Walsall were in confident mood as they travelled down the M5 to play Cheltenham North last Saturday. They had produced some super rugby when they registered their first league win last week, and it was hoped that they could maintain their winning form.
Indeed, the visitors had a dream start when lock Nick Field recovered the ball from the kick off. This resulted in the ball being moved all along the three-quarter line, and a fine move was finished off by winger Tom Emes scoring in the corner. This should have set the pattern for the rest of the game for the Walsall team. But they failed to produce any type of continuity to their play until very late in the match. It was the hosts who began to control possession and too dictate the game. A strong break through the midfield saw North take the lead and it was evident that they were gaining in confidence. Outside half Andy Hawkins put Walsall back in front with a well struck penalty. But then he had a kick charged down which resulted in another try for the hosts. By this time the visitors had lost winger Andy Turner through injury, and were forced to reshuffle their back division. Just before the interval the Gloucestershire team launched another concentrated attack which resulted in another try to give them a 17-8 lead.
Hawkins brought Walsall back into the game after the restart, with two good penalties. But a Cheltenham penalty eased them into a 20 -14 lead with the game entering its final quarter. The hosts however, were guilty of some ‘over vigorous’ play, and they were reduced to thirteen players when the referee sinbinned both of their props. This really should have seen the visitors use their numerical superiority to full advantage. They did score one good try when the ball was moved wide for Tom Archer to score wide out. But there were several other scoring opportunities which were all missed. During this period and throughout most of the game,there were several players who were guilty of some very poor passing and catching skills. This meant that scoring chances were being missed. The hosts were now back to full strength and as the game moved into the final two minutes, a Walsall attack broke down, and this gave the opportunity for the hosts to kick the ball upfield. The resulting chase saw the ball being hacked on and gathered by the Cheltenham winger, who dived over for the deciding score.

The games do not get any easier as high flying Dudley Kingswinford come to Delves Road next Saturday