A DISAPPOINTING FINISH TO LEAGUE SEASON

On a pleasant sunny afternoon with a strong wind behind them Rochford were looking to impose themselves on the home side but it was exactly the opposite that happened.

A fast, aggressive and very determined Saffron Walden took the game to the visitors and were soon five points ahead scoring a try after some quick and powerful play.

Rochford were just off the pace and on several occasions missed first time tackles which Saffron exploited throughout the game and in spite of having to play into the wind they were able to gain territory and possession.

The boys in black came back for a short time to put pressure on the home team and were rewarded with an Adam Ashton penalty kick to reduce the deficit.

Although the set scrummage was evenly fought Rochford’s lineout was poor and Saffron dominated this area to launch a number of attacks.

Ross Murphy jumping at the front of the lineout did some valuable work there and Richard Mott with Scott Horsburgh picked up some good ball but overall this aspect of play was below Rochford’s normal standard.

Two more tries resulted from their powerful moves one of which was converted before Rochford ,once again ,played some attacking rugby of their own and big Scott Horsburgh drove over to score and Ashton added the two point to bring them to 10 - 17.

Was this the turning point of the game? The answer ,unfortunately was No as the home outfit finished off the first half with another converted try to turn round 24 -10 up.

With the wind now behind them Saffron played to the conditions sending long, racking kicks down the line so that Rochford were forced to having to defend for long periods .

In spite of plenty of effort and endeavour from their opponents Saffron were always in command and four more converted tries and a penalty finished off the game for gallant Rochford.

A late rally by the visitors did see them playing the sort of rugby we know they can produce and they were rewarded with two good tries.

The first was from aggressive scrum half Brett Smith who broke away after a short penalty to scorch over for his 17th try of the season. A remarkable effort in his first season with the club.

The second was from wing Matthew White after a strong run along the touchline. He is another player who personally can look back on having a good season.

To the boys that made the difficult trip to play this last league game goes out a vote of thanks for their commitment and effort but, unfortunately, their performance was just not good enough to counteract a Saffron Walden side that went out to prove a few points and to get a deserved victory that took them into 4th position in the table and Rochford know that they did not do themselves justice on the day.

One more game to go next week when they play either Basildon or Campion in the Essex Cup Final where they can, perhaps, finish on a high after this frustrating and under achieving season.