Claverdon 7 - Queens 26

12 months ago Queens kicked off their cup campaign away to Stoke Old Boys in Coventry in mud and rain in an epic battle to the final whistle. Queens first game of the RFU Junior Vase this season saw them face Warwickshire based Claverdon in polar opposite conditions with the sun shining and the ground firm underfoot.

There were a few changes from the victory over Stamford College old boys with Jon Wells and Brett Simpson missing out through injury and Neil Mills, Dave Hull and Rory Dunn unavailable.

The side, however, was buoyed by the return of backrower's Henry Williams, making his first start of the season and Simon Caddick.

Following a long drive, congestion on the M1 and a potential speeding ticket for one Queens player, Queens faced a bulky Claverdon outfit on a rather agricultural pitch, as Coach Ashley Tapper found out making a comical fall in the team run through after getting caught in a divot.

From the off Queens looked to take it to Claverdon but were nullified well, especially up front. Claverdon were strong over the ball and, i'm sure both sides will agree, it was a bit like the wild west at the breakdown with the ref seemingly not opting to enforce, 'tackler releasing,' or 'no hands in the ruck.' Both teams became wise to this as the game wore on but it was Claverdon who were a bit more streetwise to begin with.

This was also seen in the line out with the home side cleverly failing to engage with our driving maul on the first two attempts, thus removing the offside line and effectively negating that option. Playing with some width , on the other hand, was proving to be a much more successful option with Sam Morris, Andrew Jackson, Ryan Lennon and Del Starling all beginning to spot gaps and make yards.

This tactic saw the first try of the game. After the first period of decent quick ball from Queens in the game, a smart backs move off the breakdown saw captain Ryan Lennon, sponsored by Kempston Building Services, barge his way over in the corner. Chris Bell, sponsored by Core Performance Crossfit continued his impressive form off the boot to add the extras. 0-7.

The next two scores followed shortly after and were the pick of the bunch. The first coming from a trademark break from Del Starling. The powerful centre spotted a big gap in the middle of the park and a superb support line saw Tom Clarke, sponsored by Merit Garden Products collect the offload and finish well evading the chasing defenders. Bell again added the extras to make the score 0-14

The second of these also saw Clarke involved. Following a superb break from full back Sam Morris down the left wing he offloaded to Alistair Wilkinson, sponsored by Hatters Fine Furnishings, who put a ball back inside to Clarke. This time the back row forward was halted just short of the line but managed to produce a great offload to the supporting Chris Bell who touched down and converted his own try. 0-21.

The half time whistle went shortly after and despite these two flashes of superb running rugby, the coaches and players alike were aware that their performance was still inconsistent.

Despite a sustained period of pressure in the home sides 22 in the first 20 minutes of the second half, Queens only added one more score with their tally. Centre Chris Bell exploiting Claverdon on the outside to touch down. The conversion was missed to make the scores 0-26.

The last 20 minutes of the game would be Claverdon's own purple patch. Their big Fijian centre had come onto the pitch and seemed to pick up the whole team. All of a sudden Queens were having to defend, often committing a few men to tackle the powerful substitute and as such were on the back foot. The Warwickshire outfit were then rewarded with their efforts following a good set of hands to set up their winger for a well worked try.

With 10 minutes remaining it was a scrappy affair neither sides getting ahold of the game and turnover from Simon Caddick saw Queens hold off another period of pressure from the home side to end the game.

Overall it was a disjointed performance from Queens but a win's a win, a number of individuals shone and some of the rugby on display at times was fantastic.

Full credit to Claverdon, a nice little set up and a fantastic setting for a rugby club. They were bulky and streetwise up front and I can imagine it's a tough place to go to when the weather turns. Cheers lads, good luck for the rest of the season.

There was no MOTM as such but Coach Ashley Tapper singled out all 3 of the back row for praise at the end of the game. Henry Williams, making his first start since an injury at Thorney in Febuary, had a fantastic game at 7, winning turnovers, making a few powerful busts and tackling excellently. Simon Caddick at 8, with his new Eminem hairstyle, worked tirelessly throughout both in the loose and at the breakdown. He also managed to give away zero penalties which may have to do more with the ref's interpretation of the breakdown than any self-discipline from Caddick. At 6, Tom Clarke had his hand in two of the tries, scoring himself, assisting one and offering good support lines throughout.

Outside of these 3 Sam Morris had a return to form with a few superb line breaks. Del Starling also picked up where he left off last week with some powerful running.

DOTD goes again to Ashley Tapper for his aforementioned comedy tumble after getting his shiny new No Limitz purchased boots caught in the uneven Claverdon turf. A sight to behold, he took a while to get up.

Next week Queens travel to Peterborough based Thorney and will face a similar challenge to that of today. Another big side, all over the park and another tough place to go especially in poor weather. After two extremely close victories last year, Queens know what to expect and will have to perform well to extend their unbeaten run.