Medway Dragons secure a comeback victory to win the London & East Men's final

KentOnline / KMTV

The win means the side are only a victory away from qualifying for the Challenge Cup.  Finn Macdiarmid reports.

Transcript

00:00It's the half-time break at the finals of the London and Eastmen's Premier Division,

00:04and even though they've gone almost unbeaten this season,

00:07the Medway Dragons are behind to Elmbridge Eagles by 18 points.

00:11And if they don't win here, their hopes of getting to the Challenge Cup would be over.

00:15Try after try has come in, and all hope seems lost.

00:19But the Dragons love nothing if not a comeback.

00:22As soon as the break is over, the Dragons start scoring, and they just don't stop,

00:33with Mason O'Neill scoring four by himself.

00:36I think it was from the half-time talk, really. We got a bit of a near-fall.

00:40I agree with this, and from what the rest of the boys said, it wasn't our best start.

00:44And if, in fact, I think it was the worst start.

00:46So we got a near-fall, and I think a couple of subs impacted how the game went,

00:50and obviously, can't wait for a result.

00:51Our emotions don't sum up, really.

00:53We've been working all year to lead to this point.

00:56The game started how we didn't want it to start,

00:59but I think the boys managed to turn it around pretty quick and come away with a result.

01:03The rain started to come down, and with it, the Dragons managed to clinch the win, 36-18.

01:08Yeah, we just went back to the basics.

01:10Our coach, Martin, came and spoke to us and just said,

01:13we've got to play simple, get back to some one-up rugby league,

01:18and if we start doing that because of the size of the boys that we've got

01:22and the weight of the boys that we've got coming on to play,

01:24we knew we'd be able to get the better of them

01:26because we've done that at their place earlier in the season,

01:29and we did that when they visited us earlier in the season as well.

01:32So we just knew we've been in this situation before,

01:37we know that we can pull it back, and that's what we ended up doing,

01:40and what a second half it was.

01:42The Eagles had a strong start but suffered injuries in the first half

01:45while the Dragons conserved their energy.

01:48I think it was a few factors.

01:52It weren't just one.

01:53I think we got a bit complacent.

01:55Obviously, the first try from Medway was a great try, well worked,

01:59and we just didn't stop their momentum.

02:01Everyone knows once Medway built that momentum,

02:04you're never going to stop it.

02:06They're coming downhill, wins behind them.

02:08Obviously, it's their home ground, and once they had that momentum,

02:12the fans were behind them, the fans were great,

02:14and we didn't stop it, and they just kept building and building and building.

02:17And once the clouds darkened, the heavens opened, the rain came pouring down,

02:21the Dragons proved after four years of waiting

02:23why they are the kings of the southeastern skies.

02:26If the Dragons win their next tournament match,

02:28they'll get through to the first round of the Challenge Cup,

02:31but first they'll have to survive a weekend of celebrations.

02:34Finn McDermid for KMTV in Medway.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended