It took just two minutes for Henley to deliver the first blow, three minutes later the ball was out of the ruck and Henley forwards had scored again. A bewildered Maidenhead were just coming to terms with this crisis, when a Henley back ran half the pitch, knocking Maidenhead players down like ninepins. Maids fought back and a run by outside centre David Geneen took it to the Henley line but again a kick away found touch and Henley had the ball again and over they went. The half time whistle saw a dismal 39-0.

Severe encouragement by the Maidenhead coach in the interval lead to the second half getting off to a better start when a try from number eight Adrian Griffiths started the uphill struggle for points. Buoyed by this reminder of normal form, Maids pushed on and on. But the pounding continued, some clever well-aimed passing lead to further tries for Henley. A good run by Christian Kent nearly gave Maids its second try but that would not have been enough to correct the score and the misery ended with a 65-5 defeat.

Some determined driving forward by Ed Wilding and Neils Pedersen helped, as did some feisty play by Thurlough O’Connor. Even the idyllic setting of the Henley riverside pitch was no consolation to the downhearted Maidenhead squad. Some intensive training and early Saturday nights will hopefully put the team back on track to maintain its position at the top of the Berkshire league. Luckily the Henley game was not a league game!