Finchley 37 - 5 London Nigerians

Good weather and a near perfect playing surface meant there were no excuses for either side. The first five minuets was solid Finchley pressure and a couple of half chances weren't taken. The second five minutes was the opposite as Nigerians gto on top but again with out scoring. With the ball having been in play almost constantly for these early exchanges the game then settle down into a bit of a stale mate, with Nigerians dominating the scrum and Finchley the lineout, it wasn't until the 28 minute that the deadlock was broken by a penalty to Finchley. Shortly afterwards there was a try by Jo O under the post having cut in from the left, this was converted to make the half time score 10-0. The contrast in styles was apparent with Nigerians looking to hit short 2 or 3 times before getting the ball to the back and Finchley looking to play a generally wider game. After the break Finchley scored quite early through a short range props try from Pete Lightbulb (not converted) who had come on for the injured Marco Rabbini. From here Finchley manager to play in mostly the right areas and another try followed by another front rower Dom L (converted) to leave Finchley 22-0 ahead and one try from a bonus point. There was a slight relaxation from here and Nigerians came back with a score in the corner (uncoverted). With 20 minutes still to go and a slight momentum change (now 22-5) it was Finchley who needed to score next and a try from Tom Lewis (not converted) helped to seal the bonus point (4 tries) and prevent Nigerians gathering more momentum. The game then became a little fragmented and the control Finchley forwards had exerted through driving mauls dissipated. A Finchley penalty eventually followed and was sensibly kicked to calm things down. A late try by Ray rounded things off and the game was won 37-5 to enure the full 5 points. A good start to the Summers Lane league season....Wasps next week.

Reported by: Will Hargrove