Ventnor 2nds travelled to runaway Division 5 league leaders Lymington Mariners with a team of just 13 players, 1 of whom played with a gammy leg.
The depleted Ventnor side was notable for two father/son combinations: Dean and Charlie Magnurson plus Nigel and Louis Malkin.
The pace of Lymington’s squad was the main difference between the 2 sides, with many of their total of 16 tries being down to a player breaking through the 1st line of defence into open space. However, despite this onslaught, Ventnor never gave up.
Debutant Brad Francis was in the thick of things for Ventnor, and Mike Flanagan managed to play the full game despite only having 1 working leg. Throughout, the defensive efforts of Ben Atkins, Harry Ottley, Steve Maskell and Nathan Frampton in particular were nothing short of remarkable.
The pack gave as good as it got with Gary Ball, Jack Rushton and skipper James Blake fronting up as ever and, with several travelling spectators, Ventnor enjoyed their journey despite the heavy defeat.
Full time: Lymington Mariners 107 – 0 Ventnor 2nd XV
Ventnor 2nd XIII: Rushton, Francis, Ball, J.Blake (capt), D.Magnurson, Frampton, C.Magnurson, L.Malkin, N.Malkin, Flanagan, Maskell, Atkins, Ottley.
The AJ Wells man of the match: Ben Atkins
The Red Funnel moment of the match: Nigel Malkin
