Hackney thrash Hitchin to strengthen their hold on second place

Hackney consolidated second place in London North West Division Three after blitzing Hitchin on their way to a 41-10 victory at Spring Hill.

The Griffins, who return to action next weekend against Old Actonians, were always in control and two tries each for James Legg, Matt Strong and Joe Askham completed a comfortable winning margin.

The hosts, who trail London Nigerian by one losing bonus point, have lost just once in eight games this campaign and were 14 points up inside 10 minutes thanks to excellent work at the line-out and maul – much to the delight of club captain Will Bowers.

“We were out the blocks fast and I think they were shocked at how well we started,” Bowers told the Gazette. “James [Legg] took the ball so well, and our kicking game into the corners enabled us to use the line-out to great effect.”

After Legg and Askham had opened their accounts for the afternoon, Hitchin did stage a brief comeback with two tries of their own, but Hackney managed to reassert their dominance after the restart.

After Sean Conner had broken through to cross the whitewash, Strong scored a quick-fire brace before further tries from Askham and Strong meant the game ended how it began, and Bowers was pleased his side have now found the consistency to challenge for the title this term.

“We’ve really benefitted from a settled back line,” he added. “It really helps at this level to have a side you can count on turning up each week, and that’s enabled us to work on better communication.

“Sean [Conner] was excellent, he always beats the first man. He’s new to the club at outside centre but he’s so dependable – something which is often underrated.”