Mobbs-Smith calls for more resilience away from home after Maids' nail-biting home win

Maidenhead are once again entertaining their supporters at Braywick Park, racking up the tries and the points to claim three thrilling victories over Hammersmith & Fulham, Wimbledon and now Worthing.

However, the same can’t be said for their form on the road where they’re yet to register a losing bonus point from their four away matches so far.

You could argue they’re still giving entertainment to rival supporters away from home, having collapsed to three very heavy defeats against CS Stags (67-0), title favourites Jersey (60-12) and London Scottish Lions (50-7), however, head coach David Mobbs-Smith knows his side have to find a way of eking out more points away from Braywick if they’re to haul themselves out of the bottom four places.

The bottom two sides will be relegated from the Regional 1 South Central Division as usual this season while a relegation play-off match has also been introduced for the teams occupying ninth and 10th in the table - Maidenhead currently sit ninth after Saturday’s 41-38 victory over Worthing.

On Saturday week, they travel to play Farnham who sit six points above them in the table in eighth place.

“This season and the two before, we’ve been great entertainers at home, but we’ve just got to start showing the same form on the road,” said Mobbs-Smith.

“Even if it’s not wins, just picking up bonus points on the road.

“We’re not doing that right now, and we just need to make sure we do that in the remainder of our away games.

“If we lose, we need to put something in the bank in terms of losing bonus points, and that’s something we’ve let slip this year compared to last season.

“But we’re in a healthier position today than we were on Thursday.”

He added: “There are two away matches in our next run that you could highlight.

“Farnham are flying but it’s a clash of styles and we must believe we can go there and get something from that game.

“And then Hammersmith & Fulham is a key clash, if you don’t want to be in the basement you have to beat them. We haven’t been able to do that in the last two years; we’ve lost both times away to them so that’s something we must turn around and try to get that victory at their place.

“The Christmas game against Bracknell on December 20 is going to be a great day down at the club. We know it’s the rivalry, so there are some great fixtures.

“Tunbridge Wells will be tough, but we have won there in the past, three years ago, I think. It’s not impenetrable even if they do have a good side this year. We must go there with a positive frame of mind.”

Mobbs-Smith feared Worthing were going to fightback for a late victory at Braywick on Saturday, having trailed 27-12 at the break. In what he described as a ‘ding dong’ affair, Maids had the edge on the scoreboard from the very early stages but were never able to put away their rivals who had momentum in the closing stages and were pushing for a winning score.

Some desperate and dogged defence, backed by a desperate home crowd, just about got Maids over the line in a tense finish. In the end, Greg Smith’s solitary penalty proved the difference in a game which saw both sides score six tries and convert four of them. Maids try scorers were Jake Leach, Shawn Ingle, Sam Bowen, Chris Gill and Greg Smith, while Smith also kicked four conversions and that crucial penalty kick.

“We knew we had a good side and could probably play well in the game,” said Mobbs-Smith. “We knew what was coming. They’re a wonderful footballing team and play some great rugby. We prepared ourselves for this ding dong battle and that’s pretty much what happened.

“We had a 27-12 lead at half-time, but they had dominated territory and possession in that first half, and we just managed to score when the opportunities presented themselves. That’s what gave us that first half lead.

“But to go in at half-time with your four try bonus point was a great fillip. It really lifted us. Straight after half-time they came out and scored right after the kick-off, and it didn’t take them that much longer to get another one. Suddenly it was 27-24 and we were back where we were at the start of the game. Then we scored and they’d score. We’d jump to a 10-point lead, and they’d pull it back to a three-point lead and that happened again. In the middle of that somewhere, we managed to kick a penalty and that penalty ended up being the deciding thing, because we both scored six tries with the same number of conversions.

“They had about five minutes at the end when it was 41-38 and it was nearly all them. They had some penalties they could have kicked where they could have drawn the game. But they played to try and get two tries. They wanted two scores and were going for maximum points, to try and get the five, rather than the three, which they’d have got if they’d drawn with six tries.

“It felt very much like they’d win. They had all the pressure and were in our half, but they just couldn’t get over the line. They were attacking right at the end, and we managed to steal the ball at the breakdown and kick it off the pitch. Their coaching team would probably have settled for three points from a game they’d been losing the whole way, but they ended up with two points.”