As the boys entered the pitch for our eagerly awaited first match of the season the weather was awful.
With injuries to key players, people playing out of their usual position and new players coming in we knew the game was going to be a learning exercise for all.
We kicked off at 11am with handling errors on both sides from the start due to the persistent rain.
We started brightly with our pack bossing the first scrum of the match, only to be undone with a handling error as the ball came out to our backs.
In the 4th minute a well taken try from Halesonians No.13 and conversion from No.15 put them in the lead. Come on lads was the cry from the crowd, and we were soon back in the game with a try from our new captain James Lawler. It was a great run which was driven forward with help from our pack for a good try in the corner, unfortunately we missed the conversion but brought the score to Old Yardleians 5 Halesonians 7.
We soon fell further behind with a scrappy try from Halesonians No.11 - no conversion.
The spirit of the game was excellent with neither side giving an inch.
The game boiled over just after the break with Dave O'Grady being sin binned for 10 minutes for catching an opponent with his knee.
With more trys to follow for Halesonians the final score was Old Yardleians 5 Halesonians 29.
We can take great heart from this first match with lots of good individual performances, and we can build on what we have learnt today with players returning into the side and players being able to return to their correct positions the next match will be even better.
Well Done Lads !!
Match report Phil Cushing