After a pre season that seemed to pass evermore slowly, the return of league rugby commenced on Saturday 16th September. Sileby travelled to Castle Donnington, to face a side they have not previously played, in their17 year history, despite the relative close proximity.

A number of unavailabilities hampered the squad, but Sileby fielded a respectable fifteen, although some players were forced to play out of position. Having been relegated at the end of the 2022/23, Sileby dropped down a level into Counties 3, having spent the previous 3 years in the league above.

Buoyed by a bright start from some new recruits and returning players, Sileby took the lead with only 5 minutes on the clock. From a line out just inside the Donnington half, the ball made its way to back row Lester Hodgkinson, who rounded 5 would be tacklers to score in the corner.Unable to convert, Sileby edged ahead 5-0.

It didn’t take long for Donnington to recover, a lapse in concentration allowed the Donnington Captain to power over the line from close range. This was converted, to give Donnington a slender lead.

Sileby were rusty, and missing a few key players, struggled to form any rhythm or assert themselves. After giving away far too many penalties, Donnington eventually capitalised to take a 10-5 lead into half time.

Play remained munch the same during the second half, scrappy and at times, ill tempered. With a limited bench, the Vikings had to throw everything into the last quarter and empty the tank. A powerful carry by scrum half Harry Greenbury and some superb link up play between brothers Jon and Rob Griffiths saw the former go over the try line to equalise the scores.

Despite some sustained pressure in the host sides’ 22, Sileby were unable to cross the line for the winning score. A momentary lapse in concentration lead to Sileby opting for a tap penalty rather than securing 3 points at the death. Their blushes thankfully spared after Donnington made a last minute break, with Jon Griffiths, Jacob Woolverton and George Jones combining superbly to hold up the Donnington attacker over the line.

A scrappy draw it was to be, disappointing for Sileby but they will look to make amends on Saturday 23rd September, with their first home game against Stamford College Old Boys. Kick off is 3pm at Platts Lane, Cossington.