Set-piece sparkles to get 7-up for Trailfinders

EALING Trailfinders made it two wins in two matches after a dominant victory over Ampthill.

Ben Ward’s side scored seven tries in total with the foundations coming from a strong set-piece to give them plenty of front foot ball.

Director of rugby Ward was full of praise for his players after the performance.

“We are delighted with our first two performances and are pleased that the hard work in the off season is showing,” he said.

“Our set piece was very strong this afternoon and our defensive effort was relentless which set the tone for the win.”

Andrew Durutalo crossed for the first try of the afternoon with just 10 minutes on the clock. A scrum was turned on its head and the ball popped out straight to the back rower who powered over the line, and the next score followed from Reon Joseph just four minutes later.

The hosts entered the 22 and a huge looping pass from Craig Willis allowed the winger to run in to the corner unattended.

Harry Sloan scored try number three inside the first quarter with an outstanding team try.

James Cordy Redden and Rayn Smid combined down the wing, and passed inside to the man of the match who coasted through to the line to extend the lead to 17-0.

Ampthil got a deserved try on the half hour mark with a piece of quick thinking which ended in a smart try. With a penalty awarded a cross-field kick landed in the arms of Will Foster who got the visitors on the scoreboard.

Jack Tovey then secured the bonus point for the hosts with the final play of the first half. An overthrow opened up an opportunity for Kieran Murphy who was brought down just short, and the ball was recycled to Tovey who powered over the line.

Both sides struggled for momentum in the second half due to the large amount of stoppages, and a number of opportunities passed both teams by with handling errors costing them.

Ampthill were reduced to 14 men with Matthew Collins sent to the sin bin, and the Trailfinders took advantage with three tries in the final quarter.

Ben West smashed over from close range, before David Johnston crossed with his first touch with some smart hands from the scrum.

West confirmed the victory in the last minute as a length of the field effort saw the second rower dive over to bring up the 40 point mark.