First Half Display stutters to disappointing loss

In what proved to be the definitive game of two halves, Horsham frustrated a powerful Bracknell outfit, fresh with new signings from Rams of Nat 1 for much of the match, eventually running out of steam when defending up the significant slope late in the second half.

Bracknell showed their intent from the start with strong carries that faltered on Horsham's defence. With Horsham's kicking game turned the big Bracknell outfit, territory was gained and when Bracknell fell offside at the ruck, Oli Chennell dispatched the penalty with ease for a 0-3 lead. The pattern of play had been set, with Horsham defence proving a tough nut to crack and the kicking game performing well. As the half drew to a close, Horsham looked increasingly confident and made in roads into the Bracknell half although could not take advantage of this.

As the second half started, Bracknell, now playing down the slope gained a little more traction and scored their first try on 50 minutes. They then scored two rapid tries on 62 and 65 minutes when Horsham had suffered a yellow card for cynical play. This phase proved to be the difference and with two opportunities at driving mauls being missed, Horsham then allowed Bracknell to score a long range bonus point try at the death following a misplaced kick.

Head of Rugby was disappointed that Horsham had capitulated in the last quarter - "having defended well and frustrated a powerful and confident team, we are frustrated that we didn't capitalise on the opportunities we had to score and potentially gain some reward from this trip. To allow them to get a 5th point at the death was similarly frustrating. On the bright side, we did look very powerful in the scrum where Bracknell struggled which is something to work on ahead of some tough fixtures in the coming weeks.