Basic errors prove costly

Rugby

Andy Pratt admitted there was no point trying to sugar coat Canterbury’s 29-21 home defeat to Bury St Edmunds in National 2 South on Saturday. The Black and Ambers led by 16 points at half-time before capitulating and head of rugby Pratt said his side simply hadn’t done the basics well enough. “It was very disappointing,” he said. “The first half was promising but it was all undone with a dreadful performance in the second half, there’s no point trying to sugar coat it. “It was just a catalogue of errors, we were careless with the ball. Every time we got any sort of possession we gave it away cheaply and invited pressure.” Canterbury slipped from fourth to seventh after the defeat – their second in succession – and on Saturday they host Worthing, whose 23-19 win over Tonbridge Juddians last weekend ended a run of six straight losses. The two clubs are familiar adversaries having come through the leagues together, and Pratt admits he is pleased to have another home game so soon after the Bury defeat. He added: “We need to do better (than we did against Bury) but there’s no point going overboard. “We haven’t become a bad team overnight, these are the same players who have given us such a great start. “But maybe we need to go back to basics and remind them of the important things that we need to do when we play at home.”