Eastbourne III 53 Cinque Ports Rugby 3 (HT 29-3)

A well kicked penalty by Carl Malthouse gave Cinque Ports an early lead, but the positives were in short supply as a very well organised Eastbourne side used their pace to run home numerous tries. Eastbourne made constant breaks from the base of scrums, and use quick centres and wings to break the gain line constantly.
 
Despite the constant pressure Cinque Ports still looked to run the ball, Christiaan Brandt slipping through gaps allowing Steve Crump and Craig Barningham  to crash through. The powerful Tony Potter also looked to use his pace and size to put the Eastbourne defence under pressure. Unfortunately Eastbourne held strong, and the best performances for Cinque Ports were defensively minded, Chris Eastwood dump tackling a second row and captain Shane Potter tackling ferociously. Despite their best efforts Eastbourne did find gaps and they kept the scoreboard ticking over. Novice Winger Mike Dangerfield made a massive impact on his debut twisting and turning from tackles and in defence tackling with power and pace.

Manager Gavin Thomas was honest in his appraisal of the performance "We didn't prevent them from playing and failed to play ourselves, but we never gave up- we were committed from start to end. That is the Cinque Ports way"

Team: Doorey, Langley, Crump, Earle, Gough, Dedman, Thomas, Barningham, S Potter, Brandt, T Potter, Price, Watts, Malthouse Replacements: Dangerfield, Eastwood