Dec 10 - LNE3 Wanstead (A)

 L 37 - 7  Report attached

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Wanstead 37 v Wymondham 7

By John Mackay

Wymondham yet again returned empty-handed from a trip to London and they must now beware that their mid-season ‘blip’ does not turn into a full slump.

Wanstead established the pattern of the game from the fourth minute when they spotted that the Wymondham full back had joined the back line, chipped into the empty space and won the race to touch down the ball for a try.

While the away team then threatened their opponent’s line, they gave away possession and allowed Wanstead to relieve the pressure by conceding the first of what proved to be many penalties- this time for obstruction in the backs.

On 20 minutes Wymondham conceded 3 points when they were penalised for a deliberate knock-on in front of their posts and, shortly afterwards, things went from bad to worse when Wanstead engineered an overlap and gleefully dived over on the left wing with the try giving them a 15-0 lead.

To compound their woes, the Red and Blacks were then reduced to 14 men when Captain, Sokia, was sent to the sin bin for a high tackle.

Wanstead made the most of their one man advantage by kicking to touch and setting up a drive which carried them over the line for a converted try and a 22-0 lead at the break.

The second half brought no relief for Wymondham who lost centre, Barry O’Sullivan, for ten minutes for a mistimed tackle while Wanstead also profited by adding the 3 points to increase their lead to 25-0.

Young prop Josh Stuart replaced Brown and produced a spirited cameo performance which at least heartened the away support.

With 25 minutes of the half gone, Wymondham again conceded possession in midfield and allowed the Wanstead backs and forwards to combine to score a further try which went unconverted.

Coach Justin Loveridge then introduced himself at scrum-half for the first time this season and made an immediate impact on the game when his clever chip ahead was fielded by the hard working Hodgson who streaked home to ground under the posts and pull the score back to 30-7.

The away come back was to prove short-lived, however as, with the end of the game in sight, the Wanstead forwards worked another converted try to leave Wymondham to retreat up the A11 with a bruising 37-7 loss.

Sunday brought some consolation for the Tuttles Lane faithful as the Wymondham Under 17 side beat a strong Colchester team 25-15 to progress, as the sole Norfolk representative, to the semi-finals of the Eastern Counties Cup and an away semi-final likely to be against Bury Saint Edmunds or Ipswich. The Wasps Ladies team also continued their fine run of form with a convincing win against local rivals Fakenham.

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