That the stormy weather did not ruin this match at Goddington Dene is a credit to the efforts and skills of both sets of players. While handling was extremely hard with a slippery ball, what the brave fans witnessed was the more basic skills of our game with physicality and hard driving play to the fore.

Before the game started all players, officials and supporters stood in silence to mark the loss to Combe of that stalwart fan, Davie Reid as well as that to the game of young Evesham player Jack Jeffrey who died while playing last week. Both will be remembered.

To the game itself, and Combe started off with the wind in their favour and got on the front foot pretty rapidly. The home side won a scrum in the Hertford 22 which produced a good clean strike. A couple of powerful thrusts towards the opponents’ line and man of the match Elliot Roofe was on hand to finish off to give Combe a 5-0 lead. The conversion was blown off course by the gale.

The game was being played wholly in the visitors’ half but for all their efforts it took until the 25th minute for Combe to add to their lead. A wobbly Hertford clearance was gathered safely by James Burton the WPRFC scrum half and he nimbly picked his way through the mud and defenders to score a fine solo effort. Cameron Hancock kicked a fine conversion given the conditions.

The score stayed at 12-0 to Combe as the first period came to the close. The cut-up state of half of the pitch bore evidence that the only time Hertford were in enemy territory was at the kick off. The challenge facing the Goddington Dene side was whether they could get a foothold in Hertford’s turf.

10 minutes into the half and Hertford made good use of their territorial gains scoring their opening try from a line out following a Combe indiscretion. The visitors tried giving Combe the same medicine 5 minutes later but solid defence held them out.

Combe scored next on 62 minutes. The Combe scrum had been dominant throughout the match and that dominance had produced a string of Hertford offences in the red zone. It was no surprise when WPRFC elected to scrum the last of these indiscretions and Hertford went back over their try line for back rower Aidan Devane to claim the try. The conversion attempt ricocheted off a post.

Hertford narrowed the gap with 10 minutes left when good support play exploited a stretched home defence for a score out wide. That gap narrowed even further to 17-15 with a Hertford try on 78 minutes and the chance to share the points disappeared as a second conversion attempt struck a post.

Combe probably deserved the 4 points as they had more territory in the second half than Hertford managed in the first period. That and a dominant scrum gave them the edge in what was an enjoyably old-fashioned tussle.

The long trip to North Walsham for the re-arranged fixture beckons this coming week-end. More of the same please.

John Vallely