Walden denied with a last minute penalty.

After 2 disappointing results Walden had to step up against 4th placed North Walsham in order not to let the season drift to an unsatisfactory conclusion.
With several key players returning and good support after a well attended VP's lunch Walden started the game at high tempo and had the better of the first quarter of the game. However it was North Walsham who scored first when Walden conceded a couple of penalties and they elected to kick deep into the home 22. From the resulting line out they executed a well drilled catch and drive to score a converted try 0- 7 after 16 mins.
Almost straight from the restart the visitors worked the ball across the line to the right winger who burst through a tackle and sped down the right and with only Walden’s fullback to beat passed to a supporting player who went under the posts 0 – 14 18 mins.
At this point those that have watched Walden over the last couple of weeks wondered if the flood gates would open but thankfully it was not to be.
5 minutes later Walden's pressure paid when 2nd row Callum Guthrie was on hand to score after several phases of possession close to the visitors try line paid off and Walden were back in the game when full back Tom Price converted 7 – 14 after 23 mins.
Walsham attacked from the kick off but some great defence kept them out but Walden’s bench was needed when winger Ben Nash had to be stretchered off after getting knocked out.
After a 10 minute delay Walsham scored their third try to stretch their lead to 7- 19 and despite some good efforts by Walden this is how it stayed to half time.
5 minutes after kick off the visitors kicked long to clear their lines and the ball was fielded by full back Tom Price who sidestepped his way through the defensive line and broke free and as he worked his way into the Walsham half he found scrum half Paul Marshall supporting him on the inside. With just the fullback to beat second row Brad Baker was on hand, a good pass found him and he raced to the corner to score one of the best tries of the season and Walden narrowed the gap to 14 - 19.
With the scrum and line out working well Walden dominated possession in the third quarter, forcing the visitors to defend and they conceded several penalties being lucky not to find a player binned. From one of these penalties Walden took it quickly and drove towards the line. With a series of pick and goes they got within a metre of the try line, with forwards and backs combining it was fitting that centre Mark Kimberley finally drove over the line for Walden to take the lead 21 – 19 65th minute.
The visitors came back to score another converted try as they broke down the right finding an overlap to score under the posts. 21 -26 70th minute.
But Walden were not done yet and from the restart some great pressure forced a fumble and flanker Matt Holden pounced on the ball and ran in unopposed from 30 metres out and Walden were back in front 28- 26 with 5 minutes remaining.
But they were unable to hold on to the lead despite clearing their lines with a good kick forcing a Walsham line out just inside their half.
The visitors won the ball and passed down the line only and gained a penalty just inside their half for what the Referee deemed a high tackle. The frustration got the better of Walden and the Referee marched them back 10 metres and into the range of the Walsham kicker who had been on good form. He slotted the penalty over to take a 1 point lead 28 -29 with only 1 minute remaining on the clock.
Walden forced a penalty on the half way line but it was just out side the range and with the clock already over 80 minutes they had to run the ball but Walsham turned the ball over and kicked it out to celebrate the win.
Walden can be proud of their efforts and perhaps can feel a little unlucky not to come out victorious in this very entertaining game.
However 2 Bonus points were some reward for a great performance.