The inauspicious start was due to a shortage of players at the 08.30 supposed departure time, but Maidenhead’s 16 eventual heroes can be well-pleased with their day’s endeavours. The plain facts were that Maids played 5, won 4, drew 1. They were the competition’s top scorers with 24 tries, which could well have been more had final passes not been spilled, with their nearest rivals only mustering 16.

Maids tumbled off the coach and practically straight onto the pitch in their first match. They continued to move at 60mph through the whole game and a useful Lutterworth side were brushed aside 40-5. The Maids threequarters helped themselves to frequent tries that came from sweeping movements as they spread the ball continuously on a wide pitch.

Old rivalries were stirred up in a very different game next, however, as Maidenhead took on their hosts in a tough encounter. Maids became distracted in the close-quarter skirmishes that hung over from a recent fixture and were down by one try for much of the game. In those circumstances, someone has to step up to the mark, and unsurprisingly, Griffiths plunged over for the equalising score.

Droitwich and Rugby were then despatched efficiently by 20-5 and 40-5 respectively, with tries being scored throughout the team. This brought up the deciding match with Broad Street, who had won all of their previous games.

By this time, Brunsden (who had surprised several people, not least himself, as he had been woken up to join the team), and his front-row colleagues of Shearer and Jasnikowski were totally dominant in the scrums, taking several strikes against the head. Corcoran had made his mark against all-comers, along with Fox in the second row. Both they and Tom Plumer, who had moved up a group, revelled in the physical challenges. Tom’s elder brother Jamie looked on in admiration, and O’Connor was absolutely everywhere. The whole pack were outstanding, and they comprehensively out-muscled all opponents in the loose and tight.

The backs combined fluid passing at pace with solid defence. Niell played a rumbustious part at scrum-half, and Wardle controlled games well from out-half, mixing telling kicks with breaks, even though he had taken a hard knock when scoring in the first game. Burgess bristled with aggressive tackling, and Kent and Venn on the wings posed problems when they ran strongly.

However, the real difference between Maidenhead and their opponents were the outstanding performances from Griffiths, Geneen and Standfast. These young men are players of real quality. Standfast was a constant threat with ball in hand, Geneen burnt the grass and opponents alike, and Griffiths was simply immense.

The game against Broad Street would decide the tournament winner, but from first whistle to last, Maidenhead were always in control. A try from Griffiths in the first half, bursting from a line-out, set the tone and he powered over again in the second half to put Maidenhead in the driving seat. The final move of the match saw Standfast score after the ball had swept upfield through the hands of most of the team.

In all, a very determined effort from the Maidenhead side, who played with great team spirit and no little skill to carry off the handsome trophy.