Counties 2 Hampshire rugby: New Milton seal long-awaited away win against Sandown & Shanklin
Counties 2 Hampshire
Sandown & Shanklin RFC 11
New Milton RFC 25
NEW Milton backed up their dominant season-opening win with a hard-fought victory over Sandown & Shanklin, their first away win against them in eight years.
Milton's dominant and secure tackling created a solid wall of defence in front of their try line and provided loose balls from which they could take possession, finally outscoring Sandown & Shanklin by four tries to one.
The hosts started well and scored two early penalties, but New Milton's tackling worked well, and although Sandown & Shanklin gained a five-metre scrum, they could not touch the ball down.
Milton stole a lineout ball and cleared to the halfway line where, following a scrum, Jude Payne intercepted a pass and ran in to score the game's first try.
After the restart, with the match finely balanced at 7-6 in the visitors' favour, Milton won a lineout with the forwards pushing for the line. After a penalty award, New Milton quickly moved the ball before Payne scored his second.
The hosts responded well and won a scrum in the New Milton 22. However, the New Milton forwards shoved them off their ball and regained possession before working their way down the pitch for Lewis Waugh to convert a penalty.
More ferocious attacking from the hosts was met with determined defending, resulting in the ball spilling loose to Tom Gould on the Milton 10-metre line, who ran the pitch length to score in the corner.
Sandown & Shanklin created pressure on the Milton try line and, following a double penalty award, they scored a try. However, another turnover at the scrum allowed Gould to score his brace and seal the win.
For his play at scrum-half and his action all over the pitch, Dalton Thomas was made player of the match.
New Milton: E. Hynd, S. Bew, H. Chung, G. Short, J. Corbett, B. Steers, J. Payne, D. Mallard, D. Thomas, C.Brown, L. Waugh, D. Oliver, C. Conacher, T. Gould, Z. Smith, J. Blair, M. Moore, A. Wignall.
