Saturday 29th March 2014

18 brave souls travelled to distant Ludlow and in a first half against a very strong wind we held our own for the first half hour, with the only score being a Ludlow try and conversion. Our tackling was ferocious and effective but by this time we had lost two players to identical injuries (pulled calf muscles) and unfortunately by half time, thanks to three breakaway tries, we were trailing by 26 points.

In the second half, Ben Harris forced himself over for a try from close range after prolonged forward pressure, Chris Cheney converting, and shortly after this Andy Jacobs celebrated another try, only to find that he had dived over the 22!!

Paradoxically, despite the final score, it is true to say that Aston enjoyed superiority in terms of possession and territorial advantage, based on very effective pick and drive, but as soon as possession was lost Ludlow had the ammunition and speed to run in breakaway tries from their own half. It did not help Aston's cause when they mysteriously lost two more players to similar calf injuries.

Nevertheless, our commitment and endeavour could not be faulted, and if we can eliminate forced, and indeed, unforced errors, today's performance bodes well for the future.