Coach's pride at winning back-to-back national rugby titles at Allianz Stadium
By Phil Campbell
Old Elthamians director of rugby Gavin Lach was bursting with pride after his side won the Men's Counties 2 Championship final at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
The southeast Londoners beat Smiths Rugby 33-19 in a hard-fought contest thanks to tries from Reis Norman, Matthew Chick, Luca Petrozzi, Cam Hancock and Ben Adamson.
The result meant Old Elthamians made it back-to-back triumphs at the Home of Rugby having beaten Wigan 45-22 in the Counties 3 Championship final in 2024.
And it was not lost on Lach about what his side had achieved.
'Two years running, wow,' he said. 'I am so proud of the boys. We have come a long way this year. We went unbeaten last year throughout the season.
'We have only lost one game this year in the league, but obviously we are unbeaten in the cup, so it means we have only lost one in our last 57 matches, which is pretty impressive.'
Old Elthamians' Norman broke the deadlock inside the opening 10 minutes as the No. 8 burst over the try line off the back of a scrum.
Smiths responded midway through the first 40 minutes as Jack Davies was found in acres of space on the left wing and made no mistake when he dotted down.
Old Elthamians retook the lead soon after however, when Chick went over from close-range to give his team the lead at half time.
Petrozzi's quick tap-and-go allowed him to extend Old Elthamians' advantage two minutes into the second period, with fly-half Joe Leigh making it a hat-trick of successful conversions.
Smiths reduced their arrears through captain Ben Hawker's converted effort to leave the score 21-14 with approximately half an hour left to play.
But tries from Hancock and Adamson put the game beyond doubt, with John Bryant's score late on little more than a consolation for Smiths.
Lach also explained that he hopes the victory can provide his side with a springboard ahead of next season.
He continued: 'It did last year, so hopefully it can again. We will wait and see what the summer brings and where we are to start the season but let us hope so.
'This competition is great. It is sponsored by the RFU, and clubs should enter it because it gives players a day out, it really is massive.'
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