Mersea Island RFC 43
Leighton Buzzard RFC 17
Leighton Buzzard RFC’s impressive season came to an end in Essex as Mersea Island booked their place in the Counties 2 National Plate (North) final with a deserved 43-17 semi-final victory.
Buzzard made the long journey hoping to cap a memorable campaign — having already secured promotion and lifted the Les Carr Cup in recent weeks — with a place in next weekend’s final in Doncaster. However, they were ultimately outplayed by a powerful and determined Mersea Island side.
The hosts dominated possession in the opening stages, forcing Leighton onto the defensive for long periods. Despite some resolute resistance, Mersea eventually broke through to claim the game’s opening try.
Leighton responded well five minutes later. Captain Brett sparked the attack with a break from a ruck near halfway, releasing Maynard, who sprinted 40 metres to score. The missed conversion left Mersea narrowly ahead at 7-5.
The home side soon regained momentum after a controversial moment in the Mersea 22, where a knock-on by the full-back appeared to go unnoticed by the officials. Mersea capitalised immediately, breaking clear to score in the corner.
Further frustration followed for the visitors when a Mersea penalty seemingly sailed between the posts but was not awarded, while Leighton also felt aggrieved after Jacob Murtagh was dangerously lifted and dropped following a strong tackle on the home centre, with no penalty forthcoming.
Mersea added another try before the interval to take a commanding 19-5 lead into half-time.
Leighton struggled to contain the home side’s pace and intensity after the restart. Although the visitors defended bravely, they found little reward and were repeatedly frustrated at the breakdown as Mersea continued to dominate possession and territory.
Ash Walsh, playing his final match for the club, crossed for one of Leighton’s second-half tries, while Jamie West also touched down. But Mersea remained firmly in control throughout the closing stages and pulled away to seal an emphatic victory.
The defeat brings the curtain down on Leighton Buzzard’s season and also marks the end of Phil Llewellyn’s spell as head coach.
There was, however, encouragement for the future, with five Leighton Buzzard Colts featuring in the matchday squad, including Ewan Long, who made his first-team debut.