Rotherham Titans were gutted not to return home with a pocket full of points as they narrowly lost 25-21 to Cambridge at a windswept Grantchester Road.
Titans for much of the match were the better side; unfortunately for them, a series of unforced errors cost them what would have been a fully deserved victory.
Indeed, had the pack, which mustered over 20 phases on the Cambridge line in the last play of the game, got over the line, the South Yorkshire side would have returned to Clifton Lane with the full five points.
That didn’t look possible after just five minutes of this pulsating encounter, as centre Matthew Hema and winger James Martin both crossed to give the home side a perfect start.
Undeterred at the set-back Rotherham bounced back and enjoyed lots of possession as their pack bullied their way around Grantchester Road. On 14 minutes one such impressive charge resulted in winger Ben Robbins galloping around the defence to score near the corner.
Incredibly fly half Sam Hollingsworth nailed the conversion from out wide against the stiffest of winds.
Rotherham continued to impress as they controlled proceedings for the remainder of the half and with their set-scrum functioning exceptionally well, it appeared it would only be a matter of time before they added to their tally.
Unfortunately for Titans though they lost the ball and gave away possession just before half time. The resulting phases saw Titans former winger Andrew Henderson finish off in the corner to send his side in at the break with a 15-7 lead.
The second half saw Rotherham continue their fine work. However, it was not until just before the hour-mark that they manage to find a score.
From a Cambridge scrum just outside the Titans 22, the home pack desperately flung the ball out from the base as the pressure mounted. In stepped Titans’ scrum half Sam Boxhall to pick-off the pass and then gallop 70 metres downfield to score in the corner. Hollingsworth’s conversion from the touchline was expertly taken to leave the Titans trailing by a point.
Just 5 minutes later Rotherham took the lead for the first time.
From a line-out on the Cambridge 22 hooker Harry Newborn threw to Lewis Wilson at the front; he then popped the ball back for the hooker to race down the touchline to score. Hollingsworth was exceptional from out wide off the tee to give his side a 21-15 lead.
Disappointingly for Rotherham, inside the final 9 minutes of the match they conceded 2 late tries. The first stemmed from a bit of a mix-up with a grubber kick which allowed James Martin in for his second try and then from turnover ball prop Henry Peck popped over in the corner, despite a suspiciously-looking forward pass in the build-up.
Rotherham can however take some consolation from both the bonus point they picked up, but more importantly from a performance, if repeated, that will only lead to them winning lots of games of rugby.
Commenting on Titans’ performance post-match, Matt Smith explained, “It was heart-breaking for the lads not to win this one; at the end we had over 20 phases to get over the line but we just couldn’t manage it and that was the difference between five points and one.
“But again we saw the step-up in quality of our performance in the way we want to play; we’ve just got to get rid of those little mistakes which are costing us a lot. Some of their tries were too easy which yet again came off our errors.
“It was a strange game to lose; they didn’t have that much ball, particularly in the first half and three of their tries came off our errors and I would say overall we were the better team.
“However, points aren’t given out for being the better team if you don’t win the match. We need to be better when we have the ball and we need to show a bit more quality in finishing off the opportunities when they come our way.
“However, after the game you could that the boys were absolutely gutted, which means that they care and any group of lads that care that much and are willing to work hard to keep improving give you massive confidence that the next win is just around the corner.”
Referee: Sam Phillips
Attendance: 523
Yellow Card: Hollingsworth (Titans)
Titans: Robbins (T), Boxhall (T), Newborn (T), Hollingsworth (3C)
Cambridge: Martin (2T), Hema (T), Henderson (T), Peck (T),
Titans: 15 Sam Allan, 14 Jamie Cooke, 13 Tom Bullough, 12 Harry Dunne, 11 Ben Robbins (Dever 20) (Robbins 35), 10 Sam Hollingsworth, 9 Sam Boxhall, 1 Toby Williams, 2 Jack Bergmanas (Newborn 50), 3 Will Dennis, 4 Dan Preston-Routledge (North 38), 5 Kieran Frost, 6 Lewis Wilson, 7 Zak Poole (Capt.), 8 Anthony Maka.
Replacements: 16 Harry Newborn, 17 Harry Whitfield, 18 Alfie North, 19 Keifer Laxton, 20 Connor Dever.
Cambridge: 15 Joseph Tarrant, 14 James Martin, 13 Matthew Hema, 12 Ned Brown (Rayner 61), 11 Andrew Henderson, 10 Benjamin Penfold, 9 Kieran Duffin (Creighton 50), 1 Matthew Meek (Ibrahim 64), 2 Michael Mayhew (Priestley 50), 3 Henry Peck, 4 Robert Conquest, 5 Gareth Baxter (Hutchinson 80), 6 Kailus Hutchinson (McCloud 40), 7 Matthew Dawson, 8 Benjamin Adams (Capt.).
Replacements: 16 William Priestley, 17 Ben Ibrahim, 18 Jake McCloud, 19 Finlay Creighton, 20 Lawrence Rayner.
