Sat 18 Oct 2025
Shire Hall 5 Thatcham 34
The last time these two sides met at this level was in the Berkshire Plate final over 15 years ago. On that day we put out a very scratch side and were comfortably beaten. For this fixture, Shire’s resources were extremely stretched with so many players unavailable for a variety of reasons. Shire Hall legends Sam Watkins, Tom Birch and Geoff O’Brien all made appearances, and the back line bore no resemblance to the one put out a week earlier. A big shout out for Lloyd Weber who stepped up to fill the tight head prop role. It was Thatcham who started better and after only 3 minutes they were on the scoresheet with a well worked try to take a 7 point lead. Shire reacted with some good play with strong runs from the likes of Gwyn Robins and Jamie Perry. However, the heavier Thatcham pack outmuscled Shire and as a result possession from the set scrum was limited. Some of the Thatcham tackling was borderline and many penalties were conceded by them. Good touch finding from Alex Webb gained excellent ground, but the lineout did not function as well as hoped. Shire pressed hard but were denied by good defence. After 30 minutes of cat and mouse, it was Thatcham who went over for their second try in dubious circumstances from a lineout. From the sideline it looked obvious that the ball had been dropped by Thatcham, but the referee did not see the infringement and allowed the Thatcham No.8 to walk over the line with a look of surprise. It is an old saying but ‘play the whistle’ ! A further try was added by Thatcham with a well worked move that went through many hands. The last play of the half saw another decision go against Shire when a try by Thatcham was allowed when clearly the ball had not been grounded correctly. I think it’s time for a TMO!
Half Time Score: Shire Hall 0 Thatcham 24
Despite the scoreline, the talk at half time was positive and the second half proved to be much better. Thatcham’s tackling was at times dangerous and after 10 minutes of the half, the referee finally showed the yellow card to a Thatcham player after a series of high tackles. Jamie Perry seemed to want to take on the Thatcham players all by himself as he brushed aside many challenges and gained good ground. The lineouts had now improved with both Gwyn Robins and Matt Brazier gaining good ball and even stealing a few as well. After being spoken to earlier by the referee following an altercation at a ruck, the yellow card was now shown to Tom Birch for an illegal clear out. Shire finally got on the scoresheet in the last 10 minutes of the game when a good move went through many hands for Gwyn Robins to go over. This was the first score of this half and reflected Shire’s improved play. 5 minutes later and Thatcham went over to seal the game. The game ended with Thatcham opting to take a penalty with the last play of the game. Strange!
Considering that the side Shire fielded was under strength, this was gutsy performance, and credit should be given to those who played. The reverse fixture in January should be an interesting encounter. It was very disappointing to see at this level the mocking by the Thatcham players when we made a mistake. There is no place in rugby for this type of behaviour at any level. There is now 2 week break before we take on Windsor – plenty of time for injuries to heal and bodies to recover.
Final Score: Shire Hall 5 Thatcham 34
Try: Gwyn Robins
MOTM: Gwyn Robins – just from Matt Brazier and Jamie Perry
DOTD: Manzi Murenzi – wasted passes and dubious kicking but he was playing out of position.
