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RUGBY: Coach Whales hails his super Stags following a scintillating start to the season
Luke Murphy of Huntingdon in action during their victory against Dronfield last Saturday. Picture: HELEN DRAKE - Credit: Archant
Huntingdon’s first-ever clash against Dronfield proved to be a successful one last Saturday.
Stags continued their fine start to the Midlands Division One East season with a third victory in their opening four matches.
And this 37-5 triumph at the Racecourse was the most emphatic yet for a squad boasting plenty of quality and depth.
It’s probably no wonder that coach Damien Whales is a rather happy man. He said: “Huntingdon Rugby Club is a really positive place to be right now.
“The turnout for training has been better than ever and the benefit of that is clear to see in our results.
“The season has started really well and I’m delighted with the victories we have picked up so far.
“The challenge now is to make sure a good start turns into an excellent season.
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“We know from our experiences last year that the difficulty comes when we suffer a few injuries, but hopefully we have the depth of talent to deal with it if it does happen.
“We fielded four teams on the same day last Saturday for the first time in a quarter of a century. It is fantastic to see the club thriving.”
Stags wasted no time in hitting the front against Dronfield as a Tad Chapman penalty and a Glen McIntyre try – a second touch-down in as many matches from the Kiwi import – eased them into an eight-point advantage inside a quarter of an hour.
And the points continued to flow during the remainder of the opening period. James Thorp forced his way over the line following a set scrum before Jack Skidmore darted in after a 30-yard run. Chapman added the extras on the second occasion.
Huntingdon’s dominance was briefly interrupted early in the second period when Dronfield grabbed their only try of the afternoon, but the hosts soon asserted themselves again.
Seth Muggeridge was the beneficiary of a well-executed maul before Roger Shakespeare claimed a quickfire try double.
Chapman added one further conversion to take his personal points tally to the season to 47 with a half-century only one successful penalty away. It is a milestone which he will more than likely reach this Saturday when Huntingdon go to Wellingborough.
St Ives entertain Leicester Forest in Midlands Division Three South (East) and St Neots host Dunstablians at the same level.
