You might want to have a look  at the Presidents Lunch post to watch a very entertaining video of the clubhouse in full swing with their rendition of ‘Lion Hunt’ are the current first team missing out on something…………….. enjoy

Pinner RFC match report Sat 28^th January

Lack of a kicker cost P&G’s dear.

In front of a large crowd who had enjoyed a good lunch hosted by Club President David Hiles and with the Middlesex CRFU President Paul Astbury and Old Grammarians RFC President Keith McGuiness among the guests P&G’s narrowly lost by one point to visitors Old Grammarians.  Within five minutes the home team were 3 – 0 down having conceded a penalty on their own 22 in front of the posts.  Almost immediately after the restart P&G’s drew level when Simon Griffiths converted a penalty for killing the ball.  Five minutes later yet another penalty taken quickly allowed O G’s centre Jon Watkins to score the first try which was converted by the visiting fly-half.  Pinner immediately retaliated with their own quickly taken penalty by captain Reza Sibilant which saw the ball move through several pairs of hands for centre Richard Southern to score close in. Fly-half Simon Griffiths added the two points to bring the scores to 10 all.  Play ebbed and flowed with both sides evenly matched. However, yet another penalty for not rolling away from a tackle saw the home side once more behind.   Pinner had further scoring opportunities and eventually the referee’s patience was exhausted sending an O G’s flanker to the sin-bin for constantly killing the ball.  With half-time approaching two more penalty chances went begging which should have put the home aside ahead at half-time but the trailed 13 – 10.

The second half saw a much more spirited start by the home side egged on by increasingly vocal supporters.  An injury to fly-half Simon Griffiths required a reorganisation of the Pinner backs.  Mid-way through the half Pinner under pressure made a poor clearance which fortunately was fumbled by O G’s just outside the home 22. The ball was gathered by Sibilant who produced a fine up- field kick behind the visitor’s defence which was no match for the pace of home centre Chris Jepson who easily won the race to touch down.  Replacement kicker Alex Gorring was not able to add the two points but the home side were now 15 – 13 in the lead.  On the half-hour O G’s took advantage of having two reliable kickers to regain the lead from yet another penalty for pulling down in the line-out.  The referee’s enthusiastic use of his whistle did not help the home side.  And so although scoring two tries to the visitor’s one Pinner lost 16 – 15.  The crowd of former players returned to the Clubhouse to enjoy an evening of reminiscence and song that at one time was standard in all rugby clubs but now seems to be out of fashion with the younger players.

With the start of the Six Nations Internationals clubs at this level have a few weeks break from the league programme.

Sunday 29th January

Owing to a clash of matches at Pinner, with the Youth Under 15’s hosting a four way mini friendly tournament the Under 12’s had to change the venue to Bank of England who stepped up to accommodate the fixture. below is a match report by one of the team players: Paul Nash. Also photographs provided by Graham Souster; big thanks to both

After a thirty minute drive from Pinner RFC, our U12s arrived at the magnificent club of the Bank of England (Roehampton) to play our final matches, prior to the Middlesex festival in March.  Results from these games decide which pool we play in at this end of season finale.

Match 1

Pinner 57 v Bank England 0

A rampant Pinner dominated from the start with Ben Stone scoring a try in the first passage of play, instantly followed by Kai Gordon getting another one over the line. Charlie Gascoigne scored Pinner’s 3^rd try, a fantastic effort straight from the restart.  Kai scored again and Marc Souster finished off the 1^st half with yet another try. All the play was in our half with Bank of England prevented from getting anywhere near the try line by our strong defence.

With only a minute gone in the 2^nd half Pinner scored again, this time with Luke Barrowman scoring his first every try for his new team –  Pinner were playing for show now!  Marc scored Pinner’s  7th & 8th tries and Brandon Cotter finished off the impressive haul -  9 tries in all.  Conversion kicking (done at the end of each half) was a little erratic, with 3 kicks missed, but the 6 converted tries and 3 tries made up the 57-0 white wash handed out to the home side.

Match 2

Pinner v London Welsh

Pinner faced a much tougher challenge with another South of the river team – London Welsh, who are favourites to win the championship. They had already convincingly beaten Bank of England in the first game of the morning.  London Welsh took the lead going seven points ahead after a solid converted try.  A stout defending performance by our Pinner lads kept London Welsh at bay.  Pinner had plenty of possession but went in at half time still seven points adrift.

In the second half, Pinner came back out with solid resolve, the breakthrough finally coming when Marc Souster dramatically scored our one and only try of the game.  Then followed a determined defence from both sides and a try saving tackle from Freddie Hart, in the last play of the game, which kept the opposition at bay. Pressure was now on Freddie Hart, who had missed a conversion in the first match. He stood up to take the kick shooting a true and high ball that sailed between the uprights to level the score.  Honours even, what a match!

Pinner RFC U12s now look forward to showing what they are made of in the Middlesex Festival on 18th March at Grasshopper.

We have now completed all our matches prior to festival, 3 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses.

Sunday 27th November

Victory for Pinner U12s at the second round of the Middlesex Championships at Hackney Marshes

Pinner U12’s ventured further East than ever before to play the second round of the Middlesex Championships at Hackney Marshes, on the very edge of the Olympic Park near Stratford.

The sun was shining once again, although a brisk wind was an unwelcome addition this week, both for the players who had trouble kicking conversions and the parents, cowering on the sidelines.

Despite the distance to travel, Pinner had a strong turnout of 12 players. This wasn’t quite enough for the 13 needed at this level so once again they were very pleased that 6 players from Kilburn were able to join them to assemble what turned out to be a formidable team.

Fortune once again shined on them and they weren’t required to play the first match. The benefits from this were twofold; firstly allowing almost an hour to practise and work out team positions and secondly providing an opportunity to spy on the other teams as they played their match, which incidentally Hackney won against Wasps in convincing fashion.

Eventually it was Pinner’s turn to take to the field against Hackney. A really tough game was anticipated and for the first couple of minutes it was just that. However Pinner piled on the pressure and were able to ruck the ball close to the Hackney try line, allowing Carter to pick it up and put it down for a try. This was soon followed by another try by John and suddenly the previously formidable looking Hackney were 10-0 down and looking hopelessly lost.

Hackney dug deep, coming back strongly and eventually scoring after a period of intense pressure. Pinner didn’t buckle though and following a couple of penalties, Charlie Gascoine was able to run in a try, only to have it disallowed for handing off. He didn’t take it badly though, and within two minutes the ball was back in his hands and he ran in an almost identical try – without being penalised. Pinner were back in control 15-5, with only minutes to go until half time. In what turned out to be the last play of the half Hackney were able to run in another try to narrow the gap once again. Charlie and Niall converted two tries at half time to take the score to 19-14.

The Pinner scrum had been formidable throughout the game, winning almost every ball, regardless of the team that put the ball in. A significant change for the second half therefore was the request from Hackney for uncontested scrums as a result of an injury to one of their forwards. Ten minutes passed of hard fought rugby before Hackney broke through for a try in the corner and tying the score with one conversion opportunity in hand. Following this the Pinner coach, Steve George, made a shrewd substitution, bringing Sam Marchant back on in the right wing position. Within seconds he was handed the ball and was able to run the ball in for what proved to be the match winning try. Although Hackney continued to fight back Pinner held on for the victory, 24-21.

Pinner were in confident mood heading into the second match. They’d beaten Hackney who had previously thrashed Wasps and were expecting to be able to do the same. Needless to say, this wasn’t to be the case! Right from the first whistle Wasps were able to press forward and the Pinner team, which had been re-organised to take advantage of the uncontested scrums, were struggling to come to terms with their new positions. It didn’t take too long for Wasps to find a gap in the defence and run in a try to take them into the lead; the first and only time that Pinner found themselves behind that morning. The effect of this was to shock Pinner back into action and they soon retaliated with a brace of tries, first from Marc and then Brendan. The game moved to and fro in the middle of the field for the remainder of the half until the whistle blew to call time. After Niall successfully kicked another conversion the score was 12-7 in Pinner’s favour.

The second half was just as tough as the first, Pinner continued to play the great rugby that they had demonstrated all day; their rucking, mauling and scrumming was better than in any other game they had played. An unwillingness to retire seven metres for penalties caught them out on several occasions and a few too many handling errors resulted in many uncontested scrums in awkward positions. Nevertheless they persevered and were the first to score again when Charlie ran in his second try of the day. Pinner came close to scoring again when Louis George charged repeatedly at the Wasps defence. It wasn’t to be though and in the final play of the game Wasps were able to score a consolation try, resulting in a final score of 17-14.

Not since the Middlesex Finals in May had this team enjoyed such a successful morning’s rugby. The hotly anticipated chocolate cake then made a fleeting appearance before being demolished by the victorious Pinner and Kilburn players.

report: Nick Marchant

Pinner suffer second heavy defeat.

Before the kick-off both teams and all the spectators stood in silent tribute to the former Pinner & Grammarians President Bill North whose funeral, attended by nearly 200 people, had taken place two days earlier.  Bill was not only an unsung war hero as a young Lancaster bomber pilot but had worked tirelessly on behalf of his own club and all sports clubs in Harrow over many decades.  This was recognised by the people from many walks of life who attend the wake in the Pinner RFC clubhouse and by the respect shown by the Harrow players and supporters before and after the match.

The New Year started badly for P&G’s when they played hosts to promotion chasing local rivals Harrow.  Without a few key players Pinner soon found themselves 7 – 0 down.  Harrow were awarded a penalty on the P&G 22 and elected to kick for touch. From the ensuing line-out Harrow moved the ball across their backs for the no. 12 to score near the posts giving an easy conversion for the scrum half.   Ten minutes later an almost copy was repeated but this time the no. 12 scored further out and the kick was unsuccessful.  Pinner forwards were getting the better of the set scrums but Harrow’s more precise drills proved dominant in the lines-out.  Sloppy handling in mid-field led to Harrow’s next try.  The fly half kicked for the right corner and the bounce favoured the visitors wrong footing the defence and enabling the no.11 to score.  Very soon the no.11 was on the score sheet again when a quickly taken free kick, awarded for a crooked feed into the scrum, caught the home defence off guard.  On half time P&G’s had a chance to get on the score sheet when they were awarded a penalty on the harrow 10 m line but fly-half mark Razzel’s long range attempt fell just short.  Harrow went into half-time with a 24 – 0 lead having already secured their bonus point.

Soon into the second half Pinner lost a scrum on their own 5 m line allowing the visitor’s scrum half to score.  P&G’s now entered their best period of play several spirited attacks were thwarted by the Harrow defence.  No. 8 Bernie Richter made a couple of impressive breaks from his own 22 to set the backs in motion but the wingers were bundled into touch. The score remained at 29 – 0 until the last ten minutes of the match when the home side’s lack of fitness after the holiday lay-off  proved yet again the need at this level for better training facilities.  In that 10 minute period Harrow ran in a further four tries but fortunately for the home side only one was converted.  The final score was 51 – 0 to Harrow.

Next Saturday P&G’s travel the 50 miles to Royston in north-east Hertfordshire in much need of a win to cement their place in the middle of the league.

The match report will be duly uploaded when it is recieved but you should know the form by now; here’s some of the action shots from the first half, Aarons try, ’skinnyJim’ Jepson crossing the try line, Mark Razzell putting the ball between the posts a couple of times, anyhow, enjoy………….. just in

Pinner pack powers much needed win.

P&G’s entertained Old Isleworthians at Shaftesbury Playing Fields on Saturday.  Both clubs are mid-table in Herts- Middx division 2 so a win was vital. The first twenty minutes saw both sides testing each other but then mid-way through the first half the ball got to right winger Chris Jepson whose pace proved too much for the defence enabling to score near the posts.  Fly-half Mark Razzell added the conversion to put the home side 7 – 0 up.  Almost immediately Pinner’s lack of discipline enabled O I’s full-back Richard Hewison to reduce this lead to 7 – 3.  Pinner’s pack now began to dominate the set pieces to provide scoring chances but poor passing or over elaboration nullified these opportunities.  Both teams were feeling the effect of some strict refereeing and on the half-hour O I’s were penalised for a high tackle 25 metres from their goal line.  Razzell was once more on target to stretch the lead to 10 -3.  Five minutes and several penalties later P&G’s were in the O I’s 22. The visitors failed to retire the necessary 10 m allowing scrum-half Lane to break quickly before passing to captain Reza Sibilant who found hooker Aaron Nicholas along side to complete a score in the right corner.  This conversion proved too far for Razzell. With Pinner thinking of half-time they relaxed to let O I’s take a quick penalty for flanker Tom Nadiu to score. The half-time score was 15 – 8.

The second half stated with P&G’s playing into the low Sun but with their pack really on top in the set pieces.  After 15 minutes yet another quickly taken penalty caught the defences napping and home scrum-half Lane darted through to score. Razzell added the two points to give Pinner a comfortable 22 – 8 lead.  The home side strived for the fourth ’bonus point’ try but several promising attacks petered out through lack of concentration. The pack, with the front row prominent, provided plenty of ball but some ill-conceived kicks threw away possession.  The game was losing direction through Old Isleworthians causing too many stoppages whilst they reorganised their replacements and having a player sent to the sin-bin for yet another high tackle.  Pinner’s defence was again caught off guard. Quickly taken penalties were the order of the day and now it was O I’s turn. Pinner, penalised for not releasing the ball, allowed the visiting hooker to charge through to score under the posts. Hewison added the two points to give O I’s a losing bonus point.  P&G’s were pleased at least to have the 22 – 15 win but knowing that it should have been more convincing.

Next week P&G’s visit promotion hopefuls OMT’s at their new home at Merchant Taylors School.  The club will hold its annual Boxing Day match at Hatch End when any local players can join in.  Kick-off is nominally 11:30 am.  The league programme resumes on 7^th January with local rivals Harrow being the visitors.

DFH  12/12/11.

Aaron  and  Samuel

would formally like to invite you to the P&G Christmas Party of 2011!

*We require all attending responses by the 10th Dec, no later please.
All PLAYERS attending (1st and Pelicans) are kindly asked for £5 towards the festivities, to be given to Aaron or Samuel by the 10th Dec*

Alternatively if you do not play for 1^st XV or Pelicans you can contact Spud, again by the 10^th Dec

All members of Pinner Rugby Club are welcome;

it’s going to be an evening of great festivities, fun, drinking, games and the odd carol song

The theme for the evening will be ‘TACKY’ Xmas Jumpers!

(forfeits’ for those Scrooge’s among you that do not abide)

This event is obviously open to friends and family, all are welcome to join in!

Evenings Festivities will include; (while normal drinking rules apply throughout)

- Tackiest Xmas Jumper Competition!
- Xmas Karaoke
- Mass Beer Pong (glow in the dark?)
- Bullets ‘Reindeer Game’
- Snort the Port (pairs boat race)
- all ideas and contributions welcome…

Merry Christmas, we look forward to seeing you all there.

Boom!

here’s a link to last years festivities! Christmas

Pinner U12’s ventured further East than ever before to play the second round of the Middlesex Championships at Hackney Marshes, on the very edge of the Olympic Park near Stratford.

The sun was shining once again, although a brisk wind was an unwelcome addition this week, both for the players who had trouble kicking conversions and the parents, cowering on the sidelines.

Despite the distance to travel, Pinner had a strong turnout of 12 players. This wasn’t quite enough for the 13 needed at this level so once again they were very pleased that 6 players from Kilburn were able to join them to assemble what turned out to be a formidable team.

Fortune once again shined on them and they weren’t required to play the first match. The benefits from this were twofold; firstly allowing almost an hour to practise and work out team positions and secondly providing an opportunity to spy on the other teams as they played their match, which incidentally Hackney won against Wasps in convincing fashion.

Eventually it was Pinner’s turn to take to the field against Hackney. A really tough game was anticipated and for the first couple of minutes it was just that. However Pinner piled on the pressure and were able to ruck the ball close to the Hackney try line, allowing Carter to pick it up and put it down for a try. This was soon followed by another try by John and suddenly the previously formidable looking Hackney were 10-0 down and looking hopelessly lost.

Hackney dug deep, coming back strongly and eventually scoring after a period of intense pressure. Pinner didn’t buckle though and following a couple of penalties, Charlie Gascoine was able to run in a try, only to have it disallowed for handing off. He didn’t take it badly though, and within two minutes the ball was back in his hands and he ran in an almost identical try – without being penalised. Pinner were back in control 15-5, with only minutes to go until half time. In what turned out to be the last play of the half Hackney were able to run in another try to narrow the gap once again. Charlie and Niall converted two tries at half time to take the score to 19-14.

The Pinner scrum had been formidable throughout the game, winning almost every ball, regardless of the team that put the ball in. A significant change for the second half therefore was the request from Hackney for uncontested scrums as a result of an injury to one of their forwards. Ten minutes passed of hard fought rugby before Hackney broke through for a try in the corner and tying the score with one conversion opportunity in hand. Following this the Pinner coach, Steve George, made a shrewd substitution, bringing Sam Marchant back on in the right wing position. Within seconds he was handed the ball and was able to run the ball in for what proved to be the match winning try. Although Hackney continued to fight back Pinner held on for the victory, 24-21.

Pinner were in confident mood heading into the second match. They’d beaten Hackney who had previously thrashed Wasps and were expecting to be able to do the same. Needless to say, this wasn’t to be the case! Right from the first whistle Wasps were able to press forward and the Pinner team, which had been re-organised to take advantage of the uncontested scrums, were struggling to come to terms with their new positions. It didn’t take too long for Wasps to find a gap in the defence and run in a try to take them into the lead; the first and only time that Pinner found themselves behind that morning. The effect of this was to shock Pinner back into action and they soon retaliated with a brace of tries, first from Marc and then Brendan. The game moved to and fro in the middle of the field for the remainder of the half until the whistle blew to call time. After Niall successfully kicked another conversion the score was 12-7 in Pinner’s favour.

The second half was just as tough as the first, Pinner continued to play the great rugby that they had demonstrated all day; their rucking, mauling and scrumming was better than in any other game they had played. An unwillingness to retire seven metres for penalties caught them out on several occasions and a few too many handling errors resulted in many uncontested scrums in awkward positions. Nevertheless they persevered and were the first to score again when Charlie ran in his second try of the day. Pinner came close to scoring again when Louis George charged repeatedly at the Wasps defence. It wasn’t to be though and in the final play of the game Wasps were able to score a consolation try, resulting in a final score of 17-14.

Not since the Middlesex Finals in May had this team enjoyed such a successful morning’s rugby. The hotly anticipated chocolate cake then made a fleeting appearance before being demolished by the victorious Pinner and Kilburn players.

Thanks once again to Paul and the Kilburn players who made such a valuable contribution to the success of the team today.

Hackney v Wasps 26 – 7 4 tries + 3 conversions V 1try + 1 conversion

Hackney v Pinner (Kilburn) 21 – 24 3 tries + 3 conversions V 4 tries + 2 conversions

Wasps V Pinner (Kilburn) 14 – 17 2 tries + 2 conversions V 3 tries + 1 conversion

report: Nick Marchant

Video link of matches

Under 7/8s

Great to have such a good turnout for today’s away fixture, I’m sure you all agree well worth the early start, London Scottish were a very friendly bunch.  The under 6’s and 7’s were coached by Scottish International and Strictly Come Dancing contestant Kenny Logan, who seemed thoroughly down to earth.

We had 6 players joining the under 8 training, 9 joined the under 6 & 7’s session, we were joined by Isleworth Club, Grasshoppers.

As I coached the under 8’s I can let you know how we played as a team after out training session.

Game 1 v London Scottish

Win to Pinner 3-2, we took a commanding lead and looked like we would be run away winners, however London Scottish rallied, and finished really strongly.

Jonathon scored 2 tries and Michael scored 1

Game 2 v London Scottish

Win to Pinner 7 -6, (ref claimed 5-5, but our score keepers confirmed otherwise)

A very even game, with no team being more than 1 score ahead at any time.  Fast paced and free flowing, great fun to watch.

Jonathon and Michael both with 3 tries, and our Barbarian from Grasshoppers Leo scored a try.

Next week we are away at Hackney Bulls, the club we beat in last season’s final of the Middx Festival, hosted by Grasshoppers.

Hackney are a great club who visited Pinner earlier in the season on 9^th October.

Thanks all for getting there today, Richard and David for training with u6’s and u7’s and Simon for being the u8’s scorekeeper.

See you all next week

report: Andy Nash

U9/10s

The last time Pinner RFC visited Richmond Athletic Ground, home of London Scottish was the seniors entering the Middlesex 7s; returning with a trophy, something to aim for! Well, it was a friendly training and game session, but by the way the combined team of under 9s and under 10s played you would think they were full on for winning the world cup! more to follow………..

Please bring to the club for Sunday 11^th December when Paul Parker-Brice will sort them out ready for collection

Please ask friends and family for their old textiles, the more weight we get the more cash we receive.

We shall be very grateful for any old clothes, sheets, blankets, curtains, shoes, hats and any other textiles.

Please Support our Rugby Club,

Any special collection arrangements or more information

Please telephone +447917088802

Thank you for your kind support

The luck of the draw allowed Pinner and Kilburn a full 30 minutes to train together before the whistle went for the kick off and hopes were high as the time for kick off approached in their first match against Teddington. The first half was hard fought and Pinner appeared to work well in breakdown, presenting the ball effectively and rucking strongly in the first phase, although the forwards were much slower to the subsequent phases and Teddington turned over many easy balls. Teddington used their wings to great effect and looked threatening every time the ball ventured wide. The score would certainly have been far greater were it not for some staunch defending and impressive tackling, particularly one memorable thunderous charge from Ryan Healy to push an opposition player into touch as he passed the try line. At half time the score remained 1-0 and Pinner were still very much in the game and looking to even the score in the second half. The forwards were particularly strong against Teddington in the scrum and very rarely was the ball turned over, nevertheless, Teddington continued to send the ball wide and managed to score another try early on in the half. Pinner continued to battle hard and came desperately close to scoring on at least one occasion. In the end some handling errors and an inability to spread the ball side saw possession pass back to Teddington for the ball to be kicked back into our own half. A final brace of tries from Teddington to bring the final score to 4-0 disguises the close nature of game and the strong and spirited performance of the Pinner team.

After only 10 minutes rest Pinner were back on the field to face the now, well rested, Ealing. Pinner were up for a battle but very quickly found themselves two tries behind and, it appeared, destined for a thrashing. The strong start from Ealing seemed to fortify Pinner and they played thenceforth with a renewed resolve to prevent Ealing scoring, particularly their full back, and the scorer of the second try who appeared to have the magic ability to slip through the defence like a hot knife through butter. This endeavour worked and try as they might Ealing could not get the ball over the line again. On one notable occasion the aforementioned slippery full back managed to get through most of the defence only encounter Sam Marchant on the try line. Sam stood his ground and instead of slipping past him he shoulder charged him; the try wasn’t given and Pinner got a penalty. Eventually they did break through and the score at half time was 3-0 and the prospects for the second half didn’t look very upbeat. Nevertheless, Pinner didn’t give up fighting. In the second half they defending valiantly and came close to scoring for the first time, although it not be. They continued to work tirelessly right up until the final whistle and prevented an Ealing scoring a single try in that final half; a feat that in many ways was their greatest success of the morning. Once again the score doesn’t reflect just how close the match was.

The final act of the morning was the now, ‘traditional’, cake demolition ceremony that follows any match when Kilburn and Pinner join forces. Although they hadn’t been victorious, it certainly didn’t seem to be troubled them as they consumed their share of the chocolate gateau.

Just in… a nice email from another club

Good to see you yesterday at Teddington and I’m so pleased you entered a team into the U12 Middlesex League.

Firstly I hope your full back that was injured when making a  try saving tackle on Ealing’s full back is okay, he took a big blow ?

Secondly I was so impressed again yesterday by your team and there great spirit( espeically linking up for the two minutes silence), they were a pleasure to referee polite and listened to all my comments/decisions.

I wish you luck in the next two rounds of the league and hope the boys get the victories they justly deserve.

See you at Wasps in March.

Kind regards

Graham Robson

Pinner back in winning form

After a three week lay-off from league rugby P&G’s were hosts to local rivals Ickenham at Shaftesbury Playing Fields on Saturday.  Both teams were in need of a win to lift them in the Herts /Middx Div 2.  Ickenham had the advantage of the wind for the first half but Pinner got the early scoring chances through penalties but none were converted.  Ickenham now used the wind to advantage to keep the ball in the home half and desperate P&G’s defence led to the home side conceding penalties.  Ickenham fly-half Barry Hall narrowly missed his first attempt at goal kicking the ball dead but Pinner soon gave him another chance when they were penalised for not releasing the ball in the tackle.  This time Hall made no mistake to give the visitors a 3 – 0 lead.  Pinner now upped the tempo with centre Alex Goring making a surging run from his own 10 metre line only to be brought down 3 metres short of the try line. Ickenham managed to scramble the ball clear. When it looked like the visitors would hold the lead to half-time they conceded a penalty on their 10 metre line.  Full-back Mark Razzell, promoted after kicking 18 points for the Pelicans the previous week, landed a fine 40 metre kick into the wind to draw level as the whistle went.

Now with the wind behind them Pinner attacked in earnest.  With only 7 minutes of the half gone they won the ball in mid-field and moved swiftly to right winger John Kirby who made good ground along the touch line.  When tackled he found No 8 Bernie Richter in support to complete the last 20 metres to score 10 m in from touch.  Razzell confidently added the 2 points.  The Ickenham backs seemed to have a few handling problems and in an attempt to get back into the game they conceded a few long range penalties but Pinner were unable to take advantage. With a quarter of an hour left, and the home side not yet sure of victory, P&G’s again attacked from mid-field.  This time Captain Reza Sibilant chose to put in the most delicate of kicks through the advancing defence and centre Alex Goring gathered and scored.  Razzell once more made the conversion to give the home side a more comfortable 17 – 3 lead.  On the half hour the Ickenham scrum-half, under pressure from the P&G’s back-row, put in a dreadful kick which was gratefully fielded by his opposite number Sam Markham.  He skilfully chipped over the disorganised defence, ran on to catch his own kick and scored Pinner’s third try which was not converted.   In the last ten minutes Pinner pressed hard for the fourth bonus point try but it was not to be so they had to be satisfied with the 22 – 3 victory.