Melton RFC spirit rewarded with brilliant first win

And the First XV ended their barren run in emphatic style against a strong Northampton Old Scouts side, with four tries scored and only two conceded.

All of Melton’s scores were converted by Harvey Green who has been hit with injuries all season, but stepped up to deliver an impressive performance with the boot while setting the backs in motion at outside-half.

Several other players made outstanding contributions, notably Pete Clarke and Andy Knight as marauding loose forwards, with support from skipper Leon Gormley and the ever-improving Tom Allen.

The evergreen Wayne Brookes also produced some great moments, carrying the hard yards later on in the contest.

Duncan Lennox, at scrum-half, was at his tenacious best, adding a tightness to the general play which Melton benefitted from, especially later on as both teams tired.

Head coach Gareth Collins also brought his experience to play in midfield alongside the workaholic Ollie Circuit as Melton looked the complete side to fully warrant their bonus-point win.

The game was played at a frantic pace in the opening exchanges and the large touchline support feared the worst as Old Scouts took the lead through a soft try.

Melton then squandered a couple of chances before Scouts landed a penalty to nudge 8-0 ahead.

Undeterred, Melton stormed back, and though they could not force a score before the break, importantly they were still in the game.

The second half was basically all Melton, although Scouts contributed to their own demise with players in the sinbin, as the visitors continually slowed down play at almost every opportunity.

Melton’s first try came from Lennox, after several forward drives, to reduce the deficit to 8-7.

The hosts then switched off for five minutes and conceded a second rather soft try down the blindside, out wide.

Fortunately the conversion was poor, and virtually from the restart Melton launched several attacks from short range, ending with Harry Wood scoring on his first full game of the season.

After several injuries, it was a real bonus to see him back.

Green added the second conversion for a narrow 14-13 lead to the hosts.

The last 15 minutes brought out a rejuvenated Melton, and excellent combined play from forwards and backs allowed coach Collins to slide over for a third try, with Green confidently knocking over the extras.

The outstanding Pete Clarke scored the fourth after some super carries from Brooks and Luke Pawley as Green added the touchline conversion to begin delirious celebrations all round.

No-one saw this coming, but it was a fine performance, thoroughly deserved and will give Melton impetus for the rest of the season.

Next up for Melton is the rearranged fixture with title-chasing Kettering which will be an interesting match after this much-needed win.