Boom! Boom! Boom! Artillery blown away by Harpenden
Connor McLean scored four as Harpenden trounced HAC. Picture: KARYN HADDON - Credit: Archant
Six tries in each half gave rampant Harpenden a 76-22 win away to HAC and sent them top of the London North West Two table.
It was Harps third win of the year and has seen them rack up an impressive 166 points for.
Connor Maclean led the way with four tries while Michael Goode and Jimmy Speirs added a brace each.
Ollie Mann, who also kicked eight conversions, Bobby Tane, Alex Randall and Luke Barber grabbed the others.
Bizarely, and giving no indication of what was to follow, the Honourable Artillery Company took the lead on an all-weather pitch perfect for running rugby.
That all started from a fumble by Harpenden at the kick-off and given the history between these two clubs, thoughts of a difficult time ahead for the visitors started creeping into the minds of their supporters.
However, there was no need to worry as within the next 15 minutes, Harpenden scored four tries and established their authority for much of the game.
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However, there was still moments of worry, not least when a 38-5 lead at half-time produced an obvious sign of over-confidence.
That in turn led to a certain sloppiness until discipline was restored once more.
This slack approach led to HAC being awarded two further tries which they didn’t deserve and meant they were able to cull an important bonus point when scoring a fourth try in the second half.
Harpenden’s coach was understandably aggrieved at his team’s performance during this stage of the match.
But it would not be an exaggeration to say that, at times, the Harpenden pack totally outshone their opponents, in particular in the tight.
This gave their backs plenty of opportunities to run the ball and every one of the three-quarter line played his part, making it difficult to pick out any particular individual for praise.
For most of the time it was a perfect team effort.
On the downside, Harpenden’s number eight, Michael Goode, who had been carrying an injury for a while, had to be helped off the pitch with what appeared to be serious damage to his leg.
The management will be hoping he is fit when Harpenden go to Hammersmith & Fulham on Saturday.
