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Time was almost up and the Reds were leading by 3 points and had a scum just outside their own 22, the scrum that Redruth had totally dominated in the second period, went down but the penalty went to Hinckley. After some deliberation Hinckley opted to kick the 3 points and tied the game, remarkably this was the Reds 4th draw of the league season.

Redruth ran onto the field wearing the socks of Belsize RFC in memory of former player James Huxtable who sadly left us in 2018, Belsize being the club James last played for.

There was a stiff breeze blowing towards the scoreboard and the pitch was in excellent condition considering the hammering it has had this season. Hinckley (AKA The Hornets) got the match under way playing towards Hellfire Corner.
A long Redruth kick forced the visitors into a goal line drop out and the Reds ran the ball straight back, some multi-phase rugby was going nowhere until Nat Dart spun out a great flat pass to Lewis Thomas who made good ground. Having got behind the defence the Reds completed a couple more phases before captain Ben Fox went over for a try converted by Dart on 4 mins. After a period of mid-field jousting the Reds were the next to score. Again a well judged kick forced the visitors into a goal line drop-out giving the Reds good field position. A strong run by Sam James split the defence, Jo Tanswell made further ground but was stopped an agonisingly 1 yard short of the line. Further pressure forced the penalty which Dart made no mistake with. Some Hinckley pressure in the home 22 was defended well and things got even better for the Reds a few minutes later. The visitors moving the ball in midfield put down a pass and Dart was onto it in a flash, kicking the ball ahead, regathering and going over near the scoreboard for an unconverted try. 15-0 to the Reds on 23 mins things were looking very straightforward at this stage. The visitors hit back though with some pressure in the home 22 but the Reds were defending well and turned over the ball, but a loose pass was knocked on and Hinckley had a 5 metre scrum. This time the Reds defence cracked as centre Dacey went over for a try he converted. Only a few minutes later the Hornets stung the Reds with another, a missed tackle around half-way allowed them to storm through and go 50 yards for a converted try by Dutton. 15-0 had become 15-14 in a matter of just 4 mins, game on. Both sides had some opportunities in the remaining 7 mins but neither side was able to add to their total before the break.
Half-Time: Redruth 15-14 Hinckley

The Reds got off to a fast start, from a line-out 35 yards from the line a back peel move saw James make great ground taking the play almost to the visitors line, a couple of penalties were awarded for high tackles (a frequent occurrence in the 2nd period) and Hinckley were on a warning. The last of these was in front of the posts and Dart popped over the penalty to increase the Reds lead. Only a few minutes later though Hinckley pulled 3 points back after another penalty for a high-tackle. The Reds were correctly pinged for being in front of the kick-off and then 6 foot 6 second row Luke Hattam was yellow carded for a high tackle on the diminutive Hinckley scrum-half Pointon. Surprisingly the otherwise excellent Dacey missed the penalty and the Reds were able to survive the yellow card period without conceding and were able to work their way down the field. A couple of penalties, one for a high tackle brought a yellow card for the visitors prop Harper. The Reds opted for a scrum and had the Hinckley eight in retreat, more scrum penalties followed and after the third another yellow card was awarded to prop Greening. This forced uncontested scrums and Hinckley to remove another player and go down to 12. The Reds kicked to the corner and easily took the catch-an-drive over for a try by Hocking that crucially went unconverted. The visitors then were awarded a penalty for dropping into the tackle and then a further penalty for not rolling away and Dacey made no mistake from distance to make it a 3 point game on 69 mins. The Reds got back on the front foot and had a good series of attacks in the Hornets 22 but unfortunately a knock-on ended the attack. The visitors now had a chance to save the game and had multiple phases in the Reds half but the Reds defended well and a knock-on seemed to end their chances. But the home sides hopes were dashed with the penalty at the scrum and honours were even.
Yet a gain a pulsating thriller at the Recreation Ground.

Next week the Reds make the long trip to Shropshire to take on Newport whist the 2nd XV go to Saltash for a winner takes all decider, please try and support the 2nd team.

Redruth
Tries: Fox, Dart, Hocking.
Conv: Dart
Pen: Dart (2)

Hinckley
Tries: Dacey, Dutton.
Conv: Dacey (2)
Pen: Dacey (3)

Referee: Ben Simpson
Assistant Referees: Ian Morgan & Andy Bickle.