After suffering narrow losses in their last two matches KC’s were looking to get back on track against third from bottom Old Salts but a largely abject performance saw them crash to a heavy defeat.
In the reverse fixture between the two sides back in October Salts had edged a very tight affair by 7-5 and in the early exchanges at Marlpool Lane there was again not much to choose between them with neither team able to create a clear chance although with just under twenty minutes played KC’s did turn down a penalty opportunity to go for goal,opting instead for a scrum which gave them decent possession but came to nothing when they were tackled into touch.
With the half hour mark approaching there was still no score but when Salts were awarded a penalty for a fairly innocuous Kidder high tackle,rightly punished under the new law directives,they found touch fifteen metres out and moved the lineout possession left to No 11 Tom Burrows who appeared to go over at the corner but the referee had in fact already blown for a penalty try given for an attempted tackle on the winger without use of the arms and the simple conversion by outside centre Will Simpson from under the posts gave the visitors a 7-0 lead.
Ten minutes before halftime a floated KC’s pass intended to create space wide out on the left was picked off by Salts’ No 3 Aaron Smith and, remarkably for a tighthead prop, with no cover in sight he made it all the way from halfway to the right corner for a try which Simpson converted superbly to double the advantage.
Kidder were now definitely second best and after a wave of Salts’ attacks they ran in a third try whilst playing a penalty advantage when a short pass to their No 12 Loveridge sent the centre crashing over and with the last kick of the half Simpson again added the extras.
Trailing 21-0,KC’s were badly in need of a good start to the second period but instead conceded far too many penalties and after seven minutes Simpson nailed an opportunity from Kidder’s ten metre line.The home side were looking all at sea and skipper Chris Pinner,who worked tirelessly all afternoon to limit the damage,had to come to the rescue to clear up yet more danger in their 22.Despite his best efforts KC’s were shortly afterwards turned over in midfield and were creaking again with no sign of a much needed improvement.A couple of lineouts were pinched by the visitors and,chasing the game,the hosts also caused problems for themselves with some over ambitious passing in their own 22.Nothing much was going right for the home side and after kicking a penalty to five metres a neatly worked lineout move by the visitors put No 6 Chris Davies over for their fourth try and a bonus point.
Five minutes later KC’s at last strung together some sustained phases involving backs and forwards but in the face of a well organised Salts’ defence they still could not get over the whitewash and from scrum possession on their own five metre line the visitors were able to send a clearance kick into Kidder’s half where it was haplessly knocked on.
With quarter of an hour remaining KC’s ran a penalty from their own 22 and made good progress into Salts’ territory but were then turned over and a huge relieving kick sent them back to where they had started from.To make matters worse the visitors pinched Kidder’s throw and the home side were then reduced to fourteen men when second row Chris Baldwin was shown yellow.Simpson kicked the penalty and just two minutes later Salts ran in a second interception try as KC’s tried to exploit a three on one overlap but only succeeded in finding Burrows who gratefully accepted the gift and Simpson’s conversion put them out of sight at 39-0.
Ironically,although a man down and with the game already long lost,in the last few minutes of the match Kidder played some of their best rugby and ran in two sparkling tries through centre TomMaher and wing Arthur Morgan to give an air of respectability to the scoreline but it was far too little far too late and it had been a very,very bad day at the office for the well beaten home side.