With your roaming correspondent still absent overseas, this is a brief update which unashamedly focusses only on Barnes Men’s 1st XV win at home last weekend against 4th placed Canterbury, which recorded our 6th win on the bounce, 45-35 in the end to the Green and Gold, but having been 40-0 up after a sublime first half, the final result was a it to close for comfort.

The Occies had a great win against London Media 14-42, whilst on Sunday our Colts lost 5-24 against Weybridge Vandals, and our Women’s 1st XV came second to Havant at home 5-45.

This weekend there is a host of games, kicking off on Friday night with the Originals having their traditional game and curry away at Cobham. And whilst there are other great games going on, including the Women’s 1st away game at Hackney, undoubtedly the game of the week, year, and if not season, is the Barnes Men’s 1st XV game away to league leaders Tonbridge Juddians. We lie in 2nd place in the league, 6 points behind TJ’s, and they have a game in hand.

To many observers (outside of Barnes RFC) TJ’s look home and hosed, well not if we have something to do with it they’re not. We lost in the last play of the game at home earlier in the season 25-26. Our fault of course, but we definitely owe them. Out first half performance last week against Canterbury shows we can more than match TJ’s but our second half performance would see them win at a canter. If we can replay that first half at TJ’s this weekend, for the whole game, we win, it is as simple as that.

The boys will be 100% up for this game, it is what they have played for all season, I can’t wait to see the outcome…bring it on!

Onwards and Upwards Barnow!

Michael “Rhino” Whitfield - President Barnes RFC

Friday 7th March Fixture
• Cobham Vets vs Barnes Originals

Saturday 8th March Fixtures

• Tonbridge Juddians vs Barnes Men’s 1st XV - 3pm KO
• Barnes Men’s 2nd XV vs Richmond Vikings - 2pm KO
• Barnes Occies vs Lightwater - 2pm KO

Sunday 9th March Fixtures

• Hackney Ladies vs Barnes Women’s 1st XV - 2:30pm KO
• Aylesbury vs Barnes Women’s 2nd XV - 2:30pm KO

Barnes Men’s 1st XV 45 - 35 Canterbury 1st XV - words by Richard Fenech
In near perfect conditions, and with a well-rested team, Barnes decided to swap the hibernation role at half time and despite an abundance of unanswered first half tries allowed a near dormant Canterbury to come back hard.

Lock Ryan Nixon opened the try frenzy within three minutes, scuppering over the line off a well worked line-out, star man Haydon Elliot converting.

Moments later Barnes 9 Iago Davies completed a brilliant passage scoring from open play setting up another easy conversion for Haydon.

Canterbury struggled to complete any passages of play regularly spilling the ball allowing Barnes to counter from anywhere. Another seamless Barnes lineout allowed the formidable hooker in Ethan Sikorski to work a brilliant drive over the line and an easy Haydon conversion

We had to wait 23 minutes for the first scrum where Barnes showed their physical and technical dominance with three more tries coming from Sikorski, Haydon & winger Jacques Birch; only two conversions.

A silenced Canterbury and jubilant Barnes took to the sheds at half time and that’s when the hibernation roles were swapped.

From the off Canterbury exploded into life sending Eoin O’Donoghue over for his try and converted by No 10 Frank Reynolds who maintained a 100% record thereafter. Barnes temporarily awoken came back with Haydon scoring a try and converting, but that was the last word from the London side who had to defend hard and smart as Canterbury came back with a passion absent in the first half and a more effective scrum.

Converted tries from Oliver Frostick, Presley Farrance, Jesse De Vries and Aiden Moss where too little and too late for Canterbury to salvage a game that Barnes should never have allowed them to be contenders in.