Whilst it has to be said that their opposition were weak, Field’s performance was disciplined throughout. Once again the forward unit worked well, led with confidence by captain and flanker Nicholls and with the restored Palmer relishing the freedom of playing number eight without the burden of captaincy. The backs were well marshalled by scrum half Doe in combination with fly half Bremner who is adjusting well to his new position.

Thirty-one unanswered points in the first half came from tries by Palmer after six minutes, hooker Charlie Winter after twenty minutes and then perhaps the try of the game. From a scrum Doe rifled out a pass to Bremner standing deep who spotted that Lytchett were up flat and with a gap in their centres made a well-directed and weighted kick which was followed up by Fletcher, who was playing at centre rather than his favoured position of flanker, Fletcher lit the after burner and made 40 yards to haul down the ball over the try line under the post.

Richard Herring was next to add to Field mounting score after Doe had kicked to clear, George Saunders from fullback chased and stripped the ball from the unfortunate Lytchett catcher and popped a pass to the supporting flanker for him to touch down under the posts.
On the half James Aitken burst down the left wing to touch down out wide and Doe added the extras to two previous successful conversions. Half time thirty one - nil

The second half with Field playing up the slope with the setting sun in their eyes spectators could be forgiven for expecting things to calm down and their pulses to return to normal. Luckily captain Nicholls and his men were enjoying the chance to develop their skills against full contact opposition.

Rob Alderman was the first to profit scoring after five minutes and a mention to the other wing Aaron Cartwright who, under the experienced guidance of Saunders was strong in defence and quick to come off his wing to add speed and penetration when needed combining well with his opposite number Alderman.

Further tries from Herring and in a bullocking run from prop Dryden had the opposition camping in their twenty two until they kicked over the top and their pacey winger gathered but was tacked by the retreating Field defence who then failed to release the player. The awarded penalty, the first that Field had conceded within kicking range, was slotted over by Lytchett to save their embarrassment and put 3 points on the board.

With further Field tries from replacement Gerald Landels and a second for James Aitken, Doe added 3 conversions for the second half to end thirty one - three and Field to post a great win and five much needed league points.

scott heffield acknowledged the great and well-needed performance from the players and the much needed confidence boost that it provided and observed that, “we dominated in every area and it was good to see both forwards and backs contributing equally to the points tally.”
Heffield confirmed that the 1St team had again fielded new players as injury worries continue effect availability. “Whilst this is obviously a problem for the club,” he said, “it has meant that we can give our young and up and coming players a taste of senior rugby which is great for their development and future of the club.”

Field have two further matches before the Christmas break and the halfway point of the season. Having sustained further injuries this week, Heffield is in the rare position for this season of knowing that he has a strong team to take across the water to Ventnor next week; his firm intention is to return to the mainland with 5 winning points.
The second fixture is at home on 17th December against an improving ninth placed Farnborough and two further wins in 2011 should hold Field in eighth place in the league.

With almost thirty confirmed guests the pre match lunch on 17th December is expected to be a highlight of the Christmas period and anyone wishing to experience the clubhouse atmosphere and quality of Steve Henderson’s catering should email Chris Todd cgt@bcpc.org to book their places.

Match Report: Chris Todd