Tring 3s Class Shows in 1st league Win

Tring edged the early exchanges and were dominant up front with Dumpleton, Dearden and Riley all showing well in the front row.
Scores were still level after 35 minutes despite regular breaks by centre Clulow but Tring did not capitalise mainly due to lack of support in numbers.
The deadlock was finally broken just before half time when prop, Jake Riley used his strength to barge over the line from close range after good work by the forwards.
Tring came out stronger in the the 2nd half with Hutchins making good yardage from no 8. At last Tring’s centres showed their superior class when James Bushe rounded two players and went in under the posts.
Harpenden’s superior fitness was evident as they tried to hit back and reduce the deficit which they did with their forwards going over all too easily from close range twice in quick succession!
At 13-10 Tring were not as comfortable.
Dan Boniface was excellent at full back and bossed his backs very well. After landing a penalty goal to increase Tring’s lead, he reacted quicker than anyone on the pitch to take a tap penalty and used his strength and pace to jink over in the corner. This put Tring almost out of reach but Harpenden didn’t give up and finished the stronger side.
With 3 tries each did not reflect the dominant play in a scrappy game. Tring’s class showed in the end but the superior fitness of Harpenden showed which allowed them to stay in the game.
Man of the match was tough with the front row excellent, Matt Hutchins prominent at 8 and Dan Boniface running the show from full back but this weeks MoM is John Clulow playing his first game of the season at centre. He showed what straight running can do and completely out played his opposite number.