Skipper’s brace helps Hawks win crunch encounter

HENLEY Hawks put together arguably their best performance of the season with a six-try 46-26 victory against fellow strugglers Sevenoaks at Dry Leas last Saturday.

In what was a must win for both sides in their bids to retain their National League Division 2 East status, Henley were helped by an excellent brace from captain Spencer Hayhow, along with a faultless 15 points from the boot of Callum Jones which guided them home.

With the victory, not only did Henley retain the Savills Shield for the third consecutive season, but more importantly they overtook Sevenoaks in the National 2 East league standings with five games remaining of the season.

The Hawks were dominant in the early exchanges, playing with pace and precision and opened their account with just four minutes gone when number eigth Will Benning cut a great line to bulldoze his way over the whitewash.

Henley doubled their lead shortly afterwards thanks to Ben Elsey’s smart finish from a driving maul.

A superb break from George Wood put the Hawks back in the visitors 22, but the ball went loose and Sevenoaks fullback Benji Hewitt did brilliantly to gather his own hack through to gallop in from the halfway line to pull one back.

However, the setback didn’t derail Henley’s ambitions, and they scored a third five minutes later when scrum half Leo Webb spotted a gap in the visitors defence to crash over.

The try bonus point was secured not long afterwards thanks to Ollie Snook’s excellent finish following more sustained pressure.

The visitors finished the half strongly and were rewarded with Hewitt’s second following a fine backs move. They had another opportunity to claw back the deficit further just before the interval, but Henley’s defence worked hard to repel the threat.

The second half started with Oaks back in the ascendency and they grabbed a third on 55 minutes when wing Barney Stone powered his way over from close range. However, any chance of a comeback was quickly extinguished when Hayhow extended Henley’s lead shortly after. The ever-present hooker scored the Hawks sixth when he put the finishing touches on a fantastic team try.

A Jones penalty with five minutes remaining sealed the win, but the visitors had the last word with what could prove to be a valuable bonus point try when centre Ed Shepherdson glided over just before the final whistle. However, it was too little too late as the Hawks had secured a vital victory in their hunt for survival.

Henley were well worth their win which left director of rugby Luke Allen a happy man. Speaking after the game, Allen said: “I thought our work rate was excellent, along with how clinical we were when opportunities presented themselves.

“There’s still a lot of rugby to be played this season, and if we can match that intensity every week, I know we have what it takes to climb the table’.

Henley are without a fixture this weekend. Their next match is on March 14 when they travel to Orpington to take on Westcombe Park at Goddington Dene.

Henley Hawks: Wood, Busby, Jones, Leach, Gordon, Snook (Webb, 79 mins), Webb (O White, 71 mins), Fakatou (Shpylka, 67 mins), Hayhow, Shpylka (Bailey, 35 mins), Elsey (Lunnon, 77 mins), Lunnon (Delaney, 67 mins), Basil, Brown (White, 60 mins), Benning. Replacements: Bailey, Delaney, S White, O White, Howe.