There are days when everything clicks, days when nothing goes right, and days when you wonder whether you might have been better off staying in the clubhouse. For Westcombe Park, Saturday's encounter with Maidstone fell rather firmly into the third category.
The warning signs appeared after just five minutes when Sam Rhodes departed with a hamstring injury. Given our already extensive injury list, losing another player so early was hardly the start we were looking for. Sadly, it set the tone for much of what followed.
Maidstone opened the scoring after eight minutes, although their try appeared to feature a fairly obvious knock-on. Unfortunately, the referee was already struggling with a leg injury of his own and was perhaps understandably more concerned with remaining upright than spotting minor infringements. 0–7.
After 17 minutes, Maidstone knocked on over the try line. Remarkably, our increasingly immobile official spotted this one from approximately 45 yards away. An extraordinary piece of eyesight, given his earlier difficulties. Credit where it's due.
Unfortunately, Maidstone soon won a scrum penalty, took a quick tap and crossed for their second try. The referee then required further treatment on his troublesome leg. At this stage, there was a growing possibility that the match might be decided by whichever team had the most functioning limbs. 0–14.
On 26 minutes, Maidstone's number eight picked up from a five-metre scrum and popped the ball inside to his supporting flanker, who crossed for their third try. 0–19.
To their credit, Combe responded well. A superb steal from Syers resulted in a high tackle, and Smith showed excellent awareness to take a quick tap before feeding Dan Hamilton. From eight yards out, there was only ever going to be one winner. Hamilton powered over, Clayton added the extras, and suddenly there was a little life in the contest. 7–19.
Maidstone, despite enjoying the benefit of a strong wind, hadn't really made the most of it during the opening half hour. What they had made the most of, however, was their considerable advantage at scrum time.
Their experienced front row were proving too powerful for Combe's youthful combination, and another scrum penalty arrived after 33 minutes. Whilst painful to watch at times, this was undoubtedly a valuable learning experience for our young forwards. Unfortunately, the lessons were being delivered with all the subtlety of a runaway steamroller.
On 35 minutes, Maidstone scored again.
I would love to describe the build-up, the clever running lines and the quality of the finish, but unfortunately I was halfway through telling what I considered to be a particularly humorous story to those around me. I believe the conversion was successful, although my audience appeared rather less convinced by the quality of my storytelling.
Having finished my anecdote and returned to my journalistic duties, I was just in time to witness the referee award Maidstone another rather baffling penalty.
Things deteriorated further on 40 minutes when Stevens received a yellow card following a succession of scrum penalties. The half-time whistle arrived with Maidstone leading 26–7, and Combe in need of something approaching a miracle.

A Change of Referee, but Not of Fortune
Half-time brought an unexpected development. Our original referee, having bravely battled through 40 minutes on one functioning leg, decided enough was enough.
Fortunately, one of the Maidstone players had a parent who happened to be a qualified referee. Even more fortunately, our departing official described his replacement as "a much better referee than me."
An encouraging endorsement, although given the circumstances, perhaps not the most demanding of benchmarks.
The second half began with Combe showing some encouraging attacking intent, but on 48 minutes Maidstone turned possession over and their outside centre ran an excellent line to score beneath the posts. 7–33.
Four minutes later, Blackmore was forced off following a head knock. With Rhodes already gone and the squad stretched to breaking point before kick-off, we were now very much down to the bare bones. The medical department may soon have to start recruiting directly from the spectators.
On 55 minutes, a little too much verbal enthusiasm resulted in another penalty to Maidstone. They elected to take a scrum, a decision that surprised absolutely nobody within a three-mile radius of the ground.
Five minutes later, Maidstone executed a well-worked lineout move to extend their lead to 38–7.
On the positive side, the sun had finally come out.
And, given the direction in which the match was heading, this was becoming an increasingly significant development.
Combe, however, refused to throw in the towel. A sustained period of pressure saw the home side finally establish some territory and possession, and on 65 minutes Fifi crossed in the corner for a well-deserved try. Clayton's conversion drifted wide, but at 12–38, there was at least some reward for the players' continued efforts.
Maidstone added a final try after 78 minutes to complete a comprehensive 45–12 victory.
I must confess that I wasn't paying quite as much attention as perhaps a responsible match reporter should. By this stage, the sunshine had become rather pleasant, and my thoughts had wandered towards the pressing issue of finding a better solution for our pitch-side advertising banners.
Every cloud.
Final Thoughts
There is no disguising the fact that Maidstone were the better side on the day. Their experienced pack dominated the scrum, providing a platform from which they were able to control large parts of the game. Their physicality and ability to capitalise on Combe's mistakes ultimately proved decisive.
For Westcombe Park, the continuing injury crisis is becoming a serious challenge. Losing two more players during the match, on top of an already depleted squad, made a difficult afternoon even harder.
But there were positives.
Our young front row received an education that no amount of training-ground scrummaging could replicate. They will learn from it, and they will be better players for the experience. There were moments of good attacking rugby, two well-taken tries, and, importantly, the players continued to compete despite the scoreboard and circumstances being firmly against them.
There is no substitute for experience in senior rugby, and sometimes that experience comes at a fairly hefty price.
As for the referee, we wish him a speedy recovery. It's not often that a match official is substituted at half-time, and even less often that his replacement comes with such an enthusiastic recommendation from the man himself.
And finally, should anyone have a cost-effective, wind-resistant and aesthetically pleasing solution to displaying advertising banners around a rugby pitch, please do get in touch.
After all, some problems are considerably easier to solve than our current injury list.
Final Score: Westcombe Park 12 – Maidstone 45
TIGER Combe!