Park defeated at home

Park played their last home game of the season on a beautifully warm spring day, with a gentle breeze blowing over Crow Lane from the cemetery. Some of Romford’s faithful were sporting shorts. There should be laws against this kind of thing – like a minimum number of hours in the tanning parlour before showing legs in public.

The first half was littered with unforced errors errors by both sides. Park did themselves no favours with a high penalty count against them. Despite this, it was Park who scored first, when Paul Webb barreled over from short range.

It was good to see Dwayne Lin back on the pitch, dealing out his brand of mayhem round the edges of the ruck. Not all his techniques found favour with the referee, but this is nothing new. Dwayne’s unique and creative interpretation of the rules of rugby has always had more followers among the lawyers on the Romford touchline than among the sticklers who run training courses for refs.

The mistakes and penalties continued, and the game was generally scrappy. Eventually the men in blue and yellow took advantage of confusion in the Park defence to pass the ball along the line and score in the corner. This drew the scores level at 5-5.

However, Park repaid in the same coin, when some quick hands along the back line put Jamie “the Beast” Harbour over. Mexican Matt Taylor converted, and so Park went into half time 12-5 up.

I don’t know what was said in the half time huddles, but Upminster tightened their game up in the second half, and Park did not – with predictable results. Park’s pack, usually the mainstay of the team, were not at their best. When Micky James describes a game as a bad hair day, you know it has to be really bad. Paul Webb carried the ball hard and well, but he was the exception, and Park’s ball carriers lacked their usual bite. Credit to Upminster, this was usually because they knocked the Park runners over with great efficiency. Park were over-ambitious in their play, with too many risky offloads, and runners getting isolated without support. Even the line-out crumbled under pressure.

The U’s were rewarded for a sustained period of pressure when they scored a pushover try. Their 10 then followed up with two well taken penalties, and Upminster were now 12-16 ahead. The 10 had a good game with the boot from hand too, pumping the ball hard and far down the pitch from Park’s regular and generous donation of penalties.

Normally Park’s backs who are the weaker link in the chain. But today they showed a solid line in defence, and Upminster’s backs got nowhere. Park’s backs also made good ground themselves, making up for the lack of go forward ball with some slick ball handling to put wingers Gorgeous George Robertson and Jamie Harbour into space. This was the usual way that Park got into the opposition half.

Park regained the lead when Barney Sevull feinted to pass, hopped splay-footed inside the defence, and popped the ball up. Luckily the man outside was his brother Matt Seville, probably the only man on the pitch who had some idea where Barney might end up after a jink like this. So Matt cut in off his line to receive the ball, and scored. Matt Taylor converted, and Park were 19-16 in the lead again.

Park lost the lead when they allowed the Upminster 9 to run through the whole team and pass the ball for an easy try. This was converted, leaving the score 19-23 with about ten minutes to go.

Nobody could say that Park did not have their chances to take the game back during these ten minutes. The Park backs ran the ball into the Upminster half, and Park spent much of the ten minutes on the line. But the Upminster defence held firm and repelled all Park’s rather unimaginative efforts to push the ball over. So the score was still 19-23 when Park again lost control of the ball, and Upminster gleefully booted it off to record a memorable victory.

Park captain Aidan Mersh seemed in reflective mood afterwards -
"We're disappointed by the result but, I think it gives us clarity on what we need to work on going forward. Speaking to Shaun, it was one of our best performances as a back line which has been building over the past couple of months.

We've come a long way this season and I want us to end the season on a high as its what the boy's deserve for all their hard work this season."

To be honest, this was not the result that Romford’s faithful had either hoped for or expected. The Park pack had a poor day. But Upminster won the game just as much as Park lost it. In the second half they executed their game plan much more effectively, got the basics right, and defended very well. This game shows why supporting the Park is not recommended for those with shaky nerves or weak hearts. It’s enough to drive you to drink – ruling out those with bad livers too.