in Mid Daz Pounder for a BRNC try, which Smallbone then successfully converted from the touchline.
In the 34th minute Mid Joe Adams broke the Seahawk defensive line to score BRNC's second try. With the conversion missed, the score remained at 12-7 to BRNC for the rest of the half.
As the game re-started the building pressure from BRNC continued for the first 25 minutes, with the College team forcing HMS Seahawk to give away penalties during the breakdown and continuing to break the gain line with aggressive running by the centres.
Into the final 15 minutes HMS Seahawk started to show more attacking flair, creating a number of line breaks. However, the final pass never delivered a score.
Despite HMS Seahawk being camped in the BRNC half for the final part of the game, and within a converted try of victory, it finally came down to a turn-over ball that allowed BRNC to clear their lines and win the game.
The commanding officer of BRNC, Captain Henry Duffy, said: 'This is the first time in a long time that BRNC has fielded a team in the Navy Cup competition as we re-introduce competitive sport into the College curriculum.
'This was not a team built over years nor a team picked from a cast of thousands at, say, an air station. The pool we have to choose from is a shallow one in numbers but not in talent and I am extraordinarily proud of them.'
BRNC played the Royal Marines of 42 Commando (Cdo) in the semi-final, beating them by 10 points to six, just two days before they faced HMS Seahawk.
The team reached the semis after wins against HMS Triumph and the Commando Training Centre, Lympstone.
Capt Duffy said: 'The team were up against tough op position in all their games and were definitely the under-dogs, but I think that was their secret weapon; they weren't expected to win.
'To be successful in the Royal Navy you need courage, commitment, discipline, trust in each other and team work; attributes which are as valuable in the heat of operations as they are in competitive sport and these guys proved they have it all in spades.'
With the establishment of a rugby club at BRNC, the team are hoping to build a relationship with Exeter Chiefs.
The premiership team recently provided 60 tickets for BRNC players and supporters to experience the buzz of a top-level rugby match.
The group were able meet a number of current and former players, exchange gifts, and enjoy the hospitality.
At half-time Cdr Rob Dunn, the Commander of BRNC, presented the Exeter Chiefs with a signed college print by local Dartmouth artist Paul Barclay.
Comments
This article has no comments yet. Be the first to leave a comment.