This was a week that laid bare the true Combe spirit. With regulars stepping up to the 2s and some other general unavailability, the 3s were forced to dig deep to field a side, highlighted by one of the co‑managers defying doctors’ orders to make his first appearance in 18 months. That said, fresh from a rest weekend, the squad arrived at Croydon under clear skies and in ideal conditions, with these few late selection tweaks smoothed over by the familiar wait for a late‑arriving referee..

From kick‑off, Combe showed real intent. Will Dowden and Tiane Elone made early inroads, while the backs looked to move the ball at every opportunity, with academy player Charlie McCormack making his 3s debut. Handling errors and a lack of intensity at the breakdown initially stalled momentum (seemingly copying the England national team), but once those issues were addressed, Combe began to build pressure.

Tiane opened the scoring with a trademark bulldozing run, converted by Jacob Ingold. After another well‑worked set of phases, Gareth Desborough marked his return in style by crossing for the second try, again converted by Jacob. The game then settled into a steady rhythm until Ollie Walker made one of those scrum half snipes that takes everyone by surprise, crossing in the corner, although the conversion was missed. Combe went into the break 0–19 ahead.

The second half began with Combe still dreaming of their half‑time oranges, allowing Croydon to strike twice in quick succession, both converted, to tighten the scoreline. Once the early sluggishness was shaken off, Combe regained control and late replacement Tom Hummerson crossed for the first of his second‑half hat‑trick.

That score opened the floodgates. Further tries followed for Tiane and Tom, with a conversion sandwiched between them. A third Croydon try briefly threatened to dent the mood, but a yellow card gave Combe space against a tiring defence. Joe Birch added another score, having earlier recovered from a high tackle more suited to a wrestling ring, before Tom completed his hat‑trick. Jacob converted both late scores to cap off a strong afternoon and secure valuable league points.

Aside from a brief attempt to raise Coach Shane’s blood pressure immediately after half time, the team produced some excellent phases and combinations. The offloading, support lines and work rate showed just how much this group plays for each other and for the shirt.

Furthermore, the true moral of the story shows that no matter how broken you think your body might be, no matter what your doctor may have said, ignore it! Follow Gareth’s example - there’s at least one more 3s game left in your body. Training is on Wednesday’s at 7pm and the next match is home on the 7th March against Southwark - one of our title challengers - with the team looking for some redemption following the tight away loss earlier in the season.