Report by Alex Browning

(The report to follow is being sent to the police as evidence for the massacre of Effingham.)
Sorry for the delay guys but I have had mocks all this week and it was difficult to squeeze this in !!

Sundays league game saw Effingham host Wimbledon on a gloriously sunny day, however strong winds played a significant factor in the action that was to follow.
Naturally both teams were hyped up and raring for action from the start so it was a bit of an anti-climax when Effinghams kick off didn't even go 10 metres… This gave the dominant Wimbledon forwards a chance to exhibit their power from the very beginning. Winning the scrum on the half way line, Cameron put in a deep kick towards the opposition corner, with a little help from the wind. The line-outs were a dangerous area for that day, as the wind was throwing the ball left and right. Wimbledon managed to out jump Effingham, and almost score from this. They were stopped unfortunately, illegally by Effingham , in one of Wimbledon's many phases of attack, and this was Archie's first chance to demonstrate his constantly superb kicking. Although, with the wind throwing any ball off course, he did well to get it even remotely near the posts, let alone miss by just inches.
From the 22 restart, George took the ball with a storming run, only being brought down by the puddle in the middle of the pitch! George playing one of his best games in a Wimbledon shirt! The ball was shipped out to Lucas who was just pushed out 10 yards from the Effingham line. The Line out was won once again by the Dons forwards and a tightly packed maul was shoved over the Effingham try line. This was touched down by Dom Suckling to put Wimbeldon 5-0 ahead. Effingham were stronger after the deficit was struck, and were for the first time in the Dons half, with a scrum on half way again. However with some solid defence from the Dons, Dom Suckling was able to rip the ball from underneath Effinghams' noses. A defensive kick from our 22 saw a line out deep in Effinghams half, and with the throw not being straight, Wimbledon once again could demonstrate their dominance in the scrum. After a couple of phases the ball was passed out to Diogo who charged over for a try in the right hand corner making it 10-0.
From the restart, Matt Shaw put through a kick and made a great chase, committing to the tackle, stopping their fullback making ground. Although after several phases, several infringements caused us to backtrack the ground that was made. However with great tackles from the forwards, lead by a Ellis who was on top form, a scrum was conceded. This led to a fast paced move by the Dons' backs with a pass to Lucas out on the wing, who made a superb run. With Archie joining the attack, the ball was shipped to him and he scored the third try of the game. 15-0.
Moves after the restarts kept us in Effinghams half and it was not about to stop. With a superb run from Sam, who was only able to be stopped by a last ditch tackle from their fullback, there was a Dons scrum just 10 yards out. A typical Mcgrath pick up from the back of the scrum led to a tidy try to bring the Dons to 20-0. A conversion in difficult conditions saw the score stretch further to 22-0.
Towards the end of the half however, a series of 4 penalties against us saw the Dons pressured for the first time. However with good counter rucking and ball carrying from George and Alex, we saw out the end of the half, with a clean sheet still.

At the restart, Effingham came back with their strongest moment of the game. This consisted of moves and drives, pushing the Dons back to their 5 yard line. However with superb defending by the entire Wimbledon 15, they were pushed out for a series of line outs. Resulting from this was a breaking run from Archie from the 22, as he proceeded to score his second of the day, making the score 27-0. Good moves and interchanging by Cameron and Diogo saw the gaining of several metres however the ball was lost on occasion. Although, George managed to to steal the ball back. With a lapse in concentration, Effingham put pressure on the right side of the pitch and forced Sam into defensive duties. A scrum saw the Dons turn over possession and whilst there was good offloading happening, the ball was shipped out to Sam. The ball then found its way to Diogo who danced his way through 3/4 players to score a thoroughly deserved try. 32-0.
From the restart, Wimbledon secured the ball and held possession whilst they tired out the Effingham defence. The ball flew past 2/3 Dons players and landed into Sams hands, who dished out a trademark hand off to his opposite number, and set off for his first try. 39-0. In the build up, Dom received a kick to the head, which the ref (obviously on some sort of cocaine from the 80s) turned a blind eye to this behaviour
Straight from the restart and after one phase of play, Max sent a picturesque 15-yard pass out to Sam, whose opponent was still reeling from the last hand off, so he eased past and made light work of others following. 44-0.
The match had to be stopped there, otherwise even some of the forwards would start scoring! My man of the match would have to go to Jodi for his storming 1 minute appearance!
It was great to see Nick watching from the sidelines and he should be back with us by next season which is great to hea