Winchester produced their greatest display of exciting, skillful rugby for many a season in beating a talented, aggressive, recently promoted Royal Wootton Bassett team 18-14 in the Papa John’s Community Cup, writes Dai Henley.

With five changes in key positions due to unavailability and injuries and fielding five players under twenty, Winchester supporters’ expectations were understandably low. How wrong they proved to be!

Under the bright sun, perfect for fast attacking rugby, both teams launched into the game with full force. Within eight minutes, Winchester’s number eight, Jacob Culley-Wilson, made a decisive move, picking up from the base of the scrum ten metres from the RWB line and crashing over the goal line to the right of the posts. Fly-half Tommy Hare’s conversion added the extras.

Five minutes later, RWB countered after Winchester lost the ball in a lineout ten metres from their line. Loose-head prop Phil Bardwell evaded last-ditch tackles to crash over Winchester’s try line. The conversion by scrum-half Rhys Floyd evened up the score to 7-7.

The rest of the first half was a joy to watch. RWB continued their aggressive attacks but were thwarted on every occasion by outstanding tacking and thrilling counter attacks. 

Winchester’s flanker Callum Grant, playing his first game following a long-term injury, was yellow-carded for a tackle when referee Mark Scoular judged it to be overexuberant. 

Despite being down to fourteen players, Winchester continued to attack, with Hare varying his kicking tactics, sometimes chipping and collecting and sometimes putting up towering spiral kicks for his teammates to chase.

Within two minutes of the restart, Winchester went ahead after Hare converted a penalty from thirty metres. Then, with fifteen minutes played, RWB faced intense pressure from a Winchester lineout in their twenty-two. Their second rower, Sam Robinson, was yellow-carded for desperately pulling down a Winchester player. Hare converted to bring the score to 13-7.

RWB now played their best rugby of the match. They won a lineout close to Winchester’s line, and several phases later, flanker, Ollie Bancroft, evaded intense tackling and dived over. Floyd converted. RWB led for the first time, 13-14.

Winchester’s Hare, under pressure from his opposite number spun out of the tackle and kicked beautifully from hand, gaining valuable ground and putting Winchester into an excellent position for the lineout.  

Winchester’s Culley-Wison capped another man of the match award when he stole the RWB lineout inside their twenty-two and powered his way over for his second try. Hare’s conversion narrowly missed, leaving the score at 18-14 to Winchester. Despite RWB’s rally in the last ten minutes, the home side held on for a well-deserved victory. This was only the second defeat for RWB this season, and many supporters agreed this was one of the best games seen at Nun’s Road.

Coach Gareth Martin said: "Despite fielding such a young team, they tackled themselves to a standstill and wrestled back control of the game. I’m so proud of them."

Next week, Winchester travel to Newent in Gloucestershire for the second of three games. The following week, they travel to Chippenham. Whoever wins this group will play in a semifinal, with the winners appearing in the Papa John’s Community Cup Final at Twickenham on May 11.