Old Priorians 37 - 17 Datchworth

Leading at half time, it was not to be for a gutsy Datchworth in Ealing, West London. It was always going to be an arduous task over turning Priorians on their home turf, though for much of the match it looked very possible.

Old Priorians were quickest out of the traps, taking a swift 2 try 12 – 0 lead. Indiscipline when in defence let the hosts’ work their way up the pitch, then after strong phase play an opportunity out wide for the Priorians’ winger saw him cross the whitewash. This was soon followed by a sweeping counter attack which saw Priorians move the ball quickly and effectively across the pitch, galloping down across the pitch in numbers, smashing through the Datchworth line and doubling their try count. Datchworth not to be deterred however, used the wind to their advantage and soon gained a penalty attempt. Unfortunately Fly Half Tom Wood shanked the kick, though soon knocked over four successive penalties in a frantic 15 minute period. Consistent and impressive pressure from Datchworth led to persistent offences from the home side and Datchworth kept taking their penalty opportunities. Soon they were to take the lead. Brutal play from the away forwards sucked all the Priorians defence in. Flanker Stuart Young broke through the hosts defence, offloaded smartly to Henry Mountain who found James Watt in the corner to score and put Datchworth in the lead going into half time 17 – 12.

The second half however was a slightly different story. The hosts used the strong gales wisely, constantly finding the corners and putting the Datchworth defence under pressure. Although the Priorian’s scrum struggled against the brute strength of the Datchworth pack, the line out was a superbly drilled set piece and offered a great platform for the backs to do their thing. That they did, breaking through the Datchworth centres’ and scoring under the posts after 20 minutes of the second half. A follow up try was soon to be as an error from the Datchworth full back led Priorians winger in for his second try of the game. The closing 10 minutes saw Priorians close the game out in style, scoring two more tries to leave the scoreline deceptively one sided. Datchworth can and will take a huge amount of confidence from this display and will fancy their chances at home next week against Finchley in what promises to be a stimulating encounter.