Finchley avail on a blustery day in N12.

The game got off to a good start for Finchley despite playing into a strong wind. The Finchley pack got the upper hand on their opposition with all 8 making tackles and put early pressure on the Welwyn 10.

Following this early pressure Welwyn started to use the wind to their advantage pinning Finchley back, this led to a penalty in front of the posts which Welwyn slotted over.

The next 30 minutes of the first half followed a similar pattern, Welwyn playing tight rugby and forcing Finchley to play in the own half for much of the first 40 minutes. This pressure was dealt with well by Finchley, with players tackling well to keep Welwyn away from the try line. Late in the half Finchley made a good break through the backs with Victor Coker going very close, the ball was then recycled and the Welwyn pack gave away a penalty that Tom Saliba slotted over.

What seemed like the longest half of rugby ever came to an end with the scores 3-3.

The 2nd half got underway with Finchley playing some great rugby, using the conditions to their advantage to pin the opposition back. Welwyn continued to give away penalties and the boot of Saliba made sure they paid for them. Following a well worked move in the pack, Finchley made a clear break through the Welwyn line and recycled the ball for Saliba to set up James Clarke in the corner. Tuft converted.

Finchley put in a solid performance for the rest of 2nd half with Welwyn barely getting out of their own territory in 40 minutes. The back line including James Clarke, David Tuft and Chris Duck were able to make some good breaks through the Welwyn three-quarters but poor execution meant they were not able to add to the try tally.

There were some solid performances in the pack which took on a formidable Welwyn 8, especially from Tom Maculiffe and Will Cooper. Saliba showed that his boot is a valuable weapon on a blustery day, but Man of the Match goes to Niall Clifford for providing a good link between forwards and backs whilst making as many tackles as a 6.

Final score 10-3

Although this performance for Finchley was far from convincing it proved that they are contenders for the top 2 this season. There will have to be an improvement from all 18 during the week for the tough test of Old Merchant Taylors away on the 2nd Nov.