WITH no first or second XV games, Ledbury thirds were the only team playing at home.

LEDBURY III 29pts, EVESHAM III 7pts

The team was very much a mixture of the old and the bold, and from the kick-off the forwards were dominant, pressurising the Evesham line.

After five minutes the Evesham defence finally cracked, Gareth Watkins wriggling over for a try.

Evesham had no intention of letting Ledbury take charge, and for much of the first half the visitors backs kept them in the hunt. Kester Wilkinson returning after an 18-month lay-off was devastating at No 8, taking the ball on time and time again, as well as putting in some superb tackles.

From a scrummage, he broke clear to score under the posts. Evesham however clawed their way back with a well worked breakaway try for the wing from the half way line.

At half time, Ledbury made three changes, and they never looked back. The back row combination of Roberts, Wilkinson and Watkins was too much for the Evesham defence, and Roberts was as usual popping up everywhere, either tackling or making ground.

Ledbury's lineout began to click too, and with the benefit of the slope, points were inevitable. From a rolling maul, Watkins notched up his second try, and minutes later prop forward Sean Nash found himself with space and after a Ben Cohen type dive scored his first try for Ledbury, and Ledbury were home and dry.

All that remained was for Ledbury wing Tim Riley to skip over for a try. The game ended early, because of an ankle injury to one of the Evesham players.

Ledbury thirds improve with every week, with a regular side beginning to take shape.