Enfield Ignatians' Fourths put up a good show but their dreams of silverware will have to wait another season after they went down 22-7 to Royston Seconds in the Herts-Middlesex Merit Table Five Cup final.

Royston tried to stretch Ignatians at every opportunity but with their wide game far too imprecise and after a penalty opportunity going begging, the Blue and Golds weathered the storm and rebounded off the ropes to lead 7-0 at the interval.

After winning a penalty close to the Royston line and with the Hertfordshire side down to 14 after having a man sin-binned, the Ignatians cashed in after battering the line via the forwards and running a cute inside line.

Their pressure was rewarded after prop Bob Ridley forced his way over. Fly-half Dave Conlan added the extras but the second-half was to prove a different story.

Losing a scrum-feed on their put-in close to their own line proved fatal and Ignatians were twice punished by some slick three-quarter play with Royston carving overlaps on opposite sides of the field on two occasions.

They also conceded a soft fourth try to compound their woes.

However, captain Steve Renny was quick to salute the character of his side. He said: "We've done wonderfully well this season and we were haunted by the possibility of relegation earlier in the campaign, but we've regrouped well and staved off those worries."