PREVIEW: Ealing Trailfinders 1st XV v Barnes RFC 17th April

What a difference two weeks can be. After the defeat to Barking by the slimmest of margins, any chance of promotion or a play of spot looked a slender possibility! 

Who said leagues are won in December?

…..As the spring arrived the rugby gods have begun to smile on us, and  following Rosslyn Parks back to back defeats to Southend (32-29) and Worthing (23-33) , we are now back in the race, all be it we must depend on Park dropping a point here or there…….Is it over?  I don’t think so.

So we welcome back Barnes RFC to Vallis Way. It has been a while since their last visit, indeed since  we were both in London 1.

Their season has been a tough one so far , but they are really digging in to give themselves a chance of survival in N2S. Last week they beat Dings at Barnes Elms in a tight game 24-21, so they will be up for this visit to Vallis Way.

A history of Barnes RFC

Barnes Rugby Club is a club with a rich history and was established in Barnes in the 1920’s. Although there are indeed possibilities that our earliest recorded match was in November 1862 versus Richmond and played at Barn Elms, it is from the 1920’s that our true history is clear.

For many years we played at Harrodian Club in Lonsdale Road, Barnes, which is now The Harrodian School, before moving to our Barn Elms location in 1994.

Barnes RFC 1st XV has been promoted eight times since being arriving in Surrey Division Three in l987.

The 1st XV now play in National 2 having gained promotion in the 2008/2009 season.

Barnes in 2010

Barnes’ first season in National 2 South has been a baptism of fire, they sit in 14th position with 4 wins from their 25 games. They have had many close losses, but their problems have been caused by not crossing the whitewash on a regular basis. A highlight no doubt will have been the away win at the Athletic Ground as they defeated long time Surrey foes Richmond 21-32 in November , which led to Barnes Chairman Rhino Whitfield being quoted as saying "Geoffrey Chaucer, Henry VIII, George Eliot, Bertrand Russell, Bamber Gascoigne, Mick Jagger, Henry Head! Can you hear me, David Corben, your boys took one hell of a beating, your boys took one hell of a beating!"

Anthony Wilde tops the try scoring list with 7 to his name, whilst Warren Gower is on 6.  Full back Gower has been their saviour on many occasions and he also tops the points list with 175 points.

Coming into this game, their form in the last 6 games has seen 2 wins and 4 losses, the win against Dings last week at Barnes Elms and away at Lydney (31-33) are two highlights. Form away from Barns Elms has seen 4 wins and 9 losses.

Let’s compare the two sides: Both have played 25 games. Barnes have 48 tries to Ealing’s 115 . Of these Barnes have scored 24 home and away whilst we have got 60 at Vallis Way!

17 of Barnes’s tries have been scored by the piggies and 30 by the glamour boys: Our split is 27 against 84….. Barnes have seen yellow on 16 occasions compared to our 10.

Ahead of the game, Ealing’s hooker Jon Moyce said, "last weeks game was a performance many enjoyed (Green Army), the link between the forwards and backs was the reason behind the high score line.Coming from a strong win against Clifton away the confidence within the squad is very high."
 
Training this week has been very match specific with a focus on shutting down the opposition in every area on the pitch. This weeks game against Barnes will see two teams battling for a result which is needed at both ends of the leagues.
 
To beat Barnes, the squad will be required to perform at a high physical level, but for a result that matches the Clifton away win 100% concentration is needed for 80 minutes of the game".

 

Previous results between Ealing Trailfinders RFC & Barnes RFC

06/02/10 Barnes 8 Ealing Trailfinders 73

17/02/07 Ealing Trailfinders 47 Barnes 20

30/09/06 Barnes 27 Ealing Trailfinders 36

21/01/06 Barnes 23 Ealing Trailfinders 13

29/10/06 Ealing Trailfinders 15 Barnes 14