Knutsford travelled to Aldwinians Rugby Club on Saturday for the last game of the year before the Christmas break. Coming off the back of three dominant wins, we were looking to make it four wins from four.

From kick-off, Aldwinians sought to use their strong and experienced forward players to punch holes in the Knutsford defence. Knutsford, however, responded well, learning from previous mistakes in the season, and prevented the opposition from gaining much ground. After some back-and-forth play from both sides, Knutsford broke through the line thanks to a well-timed kick and scored, seemingly out of nowhere.

After some strong set pieces carried out by the forwards, Knutsford were able to score again through Bertie Hatton, with Jack Lloyd this time taking the first of many successful conversions, in what was a vintage kicking display. A third was added after Emilio and Matt Dutton combined to score another try out of nowhere. After this, Knutsford sustained some serious pressure from a physical Aldwinians side. Some penalties awarded for offside and for high tackles saw Knutsford relegated to the 5-metre line, where the team showed some of their best defensive efforts all season by shutting out the opposition’s runners. A great lineout recovery from captain Nick Hopkins saw Knutsford finally regain possession and move up the pitch to score through Matt Dutton before half-time.

After the break, Knutsford scored what must have been the league’s try of the weekend, coming via a fantastic solo effort from Bertie Hatton, who scored from the reception, with Lloyd again converting. Knutsford did, however, give away several penalties for infractions in and around the breakdown. This saw the team again pinned back to the 5, where a strong Cameron Cosh tackle forced a knock-on and allowed us to exit. Lewis Davies scored a try rivalling Hatton’s earlier effort, through a well-timed interception where he was able to run the length of the pitch to score under the sticks. Two tries were again added close to each other, with great runs from Cameron Smyth and Jack Lloyd, seemingly putting the game to bed. Whilst the back line did account for many of the points scored (as with most of the season), there was some strong forward play throughout from Clempner, Beaso, Tom Hatton, and Barnes.

Knutsford finished the game with a clean sheet and a resounding win, with the final result 45–0. Noah Martin, upon his return, was awarded a well-deserved MOTM after a trademark display of work ethic, physicality, and sound decision-making at scrum-half. We would like to thank Aldwinians for their hospitality and sportsmanship throughout the game, and wish them well for the rest of the season.