Cheshunt 1xt XV 8 - 17 London New Zealand 1st XV

With the first team pitch flooded, the game was played on the training pitch, which offers a large advantage to the side kicking downhill, both sides missed early penalties and Cheshunt enjoyed long periods of possession deep in LNZ territory. The conditions becoming more difficult as the game progressed, the mud making an open, running game impossible, but both teams tried their best to entertain and silky skilled backs moves were replaced with some big tackles from both sets of forwards, as the ball was kept tight.
Eventually LNZ worked the ball uphill and after several forward drives powered over the line after 34 minutes, the simple conversion gave them a 0-7 lead. Cheshunt spent the remainder of the half in the visitors 22, but were unable to open their account.
Recapturing the initiative in the second period was never going to be easy, particularly as LNZ had doubled their lead just 5 minutes into the second period, after another close range effort from the forwards, but Cheshunt began to play without fear and adventurous play in the awful conditions, didn’t get the reward it deserved. Centres Jac Steyn and Adam Chantler drove into the LNZ back line, half backs Brad Ewing and Tom Claridge kept the pack on the front foot and despite the conditions and the slope, were beginning to look the better side. However, their season long problem of not converting possesion into points stayed with them and they went through phase after phase in the LNZ danger zone without threatening the try line.
The visitors were happy to concede penalties at the breakdown and were reduced to 14 when a yellow card was produced for persistently killing the ball. When Cheshunt finally spilt the ball, the blacks hacked down field and looked to have Ewing pinned back on his own try line, he bounced off several would be tacklers and managed to clear the lines.
Using the slope advantage the visitors started to boot possession down field, making it very difficult for Cheshunt to sustain any long periods of pressure and with just 12 minutes left, LNZ put the result beyond doubt with a penalty in front of the posts.
Throughout the game Cheshunt tackled ferociously, took contact fearlessly and all 18 players should be commended for a tremendous effort against a team which had put 69 points on them earlier in the season.

Martines, Girdlestone, Phillips, Reynolds, Linsell. S, Hounslow, Duligall, Dixon, Ewing, Claridge, Daymon, Chantler, Steyn, Doyle, Gutteridge, Replacements: Short, Donnelly, Boulton. F.