Thetford 27, Burnham-on-Crouch 15

Thetford Rugby Club’s first team advanced into the next round of the RFU Junior Vase after a commanding display against Burnham-on-Crouch.

Neither side had met before this preliminary round match so it was always going to be a cagey affair.

Both sides tested each other out for the first 20 minutes until a moment of class from the Thetford backs unleashed full-back Adam Harper into space for Thetford’s first try.

This was a wake-up call for Burnham who then unleashed wave upon wave of attacks.

If it had not been for the hard work and determination of the Thetford back row of Bishop, Sands and Suttling Thetford would have had a much harder hill to climb in the second half with Burnham leading 12-10 at half-time thanks to Burnham’s very classy number13.

Following their half-time team talk and a few simple adjustments by coach Ian Reynolds it appeared that some of the work done on the training pitch was carried on to the field of play and with this Thetford’s confidence grew.

Although still making some errors especially with their kicking Thetford’s self-belief continued to grow and nobody typified this more than Dexter’s man-of-the-match Adam Brown, who showed the will to win and not let his team down.

Following a poor kick he then tackled both props, one after the other, in three to four seconds and reclaimed the ball with a penalty to Thetford for holding on.

This seemed to spur Thetford on and deflate Burnham who began to crack under sustained Thetford pressure, giving away penalties in their 22 which Thetford converted into points.

With the game ebbing away from them Burnham chanced their arm once too often and quick turnover ball was fed out to the wing where the smooth silky running of Ian Reynolds was too much for Burnham.

Thetford know that there will be harder teams to crack but with a lot of hard work on Tuesdays and Thursdays they look forward to the season.

Anybody interested in playing rugby should call Ollie Taylor on 0779474429, training is every Tuesday and Thursday at Thetford Rugby Club, Two Mile Bottom at 7pm.