Warlingham’s 2XV fall agonisingly short in 21-17 thriller against Blackheath 4XV, writes player and club Honorary Secretary Alex Glover.

Warlingham's second team took to the pitch on Saturday with just fifteen and a half fit players, after a string of late call-offs and several men drafted into the first team, to face a well-regarded Championship club's fourth team. Given the numbers, simply fielding a side was an achievement in itself.

Warlingham struck first. Manny Ademuyiwa, Peace Ejiro (a new recruit from rugby league), and Roy Hart all carved fantastic running lines to put the opposition on the back foot, and Alex Glover finished the move by sailing under the posts for an early try. The game stayed tight from there, with the sides level at one try apiece heading into the break.

Throughout the game the back row of Shaun Tyler-Free, Jonah Clay and recently returned Matt Barnet - from a stint trying his hand at Muai Thai boxing in Thailand - were cutting the opposition down at every opportunity and proving a strong back row group.

Blackheath came out of the changing room with intent in the second half, scoring a couple of well-worked tries to edge ahead. But Warlingham refused to fold, driven by a powerful showing from the forwards and a back row cutting Blackheath down all afternoon, while Roy Hart, Adam Downie-Keen, Manny, Peace and others began to carve the visitors open again with one Peace break leading to a Manny try.

A further Glover break led to a Cam Sharp try to lead a tense finish.

In the end, Blackheath held on to win 21-17 with Glover's earlier heroics slightly overshadowed by around nine missed points off the tee. Still, it was a thrilling, end-to-end contest that had club elders coming up to the players afterwards to praise the quality of rugby on show.

Under the captaincy of Nick Hammond, alongside Joe Kelly and Adam Downie-Keen, this Warlingham second team is clearly building something special: a tight-knit unit playing for each other, with plenty to look forward to as the season continues.

Photos: Kat Hand / Gulliver Martin