Enormous defensive display in, eight try, victory

With Humphry Kayanage away on sevens duty in Dubai, it was a welcome return for C J Osazuwa who had been sidelined for the last three weeks.
With a points scoring record, second to none, which stood at plus 200 before the game at Balmoral Road, but a couple of bonus points adrift from the top of the league, Gravesend were looking to go away with five more.
As the results to date had shown, Gs don’t always travel well, but this was not be the case on the visit to Beckenham as they ran in four tries either side of the interval.
Such was the support play that any number of players could have had their names on many of the tries, with the exception of one in each half.
The first try of the afternoon came from the support at the break-down and concentrated driving from the forwards that earned a touch-down for lock Remus Necular.
Losing ball at the tackle area was not helping G’s cause in the early exchanges and when good clean second phase ball was secured, it was often accompanied by one or more offside opposition that closed the game down in the centre.
Clean, fast, passing along the three-quarter line, following quick ball between the half-backs Zanirato and Bressons, saw the ball reach Moorey to chase in for the second.
Zanirato added the conversion to take the score to 0-12 after twenty-five minute.
A reshuffle in the pack brought Harrison on from the bench and to give the Beckenham defence its due, it took several drives before he forced his way over for Gs third try.
This followed a series of penalty offences by the home pack as they were forced into the scrum as Gravesend exercised their superiority at the set piece rather than opt for the kick.
The inter-passing in the backs was refreshing as their game came together, Gray often made the extra man to stretch the home defence, but it was the pace of Okenla out wide that lifted the temperature as re ran in from fifty metres to finish yet another backs move.
By half time the addition of the extra points from the boot of Zanirato put Gs 0-26 comfortably in front.
The straight running at the opposition from the Stevens’ brothers and Klus, kept the home side on the back foot, and the ever present Aigbokhae at seven, ensured that the ball came back on the right side.
Line-out play was dominated by the lift of the locks, Brooks-Smith, and Necular, accompanied by CJ Osazuwa, and if the off-sides and encroachments in front of the back foot had been dealt with there would no doubt have been more tries for the team.
As it was, four more touch-downs, one for each of the Meddings brothers in the backs, and a well deserved brace for Aigbokhae, and two more conversions from the boot of Zanirato that took the tally to 0-50.
The Gs point’s difference of 368-118 shows a plus 250 while top of the league Chichester with 311-180 are about 120 behind.
Top league points kicker is Miki Zanirato with 87 points from his boot and Gravesend have three in the top ten try scores, with Adam Aigbokhae, club captain Ashley Moorey and Temitope Okenla.
Most noticeable is the extra fitness of the team when compared to the last couple of seasons, as they now continue their scoring exploits over the full eighty minutes.
The attractive and expansive game now being played both at home and away, has brought fifty tries so far this season, with around fifty per cent of these being during the second forty minutes of play.