After heavy defeats at the hands of Gordon’s and Halliford early in the term it became evident that those two schools would probably be dominating this year’s competitions. Then, either side of half term, the LP teams hit some form and worked their way into play-off positions with good results against Licensed Victuallers, Bearwood College, Salesian College and Ranelagh.
Both the 1st and 2nd XVs had daunting play-off matches against Gordon’s School in November. The 1st XV played their most disciplined rugby of the season and kept to a game plan in an attempt to avenge their 38-5 defeat in September. Two early tries for LP put the home side under pressure and a sustained and committed effort in the second half saw us hold on for a 20-12 victory. Once again, the Leighton Park 1st XV had qualified for the final against Halliford the following week.
The 2nd XV had a tough match and fell to a strong Gordons side. As a result, they also travelled to Halliford for the 3rd/4th play-off match. As our teams travelled to Halliford they were more than aware of their experiences on the same pitches in September where they lost 45-5 and 52-12 respectively.
There is something about the character and determination of our players that really comes to life when we reach the play-off stages of this competition. The 2nd XV went 17-0 down in the first half but fought back bravely to level the scores at 17-17 before the close. They nearly won it late on but the match finished as a draw and so Leighton Park claimed 3rd place by virtue of being the away team. This was a tremendous performance given the defeat they had suffered earlier in the term at Halliford. It demonstrated just how much the team had gelled during the season and the comeback effort was testament to the character of this group of players.
The 1st XV showed similar character and surprised their hosts by scoring two tries in the first half. Halliford replied with a converted try just before half time and the game was well poised with us leading 12-7. A second half Halliford try was quickly followed by a penalty for them to be leading 17-12 going into the final ten minutes. This period felt like an age with Leighton Park pressing the Halliford line, coming short by feet on two or three ocassions; it was real nail biting stuff as a try here would have levelled the scores. Unfortunately it was not to be and Halliford deserve credit for their committed defence during this period.
