Playing away from home in London 1 is never easy and sometimes the elements simply seem to conspire against you... the pitches can resemble a swamp, the changing rooms are often tiny, the crucial decisions don't go your way and to top it all the post-match showers are freezing cold! This was one of those days, but our lads stuck to the task and crucially got the job done.

The conditions had a massive influence on the game. Without a hint of exaggeration, some patches of the Old Habs pitch were more akin to quicksand than a sports field, but the conditions were the same for both sides and players were forced to modify their strategies in order to overcome the environment. We were more than aware that this game was a potential 'banana skin' because Old Habs have some excellent players on their books who have the ability to make life difficult for any side - in fact they made life very difficult for Brentwood last week who managed to squeeze past our opponents by a relatively modest ten point margin.

The game was understandably dominated by the two packs. Our driving 'pick and go' game was occasionally punctuated by the odd break from Joe Flexman, Will Brown and Jona Crisp despite the fact that their pace was compromised a little by the extremely heavy pitch. Ultimately, it was our forwards who made the hard yards, but despite difficult handling conditions and the odd knock on, our backs always looked like they had the potential to create a scoring opportunity. The game remained tight for eighty minutes, but I think it's fair to say that we always looked more threatening than the home side with the ball in hand and deserved the win.

As a unit, the forwards put in an incredible shift. The heavy pitch was soon cut to pieces by the traffic and this made it really hard work for the bigger lads who were soon carrying a few extra kilos of Hertfordshire mud, but that didn't stop them. The conditions were a massive leveller and honours were pretty even in the set pieces, but when it really mattered, our forwards dug in, won their own ball in the scrum and line out, and did just enough to disrupt the home side and prevent them from gaining any home momentum.

Joe Reid was our man of the match. It was a really solid performance from Joe at tight head prop, he showed his experience by anchoring our scrum in testing conditions and his close quarter interventions around the pitch were always secure. Harrison Pickett marked his return to the side with a try and a strong display at No.8. He carried well from the base of the scrum and always made ground through sheer determination and a refusal to go down after the initial contact. Harrison's match winning try was a well worked move involving Brett Cutbush and Dan Whiteman that came 10 minutes from time after sustained pressure on the Old Habs try line finally told.

We could have pushed for a fourth, bonus point try, but the conditions were so unpredictable and one slip (literally!) could have given Old Habs an opportunity to close the narrow gap and compromise our hard-earned lead. Although a five-point bonus win was our aim, on the day four points and a win was a good result. You can see just how muddy the conditions were by the photos from the game here.

Unfortunately The Ravens game against London Irish Wild Geese was cancelled on Friday morning because they could not raise a side due to injuries and availability. Unfortunately, many teams in National 2 and 3 are finding it increasingly difficult to run a consistent second string side because their attention and resources are so focused on their 1st XV and their league status. In fact, two sides in the Zoo League have made a decision to withdraw from the league midway through the season. Although the growth of professionalism in rugby has undoubtedly progressed some aspects of the game it has also led to a great deal of disparity, confusion and uncertainty as clubs look to feverishly recruit players that will help them realise their ambitions.

Rugby returns to Mill Road at the weekend as the 1st XV take on Ruislip and our A XV start the second phase of the league competition with a home game against Cottenham Renegades. The Ravens hit the road to take on one of the strongest sides in the Zoo League, third place Redingensians.