The first fixture at the New Wilderness, in October, saw Manor win their first home game of the season 35-27 with the visitors feeling slightly unlucky not to have come away with more than the single bonus point.

The first fixture at the New Wilderness, in October, saw Manor win their first home game of the season 35-27 with the visitors feeling slightly unlucky not to have come away with more than the single bonus point.
The hosts welcomed a strong Manor team with an unchanged backline from the previous week with Danny Jillions and Callum McKie passed as fit.. Ian Edwards returned to the second row, Huia Whale made his debut at blindside and Dave Dennis moved to hooker with Damian Horton starting.

Ruislip had only lost two games at home this season and with the wind blowing down the slope it was obvious knowledge of the pitch was going to be an important part of the game.

Ruislip kicked off and immediately Manor gathered and cleared the ball but Ruislip had the advantage of wind and slope so pushed Manor back into their own half. A blistering break from Danny Jillion saw the play move swiftly into Ruislip territory and the continued pressure told when Manor won a penalty that was converted by Reece Reed (0-3).

Ruislip played the wind well and despite a number of breaks from the back line Manor felt the pressure. A series of errors saw Ruislip awarded a scrum five metres from the Manor line with fifteen minutes played. The Manor defence did not react quickly enough to a simple move from the home team and the light footed Ruislip full back crossed for the games first try (unconverted) (5-3)

Eton Manor could not just put the multiple phases together they would need to battle into the wind and score, despite some slick play. The penalty count was even but the wind was giving Ruislip a much bigger benefit and on the half hour mark they extended their lead with a penalty (8-3). Manor had a strong ending to the half and forced two penalty opportunities, one converted by Reece Reed (8-6)

Half Time Ruislip 8 Eton Manor 6

Eton Manor we aware that Ruislip knew how to play against the slope so were under no illusion how hard the win would be as the second half kicked off. Their hopes were raised when the Ruislip prop was yellow carded three minutes in, although the resulting penalty was missed.

Ruislip battled and frustrated their visitors but Nick Horton broke blind from a scrum to give Manor the try they craved (unconverted) with only five minutes of the half played (8-13). Manor’s confidence rose but the home team were not giving in and really attacked with passion and spirit. The Ruislip back three had plenty of pace to worry the Manor players and they started finding space to encourage the vocal home support. Huia Whale received a yellow on the fiftieth minute to really put Manor on edge and they soon found themselves on their line defending.

The Ruislip forwards joined together very well in a series of plays that saw them get behind the Manor defences. The defensive effort was valiant but Ruislip kept probing and a little gap appeared for the them and they crossed for the try (converted) to give them the lead again (15-13).

With a little over twenty minutes to play Manor knew that they would have to battle hard to retake the lead and they did just that. With Dave Hanna and Rodall Misuri coming on to provide a boost of energy they worked their way into the Ruislip half. Once there the hard work started as the home team harried and sabotaged any Manor attack, with a stirring defensive effort.

With sixty eight minutes on the clock Reece Reed regained the lead with a penalty (15-16) and it was clear the game was going to see frantic finish as both teams looked for the points.

Both teams played some good rugby with the Ruislip pack putting a lot of effort in to tie up the Manor pack. Huw Levis controlled the visitors defence with clarity and perception to make sure many frantic attacks were thwarted to make sure Manor hearts were not broken.

The referee blew his whistle on an enthralling encounter that had seen both teams go hammer and tong. Ultimately Manor came away with the points in a win that showed how far the team had come. The players had learnt throughout the game how to change the defence to suit the opposition’s offence and win a very tight contest.

Full Time Ruislip 15 Eton Manor 16

Eton Manor are now seven points clear in sixth place with Brentwood the visitors next week. The game at Brentwood saw the home side win by a point in the last minute of normal time so the Manor players are well aware they will have to show equal fight to win again.