Sat 2 Dec 2023
After passing through a Didcot that had never looked so beautiful (entirely covered in deep frost), Wallingford 2nd XV arrived at Abingdon and quickly ensconced themselves in the changing rooms, with little desire to re-emerge into the cold. The home side suffered a similar but more extreme affliction, being a man down from the start as 4 Fijians sensibly decided on a duvet day.
With Laney and Ross gallantly stepping up for Abingdon, and the freezing fog clearing, the match began. What followed was a joy to behold, with Wallingford righting the wrongs of previous matches with regards to structure, patterns and handling. The result was never in doubt, with Wallingford’s strength in breadth and depth apparent from the first to the last whistle, but the manner of the performance was what warmed the cockles. Dominant but classy, varied but rarely wasteful.
Tries and assists were too many to list, and we still left some points out there (along with James’ kicking tee hopefully) but standout performances from Seamus, Rhys and Toby grabbed the Thames Valley headlines, with the latter doing his best Ini Kamoze impression throughout. More of the same next time please.
