The temperature is dropping and the puddles of surface water are starting to appear on the pitch. Down at Ash Lane that can only mean one thing: Vets Wednesday. (The purists might argue that the evening lacked sideways driving rain, but all in good time.)

The game began with local friends and rivals Woodrush making an immediate statement of their intent as they swiftly went through the gears. For a pack of eight distinguished looking gentlemen of senior years, the Woodrush forwards were playing a fast game that mixed powerful drives with clever offloads to keep the momentum going. After the bludgeon came the rapier as the ball was whipped out to their three quarters who had no shortage of pace. With Kings reeling from the double whammy of the Woodrush team, it was only a matter of time before points were on the board. With barely fifteen minutes on the clock, Kings were two tries down, courtesy of two scores from the Woodrush fullback who was the quickest man on the park by a country mile. Neither try was converted, but with Kings seemingly punch drunk on the ropes and 0-10 down, that wasn’t an immediate concern for the visitors.

For Kings, this was their do or die moment; up their game, or face a very long and bruising 70 minutes. Fortunately for all concerned, Kings decided to make a game of it, going back to basics to combat the Woodrush tactics. The home side tightened up the scrummage, scrapped for everything around the fringes, and as soon as the Woodrush scrum half looked to put any width on the game, the Kings backs were on top of their counterparts like a swarm of tsetse flies. The good ship Kings Norton began to sail a steadier path and take the game back to the visitors. The likes of Bully, Old Man Freeman and Journeyman Nigel got the initial momentum going, then the midfield combination of Mick Fahout and Pete Crumpet carried on the charge; Fahout ghosting his way past flailing defenders and Crumptet using power and angles to punch through.

The points weren’t yet coming for Kings, but suddenly it was game on. Hearts will still in mouths from time to time. The Woodrush heavy mob still had plenty of gas in the tank, and every time their backs had a hint of quick ball you felt that they were a hair’s breadth away from breaking through, but Kings held strong and were relieved to finish the half with the score still at 0-10.

Come the second half, the Kings pack was starting to gain the upper hand in the set-piece courtesy of Kings’ own heavy mob (Kev Edwards, Buck, Craig Friesian et al), so they played to their strength and began to grind their way forward. A series of scrums, plus the odd penalty that Kings opted to take as a scrum, took the hosts within touching distance of the Woodrush line. A mighty drive from a five yard scrum on the right flank saw the Kings front row get their noses over the try line, then the second row passed over the line, whilst throughout number 8 Glen Marriott was in complete control. As the ball trickled over the line, Marriott dropped like a sack of spuds to claims Kings’ first try. Paul Cacker’s touchline conversion attempt went wide, but at 5-10, the game was now opening up.

For the first time in the game, the Kings men found themselves on the front foot and dogging defence aside, Woodrush were struggling to find a response. The Kings forwards and backs were combining well to gain ground, with Captain James Luc Pri’chard a constant thorn in the visitors’ side with his blind side streaks. From a scrum on the Woodrush 22 number 8 Glen Marriott picked up and made the initial break. He fed Prich’ard on the outside, and Pri’chard in turn drew the man and fed to the supporting Cacker who had a clean run through the fat-footed defence for Kings’ second try. Full back Jon Egan added the conversion to give Kings a 12-10 lead.

With the clock ticking down, Kings knew that a two point margin was not the safest of leads, and Woodrush for their part knew the game was still there for the taking. For the final fifteen minutes it was end to end stuff, with both sides throwing the proverbial kitchen sink at each other, looking for that half break that would break the deadlock, that fumbled ball under pressure to counter-attack from. It felt like Kings were going to weather the Woodrush storm, but with the final play of the game, Kings conceded a penalty in front of their posts thirty yards out. Cool as a Wednesday evening at Ash Lane, the Woodrush fly half calmly slotted the penalty to give Woodrush a 12-13 lead, and with the referee’s subsequent blast of the whistle for full time, that kick too gave Woodrush the win.

The initial disappointment from the Kings men lasted only a moment or two. Both sides left the field with heads held high, knowing that in the end, only the most slender of margins had separated them. The post match chat in the bar afterwards (over a pint or two of Purity Pure gold - a crisp and zesty golden ale, clocking in at 3.8%, that is the perfect accompaniment to wonderful rugby from the respective clubs’ elder statesmen) featured no miserable contemplation of “what ifs” from the Kings players; rather the talk from both sides was of looking forward to the rematch.

Next Match Wednesday evening 17th December versus Yardley & District Vets All Welcome Kick off 7.30pm Real Ale happy 80 mins Hot food available. Players over 35 contact Pat Dalley 07901637610 Email pat.dalley@sky.com