Ouch...

Having narrowly lost their last two league fixtures by the smallest of margins, the home side were keen to make amends against the top side in the division. Unfortunately, the visitors scored immediately from kick off returning the ball under the sticks. A second score soon followed, and Watford were on the ropes having not touched the ball once and suddenly finding themselves 0-12 down.

Things would go from bad to worse for Watford, the game effectively ended as a contest with only five minutes on the clock. Another Hillingdon attack was launched, the ball knocked on by second row Jon McClennon in the tackle. Unfortunately the referee interpreted this as a deliberate act, sending McClennon to the sin bin and awarding Hillingdon a penalty. The visitors opted to run the ball, prop Luke Bees making a solid hit on the carrier. The tackled player landed hard and awkwardly, the referee awarding a penalty and showing no hesitation in brandishing the red card much to the shock of both the Watford and Hillingdon players.

So... five minutes on the clock, 12 points down and playing with 13 men against the top side in the division. Needless to say, things got rather difficult. Some spirited Watford defence was on show, Luke Hammill putting in an absolutely monumental shift. However, Hillingdon showed why they are the side to beat this year and were clinical in their execution, scoring three tries while Watford were two men short.

On a bad day for the hosts, centre Ian Butcher went off injured midway through the first half soon followed by Paul Wilson with a nasty looking eye injury (credit to Paul who returned to the field once he was patched up). Watford showed up well in spells, the set piece effective as always and making ground when keeping things tight. A solid scrum saw the ball worked wide to winger Richard Yates, who flew down the wing before passing to Paul Dunlop to score in the corner.

This was the only time Watford troubled the score board in the first half, half time score about 40 odd to Hillingdon, 5 to Watford.

The exertions of playing with men down had taken their toll on Watford, and as fatigue set in and gaps opened up Hillingdon took full advantage. The visitors showed their class, knowing that provided they executed the basics then tries would come (and come they did). Watford scored one of their own, a rare Hillingdon mistake capitalised on by Richard Yates who showed a clean pair of heels to score under the posts. Summing up Watford’s day Yates then succumbed to a stomach bug he had been suffering with, leaving his lunch on the pitch before being replaced on the wing by second row McClennon.

Chasing the game, Watford made uncharacteristic errors which were ruthlessly punished by the visitors. The match was summed up with the final play, Watford attempting to run the ball from their own 22, spilling it, and a Hillingdon player seizing upon the mistake to score.

Final score, Watford 12 Hillingdon 78. Unfortunately, the scoreline does reflect the game. Playing with 13 men for an energy sapping 10 minutes, and only having a full compliment on the pitch for the first five minutes meant we were never really able to get into the match. This is to take nothing away from Hillingdon, who are a class outfit and will surely be challenging for promotion come the end of the season. Hopefully we will get the chance to put up a bit more of a fight in the return fixture, but for now Watford are outside the top six for the first time this season.

Watford’s last game of the calendar year sees them host Uxbridge this weekend, 2 pm kick off.

Watford 1st XV: Bees, Philpott, Nelson, Kingsford, McClennon, Jenkins, Hammill, Lee, Hopkins, Bram, Yates, Butcher, Dunlop, P. Wilson, McGee

Subs: G. Wilson, Tucker, Mainwaring

Tries: Dunlop, Yates

Con: McGee

Man of the Match: Paul Wilson. Gave a gutsy display and never quit, epitomised by returning to the field of play with a nasty eye injury. Showed up well in defence and made a couple of strong runs with the ball in hand.

WotW: Luke Bees. Probably a bit harsh given the highly dubious nature of his sending off, but he was heartbroken and looked like he needed a pint.