Rams march on !

Rochford won the toss and returning Capt. Mike O'C chose to play with the sun at their backs and downhill (will this cost them later?) Dave Isaacs kicked off and soon the Rams were in the opposition 22. Lots of good support from the pack almost produced a score in the opening minutes. However strong defensive lines from Upminster kept the Rams out. It was difficult for Upminster to clear the ball out of their half and Rochford capitalised on all the elements in their favour. Good scrumaging from the Rams pack inside the home teams 22m enabled Dave Isaacs to use his weight, experience and power to thrust a path through the defending Upminster line. Dave then converted his try to give the away team a 7-0 lead.
Upminster kicked off and the ball was cleanly caught by the waiting arms of a Rams forward. The ball was then ran into the Upminster half with some excellent straight line running and fantastic support play. The ball came back to Dave who launched the ball back into the opposition 22. From a Home team lineout the ball was won and every effort from the backs to run it out was thwarted by by Rams centres and wings, special mention at this point goes to Nick Austin who is improving week on week. Nick's runs and return kicks were exceptional. The ball was kept in hand by the Rams and very soon with the support of the forwards the ball found it's way into the hands of Dave Isaacs. Dave is dynamite over five meters and nothing was going to stop him scoring his second of the half out to the left hand side of the posts. The conversion would not pose any problem on any other Saturday but today the ball went flying wide of the right hand post. Upminster 0 - Rams 12. This was how the half ended.
The second half got under way with Upminster kicking off. Rochford were now under the cosh, playing uphill and with the afternoon sun in their eyes. Replacement players in the form of Pete V.B, Gary T.and Gary G. kept the momentum of the away team going.Rochford could have increased their lead had the ball gone to hand and found it's way to the wings, a two man overlap went unnoticed twice, this would have given the home team a mountain to climb. However the Upminster team got their act together and started playing with the slope and sun to their advantage. For the next 20-30 minutes Rochford found themselves under a salvo of Upminster attacks. Strong defence and rugged tackling from both forwards and backs stopped the home team from scoring. Shouts of encouragement and "move yer a***s" from the likes of Nic Brownlee and Kenton Avis(outside centre??!!) gave the away team the motivation that was needed. Upminster pushed and pushed and the ball was played out to the centres, then a forward pass went unnoticed by the ref enabled the home team to score unhindered under the posts, the try was duly converted and the scoreline went 7-12 to the away team.
Upminster Vets now stepped up a gear and attacked and attacked relentlessly. Every time they got the ball it was banged into the Rochford 22. Everytime Rochford got the ball it was played upfield as far as Dave could kick. Midway through the half the Rams were awarded a penalty for an infringement on the floor, directly in front of the posts and 25m out. This scored would put Rochford into a very good position and 8 points ahead. Dave called for the tee, lined himself up and went through his drill. Again, any other Saturday he would slot this over, no problem. Today, it didn't happen, the ball sailed past the outside of the left post.
Upminster now threw everything into their attacks, with just over 9 mins to go Rochford were hanging on for dear life. Attack, Defence, Attack, Defence. Rochford were now struggling to keep the defensive line in tact. Five minutes left, can they do it? Upminster, another attack. They just could not break the spirit of the Rams defenders. Scrum within meters of the away teams try line, the Rams pack held strong, the ball came out to Dave who cleared it ten meters up field, lineout won by Upminster ball out to the backs, tackle, ball loose, back to Dave another ten meters. TWO MINUTES TO GO. The ball back inside the Away team 22, attack, tackle, attack, tackle, ball to Dave, BANG, ball into touch. WHISTLE. GAME OVER - THE CROWD GO WILD!!! Final score Upminster 7- Rochford Rams 12.
This was a good game, played in good spirit by both teams.
Big thanks to Upminster and a well done for not giving up.
A very BIG HAND to ALL the RAMS. Everyone one you played out of your skins and did not stop until the final whistle. You all showed the heart that makes playing for the Rams so special.
Extra mentions to the following; Nick Austin, Nic Brownlee & Kenton Avis who all played especially well today. Well done boys !
My Man of the Match could have gone to any one of 18 players and everyone of you would deserve it. However there can be "Only one" and DAVE ISAACS you are the ONE.. Scorer of all 12 points (a couple of iffy passes) but you cleared the ball time and time again to keep us ahead. Well Done Dave !
PS. Not every team has a Fly Half and two centres that equate to just under 56 stone!!!!