Bishop's Stortford42

Rochford 10010

(NPI Intermediate Cup)BISHOP'S Stortford chalked up their seventh win on the trot with a 42-10 victory over a spirited Rochford 100 side.

The first half saw only one try from John Burton and a long range penalty slotted by Stuart Haslam.

The game was in the balance at half time,

and despite dominating possession and playing in a higher division, Stortford led only 8-3.

The second half was better from a Stortford point of view as their superior fitness started to tell. The pack continued to supply quality possession to the backs and also showed their superiority in the tight, with two driving mauls resulting in tries for Chad Verguson and Andy Shelley.

The backs also got in on the act, with fullback Paddy Deans diving in at the corner for the try of the game.

Three substitutions were made in the second half: Haslam was replaced by Crockett, Millard replaced John Burton and Simpson replaced David Rose, but this did not affect the performance.

Verguson soon added his second with a powerful run down the blindside from the base of a scrum. Inside centre Rozzer Paget powered over under the sticks and a few minutes later claimed his second thanks to some weak tackling by tired opposition.

In the final few minutes Rochford picked up a consolation score which was no less than their efforts deserved.