Maidstone 3rd XV 6
Thanet 2nd XV 0
After taking a bit of a mauling at the hands of Thanet early in the season, Maidstone were looking to give a much better account of themselves at home. A full strength team took the field and from the first scrum it was clear that Thanet were in for a testing afternoon. Maidstone soaked up some early pressure, but were never really troubled. The forwards dominated the set pieces – scrum ball was solid and good lineout work from the lifters, hooker Mike Hill and jumpers Fishy and Wrighty saw a steady supply of quality ball. Maidstone backs almost broke free on a number of occasions and the best chance of the half saw Hogarth put Martin Arnold through a gap, he chipped the defender but was narrowly beaten to the touchdown. Thanet did miss a very kickable penalty which came back off the post, but good discipline from Maidstone kept them at bay.
The second half saw a lot of Maidstone dominance. 4 takes against the head, driving forward play and probing kicks kept Thanet under pressure. Eventually, an infringement gave Maidstone a kickable opportunity and Howson duly slotted the 3 points. A 2nd penalty, again from Howson, following some lovely interplay between backs and forwards, gave Maidstone a narrow cushion.
The decisive moment in the game came when the Thanet 10 made a clear break from his own 10m line and looked to be clear and away. Arnold gave chase but it looked in vain. However, his determination drew him closer and he managed to pull his opponent down literally inches from the line. The ensuing ruck saw Maidstone concede a penalty which Thanet took quickly, and only some outrageous gamesmanship from Hogarth, making a tackle despite not being 10m prevented a certain Thanet try. Maidstone then held out despite being under considerable pressure to complete a superb victory and show that they are capable of beating any team in the league.
Man of match; great performances from all the team, and sub Eugene, who made his customary bone crunching hits, but for me the player of the match was Jez Major, often an unsung hero, but whose tackling and commitment regularly thwarted the Thanet attack.
PS only a rumour but someone overheard Gary Whitehead saying that he would stay blindside because fill in openside flanker, Matt Plowman was faster than him!!!
