With a couple of players stuck in traffic, preparations for this early kick off were far from ideal. This showed as Thurrock bossed early possession and scored 3 early tries. Once Witham got into their stride, exchanges became much more even. Late in the half, Witham were on the attack. Steve Clements drove into the 22 and when he was halted, Nathan Frost collected and forced his way over the line. Thurrock started the second half with new legs and made it count with an early try. Darren Smith finally came on and made several attacking runs. Witham won a scrum on their 22 and the Witham pack drove Thurrock back. Instead of the expected number 8 pick up, Alex Beer ran from behind the scrum. As Max popped the ball to him, he headed for the fly half. With their centre helping to halt Alex, he slid the ball to John Cox, who sidestepped the other centre and went into the space behind. As the winger stepped in, Cox neatly passed to Rob Bennett on the wing who had a free run to the line.
Whilst it is little consolation, Witham can be proud to say they played their genuine team and gave it their all. One day, this may reap the rewards it deserves. One day.....