Enfield Ignatians beaten by Saffron Walden in warm-up game

Although they ultimately suffered defeat against Saffron Walden, they will derive many positives against opponents who are invariably very hard to beat on their own Henham patch.

A rejuvenated Ignatians exploded out of the blocks and, a dominant first-half performance was rewarded with tries from Robert Rigby and Wes Warren as the visitors surged into a 10-0 lead in the first half-hour, when Saffron Walden also lost two players to the sin-bin.

A stunned Saffron Walden belatedly woke up and, after the blue and golds had conceded a cheap penalty, Walden worked the ball through a number of phases before the winger squeezed in at the corner. Tom Price’s successful conversion limited Ignatians’ lead to 10-7 at the break.

The second half was a different story and, with Ignatians less sure-footed and forced on the defensive, Saffron Walden capitalised to score two further tries to secure the spoils.

Coach Ali Cook said: “It just goes to show the fine margins at this level between victory and defeat. We dominated the first half but, in the second period, we were undone by a lack of composure and consistency.

“Having said that, we weren’t at full strength and there were a number of good performances with Jack North fully deserving of his man-of-the-match award for his display. However, this was all about team spirit and the side bonding together and, from that angle, I’m very pleased.”

Enfield Ignatians are away to Staines in the National Cup competition on Saturday.

The club’s third team, boosted by the addition of a number of ex-colts, won their pre-season away game at a strong Weston side 13-12. A successful penalty from David Conlan tipped the scales in favour of the visitors.