London Scottish slam the door on Ealing Trailblazers

Feb 27 2009 Rugby Union By Arthur Lewis, Ealing Gazette

Ealing Trailfinders' promotion chase is all but over after a 19-16 defeat away at top-of-the table London Scottish.

Ealing lead 9-8 at half-time thanks to three Ben Ward penalties, but 11 points from Scottish saw the visitors trail 19-9 in the last quarter.

Ward's converted try set up a nail-biting finish, but the hosts held on to continue their unbeaten run.

Ward kicked two early penalties as the Ealing scrum dominated the early exchanges. The Scottish front row conceded a handful of penalties and Ealing also pushed their hosts off their own ball.

Ealing were unable to fully exploit their superiority up front as a string of handling errors let Scottish off the hook.

Scottish were also guilty of giving up possession before they could apply pressure as both defences stood firm.

The Ealing lineout was also causing problems for Scottish. However, after losing their line-out in the Ealing 22, Scottish snapped up the loose ball and although they weren't able fashion a try, James Brown slotted a simple penalty to close the gap.

Ward soon restored Ealing's six-point lead after the home side were penalised at a ruck when Ealing had applied the first sustained pressure of the game.

Brown missed a second penalty chance for Scottish shortly after, but the disappointment was short-lived as, from the restart, Brown sent Ian McInroy,through to set up Rory Damant for the game's first try.

Brown's missed conversion meant Ealing retained a slender 9-8 lead.

Ward had a chance late in the half to add to Ealing's advantage when Scottish flanker Paul Volley was sin binned as Ealing applied pressure in the hosts' 22, but his kick hit the upright.

Defences held sway through much of the second half and neither side was able to create even the smallest of chances. Both Ward and Brown missed penalties in the first 20 minutes, before the turning point of the game.

Brown's close-range penalty hit the post hard and bounced into Scottish hands inside the Ealing 22. Despite closing down the immediate threat, flanker Harry Rowland was penalised and sent to the sin bin.

Taking over the kicking duties, Simon Amor put the Scots into the lead.