Having lost the home fixture earlier in the season Oldfield were focused and determined to give a good account of themselves. Walcot’s kick off failed to go 10 metres and from the ensuing scrum a raking diagonal kick pinned Walcot deep inside their 22.

After some straight running into a ferocious defence, the Oldfield pack recycled the ball quickly and as it was whipped wide winger Andy Taylor dived in at the corner to give Oldfield a deserved 5-0 lead.

Oldfield’s pack won their fair share of the ball and more, although  time and again it was slowed down which made it very difficult for the backs to create space. Oldfield enjoyed the better of the first half territory, but their lead was cut to 5-3 when the Walcot 10 converted a penalty via the left hand post at the end of the first half.

Conditions deteriorated and after a dodgy offside decision and backchat to the ref, Walcot had it advanced a further 10 yards. This was duly kicked into the corner and from the resultant line out the ball was fed wide, with a dog leg in the Oldfield defensive line clinically exposed as Walcot trotted in for a relatively soft try. The shame of it was, that was the only time that Oldfield’s defence was poor all afternoon and it proved to be a killer blow, as the successful conversion made the score 10-5 to Walcot.  

Oldfield tried manfully and in an often ill tempered second half the game lurched from scrap to penalty, a situation not helped by the deteriorating conditions and a saturated pitch. A couple of times Oldfield stretched the home defence with winger Jack Burns looking threatening down the right and centres Judy and Reader trying hard, but failing to find chinks in a strong Walcot defensive line. Up front the Oldfield pack did well but, unlike Walcot, the lack of a high impact ball carrier from the base of the scrum meant that possession, whilst plentiful, was not quick or decisive.

This was one of those games that was always going to turn on a single moment, unfortunately that moment went Walcot’s way, but that doesn’t undermine what was otherwise a gutsy and determined performance. Oldfield remain 4th in the table with the next league match being on 15 December, against Old Edwardians 1st XV.   

Try: Taylor