Gloucester vs London Irish match report: James Hook reels in Irish to preserve Gloucester’s home run

Gloucester 27 London Irish 14

Leicester’s James Hook sends over one of his five penalties (Reuters)

During 2015, Kingsholm became the sort of fortress that it always used to be in the amateur era, with only one loss for the home side (and that to Saracens, the champions). But at half-time yesterday, the new year looked likely to begin badly for Gloucester before their pack, led by the commanding presence of Jeremy Thrush, took charge.

After an opening half in which Gloucester looked distinctly jaded, Thrush and company controlled the forward exchanges, leaving James Hook to run the show behind. Hook, the Wales utility back, gave a remarkable display of goal-kicking on the treacherous surface and ensured his side played in the right areas.

Pummelled at the line-out, it soon became clear that the two converted tries they scored in the first half would not be enough for London Irish. During that period they conceded only three penalties; in the second half, they conceded 10 and Gloucester only one and that ill-discipline resulted in the Exiles returning to the foot of the table after news filtered through of Newcastle’s success against Bath.

Both sides and the referee deserve credit for producing such a well-contested game in such unpleasant conditions. Buoyed by the win over Northampton a week earlier, Irish started with great confidence; Ciaran Hearn, the Canadian centre, bumped off the Gloucester midfielders to score a simple try and Gloucester suffered the indignity of being pushed off their own scrum ball.

A second try, made by Chris Noakes’s cross-kick which Alex Lewington turned into a try by outjumping Rob Cook, sent the visitors into the interval in good shape.

It was not to last. Hook kicked his third penalty early in the second half and though Irish’s defence prevented tries in both corners, it cost them the services of Lewington when he fell offside trying to stop Gloucester’s driving maul and left for the sin-bin.Arguably it might have been a penalty try to the home side but Hook narrowed the gap to two points and, just as Lewington returned, added a fifth goal.

Having secured the cake, Gloucester proceded to add the icing: Thrush secured a close-range line-out and Matt Kvesic emerged with the try at the bottom of the maul.

Billy Burns replaced Charlie Sharples and had been on the pitch for less than a minute when Billy Twelvetrees broke, Cook accepted the pass and found Burns on the inside for a second try. “Our second-half performance was as good as we have played all season,” David Humphreys, Gloucester’s director of rugby, said. “After the break we managed the game much better. Huge credit to James Hook for kicking as well as he did and our line-out was the factor which allowed us to win comfortably in the end.”

All Gloucester need now to start the year well is to hear on Tuesday that the knee injury to Jonny May, their England wing, is not as bad as they fear.

Gloucester: R Cook; C Sharples (B Burns, 70), B Meakes (M Atkinson, 55), B Twelvetrees (capt), H Purdy; J Hook, W Heinz (G Laidlaw, 55); N Wood (P McAllister, 47), R Hibbard (T Lindsay, 56), N Thomas (D Murphy, 56), T Savage, J Thrush, R Moriarty (B Morgan, 47), M Kvesic, S Kalamafoni (J Rowan, 65).

London Irish: S Maitland; A Lewington (sin-bin, 49-59), C Hearn, J Williams, A Tikoirotuma; C Noakes (S Geraghty, 65), B McKibbin (S Steele, 59); T Court (T Smallbone, 62), D Paice (G Ellis, 68), B Franks (H Aulika, 68), M Symons (capt), W Lloyd, L Narraway (J Sinclair, 56), B Cowan (J Trayfoot, 51), O Treviranus.

Referee: T Foley (Bristol).