IGNATIANS GET BACK TO BUSINESS BY DELIVERING AGAINST KILBURN

The first team made a positive start to the New Year after recording a 22-0 workmanlike away win at Kilburn Cosmos in London Three North-West: a result which keeps them firmly rooted to second spot after Stevenage lost to league leaders Old Streetonians.

The candid assessment of captain Jake Bates was: "We played well for about 20 minutes of the game and it was a good win away from home. However, we need to push on and aim for higher standards."

Still a little ring rusty after the month long Christmas break, Ignatians were never going to lose this game against spirited opposition. However, fluidity was never going to feature, as the cloying mud of the Anson Road arena firmly put paid to that notion.

However, Ignatians, despite not being at concert pitch, had the requisite firepower in their locker and, after suffering an early scare, they never looked back from the moment that the Kilburn kicker missed a straight forward pot at goal.

It was the signal for a full frontal assault on the Kilburn line and a multi-phased attack, in which forwards and backs were prominent, was brought to its logical conclusion after the pack’s top scorer, Ben Mills, muscled his way over in the corner.

The first quarter was a fertile period for the visitors and, after pressurised Kilburn strayed offside, Man of the Match Jake Bates had no hesitation in drilling the ball to the corner. It ended with a textbook lineout drive, with the in-form Lewis White claiming the score.

It went a little pear-shaped after despite Ignatians’ dominant forwards lording the setpiece and the breakdown, and once must certainly credit Kilburn for giving it a real blast, although a 10-0 half-time lead was a poor return – granted the visitors’ protracted dominance.

Still, a number of players rose to the occasion. Dave Gear delivered a masterclass at the breakdown, Dom Nott unleashed a ‘thunderbolt tackle’ which reverberated beyond the borough of Brent, and we welcomed back the ‘revenant’ Liam Horn.

Brought on after it was decided to give White a breather, Horn made a welcome return to first team action after his frustrating ligament injury sustained in the summer. He was soon in the thick of it, and it’s testament to the burgeoning depth of Shane Manning’s squad.

The third quarter was a bit frustrating for Ignatians. Instead, Kilburn rose to the occasion by unleashing their big ball carriers and they enjoyed their best spell. However, a combination of their own mistakes and Ignatians’ unflinching defence kept them at bay.

The fourth and final quarter was bountiful for the visitors. After Kilburn were penalised for ‘coming in at the side’, scrum-half, Anzl Swartz tapped and went, and his meandering run made good yardage before he was snared.

Good work by the supporting cast, including Jake Bates, took play to within inches of the line before number eight, Jonathan Hamilton, another doing well in the try-scoring stakes, forced his way over. The former added the extras as the visitors forged 17-0 clear.

It was all about securing the bonus point and Ignatians achieved their aim with minutes to spare, having initially and embarrassingly fluffed a straight forward overlap opportunity, when it would have been far simpler to have passed the ball along the line.

Still, redemption beckoned. The combined strength of the Ignatians’ tight eight shunted Kilburn into reverse and, having pinched the strike against the head, they sweetly farmed the blindside with Swartz and Bates combining to set up Michael Hall. Mission accomplished.

Although they huffed and puffed, Ignatians had their cameo moments. Liam Dunne wrapped up man and ball in the tackle, and in a real David versus Goliath moment, diminutive scrum-half Swartz pulled off a copybook tackle on the bullocking Kilburn lock forward. Needless to say, the marauding behemoth lost his battle with gravity.

Still, there were a number of good performances. We witnessed a lively George Cox and an increasingly assured Euan Renny on an afternoon when Calum Middleton was giving a chance to strut his stuff after being introduced in the second-half. Clearly, the first-team environment remains a land of opportunity for those willing to seize the moment.

Head coach Shane Manning was only partially satisfied and he summed up: "We need to reflect on what went well for us and what didn't in this game. The forwards need to get their pods [better] organised, and all of you need to your [game} heads on. However, we achieved what we set out to do by gaining a bonus point win."

Ignatians are in action on Saturday when they face the last side to beat them in the league, Old Merchant Taylors, and they will certainly be taking nothing for granted.

Team: Jack O’Toole, Carl Asare-Anderson (Calum Middleton 41), Liam Dunne, Michael Hall, George Cox, Jake Bates (cpt), Anzl Swartz, Dom Knott (Alberto di Dio 75), Ben Mills, Gareth Rutt, Charlie Hoy (Lewis White 65), Lewis White (Liam Horn 30), Euan Renny, Dave Gear (VC), Jonathan Hamilton.
Scorers: Ben Mills, Lewis White, Jonathan Hamilton and Michael Hall.
Conversion: Jake Bates.
Man of the Match: Jake Bates.