In the first half, we found it really hard to get going, were too slow at rucks, and cold hands made lots of handling errors. Despite some probing darts from Liam, it was one way traffic, and the half finished 8 tries to nil against us, with their giant number 2 proving untackleable.

The second half was more competitive, and Casuals showed some good heart in defence. Mellish scored five tries, but we at least managed two in response, with Edwin and Bradwell getting over the line. Bradwell's was a great solo effort from distance, which he scored despite Mellish attempting to take his head off en route. Sadly it was just one of many cheap shots and high tackles from Mellish, who would have been punished far more by a neutral referee.

Player of the week was Edwin, for making his tackles, driving forward, and even managing another try (his second in two weeks)!

The main takeaways for Casuals were about the need to show controlled aggression and determination, and to stop being too "nice".... something that Mellish didn't suffer from. We gave them too much opportunity to attack and get up to speed, and didn't put them under the pressure we needed to, and ultimately paid the price on the scoreboard.

Any suggestions for getting the team all riled up for the start of their next game would be gratefully received!