Eels running streak ends but playoffs are insight!

Eels coming of the back of a great win at Home to 2nd place St Albans last week were in high confidence but the club not having beaten Hemel Stags yet meant the challenge ahead would be a tough one! With fellow challengers for the Playoff fourth spot St Ives Roosters and North Herts Crusaders in action against each other it could of been the playoffs sealed.

Eels started with great confidence setting the tone of the game with great tenacity in attack and defence but errors were creeping back in and a knock on over line gifted the ball to Hemel on their line in the form of a scrum. Great pressure from the scrum forced the Stags half back to throw a stray pass that Callum Whitcombe plucked out of the air and placed down under the posts. The away side, eels were up 0-6. Eels continued their dominance through Callum Whitcombe who come out of the line again to pick out Stags full back who felt the full force of a solid hit but the stand in referee, a Hemel Stags Representative deemed there was no arms used, so a yellow card followed. This was the eels invitation for stags to get into them game and the following penalty kick deep into eels half resulted in two carbon copy tries from penalties. The Third try and last whilst down to 12 men was conceded, was a well worked try with Hemel using their experience and picking holes and picking up the pace eels struggled and found themselves heavily overlapped our right where the stags later dotted down. Another Big hit off kick and the full team restored from the sin bin the momentum swung in eels favour and Stags defence being tested they through everything they had at the visiting Brentwood side who would of previously crumbled under pressure but Big Damore Balogun muscled his way over. The following kick off see eels break 50m up the right handside only for a foot to have been placed in touch. This handed Hemel back the ascendancy and after a solid repeat set the worked the eels right hand side again with a good set play and were over to make the scores 26-10. The game was physical and with the eels not having the full 18 to keep things fresh it was New boy Haidyn Lloyd dogged work in defence that created enough frustration in the stags side for them to start growing their own penalty count. A great kick from the returning captain chambers whose exit set kicking was back spot on all day along with the chase. Eels were over again via Haidyn Lloyd. The Impact player was his own downfall at the next kick off fumbling the ball from the kick off and gifting stags free ball it was not long before a third try out wide right was dotted down. The latter stages of the first half saw some wild hits going in from both sides a retaliation by stags winger who threw two clear punches was not penalised only warned. HT 28-16.

The second half start similar to the first with ferocious defence and testing attacking runs it was turning into a great game of rugby league. Eels looked to clear their lines after forcing a knock, only to knock on after trying to pick up the ball for a scoot play and a lapse in concentration led to Stags Hooker to score a try straight from the play of the ball. The score now 34-16. Eels needed to take the game to stags to stay in the game and in doing so the Hemel sides tempers were starting to get the better of them. a scuffle at the play of the ball led to a Hemel play running five metres to headbutt Eels player Haidyn Lloyd at the play of the ball. This should of been straight red but the stand in referee again let the Hemel player get away with just a warning. Eels and Lloyd retaliated via the scoreboard as he grabbed his second of the game it was now 34-22. Lack of substitutes and the games General pace and physicality was taking its toll and the set plays that were hindering their go forward were left behind as they started to play what was in front of them which was a sporadic defence with great lines being picking the eels apart it was not long before Stags extended the score to 40-28. A great exit set from kick off led to Stags winger dropping the ball under pressure and a good build up in play led to back rower for the day Harry Chambers going over for the eels last say of the day it was now 40-28. The last ten minutes was lack lustre with both sides waiting for the final whistle but stags extra men made the difference coming on and working the offloads making it hard for a tired and ragged eels defence to keep up leaving the final score 44-28.

Coach Sherwood had his say "Refereeing decisions could definitely make a difference they score 18 points whilst our lad was in the bin and there was only 16 different at full time! Would love to have seen how many we could of scored the couple of times the infringed I do not think the game would of ended the same way. But again we live and learn we still made far to many simple errors gifting a good side possession and just making life harder for ourselves. We dropped the ball over the line three times but Stags are good side with a great setup these are games I expect these things to happen but hopefully we can get a result of these guys next year."

Eels look to conclude the league fixtures on Saturday 6th August away to Bedford Tigers who lost to St Albans 32-20 so it gives the Eels a slight confidence going into the game but hoping not to wake the sleeping giant for the following weeks potential playoff with Bedford.