On a cold and blustery day, East Retford’s 3^rd XV hosted Ollerton for their first game of the season. Limited numbers meant that the home team had to borrow a player in order to field a full team, and a lack of experienced front row players resulted in uncontested scrums. However both teams set out with every intention of fighting for victory, with Retford hoping their mixture of old hands and fresh youngsters would lead to a result.

Following the kick-off it soon became apparent that the visiting team had a strong and experienced team, with their backs demonstrating fast-running and effective rugby. Ollerton soon scored with an incisive burst through the centre, but the home side fought hard to contain them. Unfortunately two of the Retford players then had to leave to play as substitutes for the second team, and a replacement was offered by the visitors to keep the game (almost) balanced.

The enforced changes had an impact on Retford, and they played most of the second half on the back foot. An injury then depleted the home side further, and Ollerton took full advantage to keep the score ticking over, and by half-time they were leading by 38 points to nil.

Despite being at a disadvantage numerically, Retford came out for the second half determined to give a good account of themselves, and they soon began to take the game to the visitors. The pack began to dominate during the breakdowns, strong tackling began to pay dividends and good runs from Anthony Kelly and Øivind Merrygold penetrated the Ollerton defence. What seemed like a perfectly good try from the “Brazilian” was discounted because the referee did not see it grounded, and subsequently Ollerton managed to score. This did not dampen Retford’s spirit, and eventually the extra effort paid off.

A powerful attack from the forwards led to panic in the visitor’s defensive line, and an attempted pass back to a defender behind the try line led to the ball falling to the ground. An attempted clearing kick was missed by a country mile, and a grateful Anthony Kelly took control and dived on the ball to score for the home team. Steve Henderson duly converted, and although Ollerton scored again the second half was a much more balanced affair.

The entire team played well despite the difficult circumstances, especially in the second half, and hopefully more fixtures will follow. Man of the match goes to John Severn in the forwards for general good play, and to Steve Henderson in the backs for his tactical play and hard work.