Tempers boil over as Saints march on

Midlands 6 East (South) Aylestonians 5 St Neots 38 CONFUSED players using satellite navigation systems and getting lost en-route wasn t a good start to St Neots day and it took a while for fortunes to improve. Within minutes of the start of the match, S

Midlands 6 East (South)

Aylestonians 5 St Neots 38

CONFUSED players using satellite navigation systems and getting lost en-route wasn't a good start to St Neots' day and it took a while for fortunes to improve.

Within minutes of the start of the match, Saints' second row Chris Oram twisted heavily whilst tackling an opposition forward and fell, breaking his ankle.

After several minutes of intensive treatment the referee decided to move the match to a neighbouring pitch, leaving Oram to wait for his ambulance.

When the match restarted Ed Hunt and Tom Worboys put in some exceptional work in the tight to keep Saints well in the game.

Several good chances were missed to put points on the board but St Neots finally registered in the dying minutes of the half when Aylestonians conceded a penalty just outside their 22 and Lewis Hall slotted the kick between the uprights to give Saints a slender three point lead at half-time.

With Lewis Hall kicking off the second half , the visitors began like men possessed and within a minute Adam Peel had charged through with the ball to score with the ever-improving Hall kicking the conversion.

From there on St Neots upped the tempo of the match with the forwards putting in massive hits on the opposition and driving them back to make the space for the backs to work their magic.

Peel scored again and again as St Neots started to stretch their lead and Hall's boot was also just as quick to add the conversion as they moved the game beyond the grasp of the home side.

Aylestonians, to their credit, never gave up and a well-worked lineout move resulted in a maul which snaked its way across the line allowing them to finally get some points on the board.

This only seemed to harden Saints' resolve and replacement Sam Peel burst through and charged down the wing, evading desperate tackles and scoring a dynamic try.

Things then boiled over, following a late tackle on scrum half Richard Tipping, and both teams exploded in a flurry of punches and with almost every player involved it was a few minutes before calm was restored.

Kyle Martin was sent to the sin bin along with the opposition forward who had caused the fracas with his late tackle as the visitors saw out the game for a comfortable victory.

* St Neots III played hosts to Royston II and managed a 24-19 win. First half tries by Neil Rook and Nick Munson gave St Neots the lead, assisted by a conversion from Dean Lofty.

After a early second-half shock when the visitors took the lead, Dean Beech went over with the first response and then the ever-present Rook burst through from another strong phase of forward play to score a try under the posts for a conversion by Lofty to close the day's play.