Farnham won 40-17 at home to Wimbledon in Regional One South Central.

Wimbledon kicked off on a sunny afternoon at Monkton Lane, but it was Farnham who started the better of the two sides. Two good kicks from Ieuan Finey-Jones gained Farnham good field position and they were awarded a penalty five metres out. They decided to tap and go with the forwards carrying well and edging closer to the line before Oscar Henderson powered over for the first try of the game. The conversion made it 7-0.

The first 20 minutes saw a high number of high tackles from both sides but Farnham’s defence were looking solid and hard to break down. Wimbledon were reduced to 14 men after another high tackle penalty. Farnham looked to utilise the man advantage and built their attack patiently.

Farnham had to wait until the 30-minute mark for their next score when Ben Jones fed Shawa Rai, who burst through the gap and was dragged just short of the try line. The ball was quickly recycled and Toby Salmon was on hand to dive over from close range. The conversion made it 14-0.

Wimbledon almost responded immediately but Farnham’s defence scrambled well to hold them up. However, the visitors did get on the scoreboard minutes later when a simple penalty was converted to make it 14-3. The half-time whistle followed shortly afterwards and the game was still in the balance.

Farnham kicked off the second half knowing the next score was crucial. Some nice hands from Jones and Salmon found Toby Simmons in space, who finished off well in the corner. The conversion made it 21-3.

Greg Franzel and Ollie Brown came on to add energy and experience. Wimbledon had their moments in attack but on the whole Farnham fronted up well with Simmons reading a long pass and intercepting it to stop a certain score. However, Wimbledon did strike on 60 minutes when they turned the ball over and moved it through their backline with their right winger finishing off well in the corner. The conversion made it 21-10.

Farnham responded minutes later. Rai started the move and Alex Young broke down the right to get Farnham in the visitors’ 22 before Jones fizzed a ball to Simmons, who ran in for his second score and Farnham’s bonus point try. The conversion made it 26-10.

Ollie Kirkpatrick had a good game in the loose and consistently found his man in the lineout, while the back row of George Bellamy, Rai and Henderson led the charge in defence and attack.

Wimbledon refused to give up and Farnham knew they couldn’t afford to give the visitors a sniff, although Wimbledon’s chances took a blow when they were again reduced to 14 men.

Farnham’s scrum dominance grew as the game went on and they got a pushover score to seal the game with ten minutes to go, when Henderson touched down for his second try of the game. The conversion made it 33-10.

Farnham’s final try came from a well-executed lineout move. Jones offloaded to Ben Stevens, who showed his pace to sprint clear of three defenders and run under the posts. The conversion made it 40-10.

Wimbledon finished the game with a try, but Farnham ran out comfortable 40-17 winners.

By Toby Salmon