Kenilworth Men 35-19 Ludlow Men

A large enthusiastic crowd watched a really good game full of open rugby with handling skills and offloads to the forefront of everything. It was refereed by Warwickshire's Phil Monaghan.

In the opening 5 minutes, in which Kenilworth really did come out of the blocks, Ludlow managed to score first through a backs move that went straight through the middle of the Kenilworth defence. This was scored by scrum half Rhys Perkins, backing up on the inside and converted by left winger Sam Brooks.

The riposte from Kenilworth came in the 10th minute of play, through their very effective driving maul off a lineout five metres out from the Ludlow line. Inevitably it was Bobby Thompson who scored at the back of the drive and this try went unconverted.

From the Ludlow restart Kenilworth scored again. This was a delight to watch as it was a build-up that involved both forwards and backs, fast ball and continuity. Sam Southall finished off the flow of the move in the left-hand corner. The crowd really appreciated that score, which again went unconverted. 10-7.

On 14 minutes Kenilworth scored again through a great break by Chaz Hudson off the kick off and a shoulder ball to Mark O'Connor. This was followed by fast ball again and slick hands to put Kenilworth five metres from the line. Bobby Thompson scored his second try from the ensuing ruck. The score was sweetly converted by Mark O'Connor from wide out. 17-7.

For the next 10 minutes Kenilworth applied continued pressure on Ludlow in their 22-metre area, but were unable to score. Two Kenilworth players knocked the ball on fairly close to the Ludlow line, which meant two potential scores went begging. Leading up to the half time whistle, Ludlow were able to get out of their half and attack in Kenilworth's 22 area but were kept out by very tenacious defence.

Kenilworth's forwards were doing sterling work in the tight and the loose, all of them displaying dogged determination and applying pressure so Ludlow had little time on the ball. The return of the experienced Chaz Hudson in the second row really helped

Kenilworth's cause, boosted confidence and offered greater options in attack and defence.

The second half saw Kenilworth immediately attacking and Ludlow giving away a penalty 35 metres out and just to the left of the uprights, this was duly slotted between the posts by Mark O'Connor, who had found his mojo. This penalty made the score on the board 20-7.

From the ensuing restart Kenilworth again pinned Ludlow back. Off a very efficient lineout take by Max Brain, Bobby Thompson made ground from a carry and the front row forwards continued this onwards. Scrum half Gaz Renowden made a dart into the guard area round the ruck and this resulted in Joe England going over in the left-hand corner. The link play and patience here was outstanding to create the score. This was unconverted.

From the restart Ludlow kicked the ball dead and so Kenilworth had a scrum back on half way, outside centre Sam Peppitt made big metres going forward off the scrum with strength and good footwork. From the ruck Charlie Morris cut an angle off Gaz Renowden and beat the cover to score to the left of the posts, this was converted by Mark O'Connor. Replacement Jimmy Gopperth came on to the pitch at this stage and graced the Kenilworth turf with his presence.

In the 74th minute Ludlow found some continuity and fluidity and came back at Kenilworth with a well taken try by replacement Mickey Jones through a pick and go 2 metres out from the whitewash, this was unconverted. Both teams at this stage in the match were down to the bare bones with injuries on each side. On 78 minutes Mark O'Connor slotted another penalty from in front of the posts to make the score 35-12.

This score was followed by good Ludlow pressure and Kenilworth giving away unnecessary penalties. A scrum in front of the posts saw Ludlow push the Kenilworth pack backwards and Ludlow's number 8 went over to score the try; this was converted by Sam Brooks.

In the next 2 minutes things got a bit open and even harum-scarum with Jimmy Gopperth making a break into wide space and carrying into the Ludlow 22 metre area with the lurking support player being Mark O'Connor, alas the ball was knocked on. The final whistle came, Kenilworth were deserved winners due to their tenacity and application; it was good to witness some open rugby from both sides and mercifully not dominated by the weather.

Man of the match for Kenilworth was Mark O'Connor, other players definitely stood up to be counted in this game. Overall, the defensive performance was what stood out as that was least number of points conceded in a game this season. They were spurred on

by a really good number of supporters in the crowd, this was a valuable five points in the bag.

Next week Kenilworth men play a rearranged match versus Edwardians at home with a 2.15pm kick off. This is another game where points will mean prizes. To the people of Kenilworth and beyond, your never-ending support is always very much appreciated. We need another big crowd to get behind the team and keep pushing them to outstanding performances.