The first home game of the season saw the best and very worst of the Hammers and resulted in a narrow loss which should have been a straight forward victory on a sunny day in south west London.

Harpenden kicked off the match and the opening exchanges were fairly even.  After five minutes however the Hammers kicked into gear and ran in their first try with Callum 'Hamstring' Morris bursting into the line and stepping through the one footed Harpenden defence with ease to score the opening try of the game.  Five minutes later and a good line out fed the backs, Hamstring and Mark 'Glass Jaw' Sweeting carved through the Harpenden back line before feeding Webby and Dan Djicik who crashed over in the corner for his first genuine try of the season.  Fifteen minutes gone and with two well taken tries, the Hammers were cruising 14-0.

The remainder of the game saw the Hammers repeatedly crumble under pressure, giving away needless penalties, due to careless handling and poor discipline.

Half and hour had gone when after good work from the Harpenden forwards the Hammers found themselves back tracking for the first time in the game.  After three penalties were conceded in quick succession Harpenden were awarded a penalty try.

Seemingly unfazed the Hammers tried to re-assert themselves and squandered chances as passes were dropped and penalties conceded.  The half ended with both sides looking to attack and being held out by resolute defending.

The second half began well for Harpenden and they immediately put the Hammers pack under pressure.  Having kicked three points, a penalty gave them the opportunity for a catch and drive from the resulting line out.  The Hammers went to sleep for a second and Harpenden crashed over to score.  The missed conversion meant that they edged the game 15-14.

Hammersmith then went back on the offensive, making good in roads on the Harpenden defence and taking the game to the opposition.  Each time though, careless errors let them down.  Mid way through the half, the Hammers pack launched a catch and drive from a mid field line out.  With the ball secure, the forwards marched the ball fifteen or twenty yards forward and didn't look like stopping.  That was until Luke 'Dancing Feet' Goggin decided that he would treat a defenceless opponent, lying on the floor, to a taste of his clumsy size 11 footwear.  The resulting penalty gave Harpenden the chance to kick the ball back into the Hammers half and wasted good field position.

Back under pressure the Hammers defended well and were able to clear their lines when Hatchet Nielsen found a gap down the blind side and strided clear and into space.  His gas took him a full twenty yards before he began to pull up and offloaded to Weeksy.  Nielo was clearly too quick for Weeks who was tired after keeping pace and unable to break away from the cover defence.  Weeksy was tackled to the ground and into touch and after informing the physio  that he had pins and needles in his arm was told he could no longer continue playing.  A good lesson for the young fly half about taking the knocks and not whining like a girl.

There was no such whining five minutes later when Adam 'The Gob' Wooton managed to sink his tooth into the side of Chris 'Boy Racer' Webbs head after a nasty collision.  Wooton for once was left speechless as he searched for the other half of his tooth at the bottom of his gum shield and Webby bled like a dying hero in the side of the pitch before being taken to hospital for stitches.

The Hammers continued to press the game and were rewarded with a penalty which they converted to lead the game 17-15 with fifteen minutes remaining.  As the game drew to an end, both sides were chasing the score that would give them some breathing space.  Unfortunately for the hammers it was Harpenden who got the next score with a penalty that allowed then to take the lead again 18-17.

As the Hammers pushed for a final score, Callum 'Hamstring' Morris dropped back into the pocket and lined himself up for a drop goal.  The resulting scuffed kick at the corner flag left Morris with no alternative than to recoil in pain and grab his hamstring in a desperate attempt to draw peoples attention away from his efforts.  It fooled no one.

As the final few minutes of the game closed in, a series of scrums on the Harpenden line resulted in no reward for the Hammers and after a twenty metre rolling maul from a line out the Hammers earned themselves a penalty and the opportunity to win the game with the last kick.  The kick went wide however and with it the game ended with a disappointing loss for the Hammers on home turf.

Captain 'Little Fella' Lines and the 'Tinkerman' Porter-Griffiths had harsh words for the team after the final whistle and improvements will be made for next weeks trip to Datchworth.  Positives from the game were that the Hammers showed glimpses of excellent rugby.  More consitency from the outside backs and the set piece will see the Hammers play some good rugby and test many of the teams in the league.   Further good news in the return to the squad by Tom 'Magic Hands' Clarke showed that you should never throw in the towel, no mater what people say about your weight.

Hammers:  Callum Morris, Adam Wooton, Chis Webb, Mark Sweeting, Dan Djicik, James Weeks, Ali Lines, Barry O'Sullivan, Ryan Dilley, Stuart McIntyre, Alex Nielsen, James Leach, Luke Goggin, Nick Dray, Mark Blyghton.  Subs. Simon Ringshaw, Tom Clarke, Pete Lacey.

Tin Men - Luke Goggin / Adam Wooton - Discipline - Dancing feet and Tourrettes syndrome respectively.

Man of the Match -  Callum Morris - Despite the drop goal attempt, a well taken try and set up the other.

The Scribe