Hitchin produced a performance at Welwyn that belied their
position in the league, running the promotion chasing side close, scoring 5
tries & losing by just 6 points
Hitchin kicked off, and after just 3 minutes were ahead as
Ben Wiggins converted a penalty from 20 m
Welwyn hit back as, awarded a penalty, they kicked for the
corner and from the lineout they drove the maul over the line to score a
converted try.
For a while, Welwyn were enjoying most of the possession
& territory, but the Hitchin defence
held out , and at the end of the first quarter it was the visitors who broke
free from a quickly taken penalty , for scrum half Will Evans to run in
unopposed from 60m, to touch down for Wiggins to add the extra points
Welwyn came straight back , breaking through some suspect
tackling., to regain the lead with a
converted try
On the half hour mark, Harry Cartwright crossed in the corner
to give Hitchin a slender one point lead, and with centre Jack Peachey running
in an individual try from within his own half minutes later, the visitors took well earned 20 -14 lead
Hitchin were penalised for offside on their 22, Welwyn kicked
to the corner but the following lineout was not straight allowing Hitchin to
clear their lines from the scrum.
Minutes later, from a similar lineout, Welwyn were penalised
allowing Hitchin to clear their lines again.
In the second half, it did not take Welwyn long to come back
, gaining good possession on the 10 m line and crossing for a converted try, and after 10 minutes took
advantage of poor defensive work to score again in the comer to take a 6 point
lead
They increased their lead further with a break from midfield,
out - stripping the Hitchin defence to take a 33-20 lead
But Hitchin fought back, earning a scrum 5 m from the Welwyn line, and moved the ball across
the field for Cartwright to score his
second try , with Wiggins adding the 2 points
A further 5 point score from Welwyn looked to have put the
result beyond doubt, but Hitchin replied after 35 minutes with an unconverted try
from prop Harry Elleston, to narrow the gap to 6 points
As the final whistle drew near, Welwyn successfully held the
visitors at bay , to win a well contested game by 38 – 32
Team Stuart West, Joshua Page, James Akrill, Samuel Underwood, James Bolter, Alex Wainwright, Adam Baird, Anthony Williams, William Evans, Ben Wiggins, Harry Cartwright, Carwyn Morgan, Jack Peachey, Jack Powell, Elliot Gibson
Subs Adam Shaw, Harry Elleston, Rhys Gregory
Scores T: Harry Cartwright (2), Harry Elleston (1),Will Evans (1), Jack Peachey (1)
C: Ben Wiggins (2)
P: Ben Wiggins (1)
The league: London North West 3