Earlsdon 15 - Droitwich 3

Saturday 27th September 2008

Droitwich produced a disjointed, lacklustre and, it must be said, very poor display at Coventry based Earlsdon on Saturday. In superb conditions the Spa side never threatened to score, let alone win the game and seemed to lack any real structure or game plan.

The opening exchanges were messy with both sides resorting to aimless kicking, as it appeared the kick and chase would be the major weapon on show. The home side took the lead with a well taken drop goal, before extending it with a penalty. One fine run by Steve Poke saw Droitwich gain ground and another by Ross Coombes, but on both occasions Droitwich were unable to take advantage.

Turning round only 6 nil down would have given the visitors some hope; to play so poorly and only be a score down was encouraging. The second half, however, failed to reach the mediocre heights of the first period. Droitwich became more and more disjointed and fell further behind to another penalty.

A good run by young winger Jack Pomroy saw Droitwich make a rare visit to the Earlsdon ’22. A penalty was awarded and Matt Blackmore reduced the arrears. This would, however, prove to be the end of Droitwich’s adventure as a series of penalties saw the Spa side back in their own half to allow the reliable home kicker to put the game beyond doubt with two further penalties. A late rally saw Nick Godfrey and James Protherough make ground, but nothing was to come of it.

The final whistle ended a hugely disappointing afternoon for the town outfit, who must know that if they are to have any success whatsoever this season they need to raise their game by a considerable amount. The team, as a whole, looked woefully disjointed and under prepared—a sentiment echoed by Blackmore after the game, “We never looked in the hunt today, but we will put this behind us and go forward from here. We are all desperately disappointed and determined not to let ourselves down this badly again.”

Section Navigation