Old Laurentians 28 – Silhillians 10

Saturday afternoon saw the Sils fall to their first league defeat of the season, as an assured second-half performance by Old Laurentians shut the door on any comeback heroics by the visitors.

The Sils arrived at Fenley Fields on the back of a superb victory against Old Coventrians the week before. Old Cov’s only win of the season thus far had, coincidentally, come against OL’s, though any notion that this was going to be an easy game was certainly absent amongst the visitors before kick-off.

As expected the home team came flying out of the traps, determined to put their season on track and push themselves back towards the top of the table - a position they have grown accustomed to in recent years. OL’s cohesive approach and constant sniping around the fringes caused some problems early on, and a charged-down kick within the first five minutes almost saw them register the first points of the afternoon. Sils scrambled well to keep them out, second-row Cameron Law particularly noticeable with some crunching hits, and soon came into the game with some determined attacks of their own. A penalty by fly-half Dave Grey was due reward for some excellent phase play, though this was soon cancelled out by an OL’s riposte.

Sils continued to push for the breakthrough, and deservedly scored the first try of the game shortly afterwards. Quick hands off a penalty put the ball out to winger Nic Powell, whose darting run and quick feet through the home side allowed Dave Grey to ghost around the cover defence and finish under the posts. 10-3 to the Sils after twenty minutes.

The reply came almost immediately from the home side, frustrating the Sils whose defence had been almost faultless to that point. A sweeping move out wide put the OL’s winger behind the game-line, and a short inside pass to the supporting man saw the OL’s thirteen cross for the try, the missed conversion leaving the score at 10-8.

The Sils rallied well and took the game back to OL’s, with the resulting pressure leading to what was perhaps the turning point of the game. Following some excellent driving runs from the Sils forwards deep inside the home side’s 22, the ball popped out the back of the ruck and was quickly pounced upon by the OL’s back row. With the attacking side completely out of position, the ball was thrown wide to the home side’s full-back, whose elusive run down the blind side and offload put his team-mate clear for a score completely against the run of play. With the final play of the game, the wind had quite simply been knocked out of the visitors’ sails. 15-10 at the break.

The second-half saw the home team step up a gear, solid in defence and effective in the loose. The Sils, meanwhile, continued to launch attacks where possible, though were unable to secure enough quick possession to mount any sustained attack on the OL’s line. A fantastic break by No.8 Peter ‘Shelf’ Nicholls failed to result in the score it deserved, the ball cruelly going to ground as the support closed in, and in the process summing up the afternoon for the Sils.

OL’s kept the scoreboard ticking over, gradually extending their lead and in turn reducing the opportunities for the Sils to get back in the game. A penalty was soon followed by a try from turnover ball as the visitors proved, once again that afternoon, to be their own worst enemies at time. A late try moved to the scoreboard to 28-10 at the final whistle.

The Sils go to Worcester Wanderers next week for a top-of-the-table clash and a serious test of their aspirations for the season.