Match Report

AUB qualified for its first grand final since the Winter 2006 season courtesy of a tough victory against Balamand on Saturday evening. Fittingly, on Labour Day, both teams put in an eighty-minute shift of toil and tussle. What both lacked in polish they made up for in grit and honesty in a game that showcased the more rugged aspects of the sport. The uncompromising approach adopted by both sides never eased up, yet while AUB were relentless their opponents were hamstrung by injuries to key players that gave the visitors the edge. Experienced centre Tareq Makhlouf was knocked out of the game within the opening five minutes and was followed by Mounib Ismael, captain Riad Khoury and tackling machine Najy Bassil to disrupt Balamand’s fluency and energy levels.

The Razorbacks opened the scoring in the 8th minute through iconic half Darwich Darwiche, who led his charges impressively all game. AUB centre Nader Dergham struck back on 23 minutes before his side’s most effective strike threat, Mohamed Tawil, tip-toed down the sideline to score a memorable 70-metre try. Down 12-4 Balamand needed to regroup in the face of AUB’s increasingly effective go-forward, but two egregious errors before halftime from fullback Sami Mansour gave the red-and-whites a decisive advantage. On the last, AUB fullback Sami Walsh hacked ahead, with the uncertain Mansour failing to take the ball on the full, giving Walsh the chance to regather and offload to the supporting Cole Murray, who touched down on 34 minutes. Then, three minutes later the unfortunate Mansour fumbled a bomb, with Tawil scooping up the pill to score. Walsh, who kicked a perfect six-from-six, made it 24-4 at oranges.

Courageous Balamand then mounted an exhilarating fight-back that saw them coming within a whisker of reclaiming the lead. On 48 minutes 17-year-old wing Ahmed Chaouk scored after receiving a hotly disputed line ball. With the home side driven on by their vocal supporters they began to outmuscle their opponents and on the back of a strong roll-on Mansour atoned for his earlier misdemeanours when he sliced clean through AUB’s midfield to score a rapturously received try in the 53rd minute. Down by 8-points, Balamand continued to turn the screw as AUB obligingly hit the panic button, kicking away several possessions in quick succession. More pressure resulted in a Mansour penalty goal that put Balamand within striking distance, 24-18, and when dynamic prop Mohamed Chaker went over the crowd was on its feet, only for the referee to rule he was held up over the line.

It was to be Balamand’s high watermark as AUB regained enough composure to begin working once more upfield through their tireless forwards, and in Nader Dergham they had the weapon to turn much needed territory into points. The speedy centre cut through a Balamand defence that was understandably jaded following its energy sapping first-half tackling stint and its by now injury-depleted reserve, while wing Mark Darouri put the icing on the cake with two-minutes left to close out an exciting game that was a credit to both sides.