London One North Westcliff 8 Harpenden 0 HARPENDEN put up a good fight against London One North high-fliers Westcliff but it wasn t enough to stop the home side grinding out a narrow victory. The Men In Black began the game with the strong wind against th

London One North

Westcliff 8 Harpenden 0

HARPENDEN put up a good fight against London One North high-fliers Westcliff but it wasn't enough to stop the home side grinding out a narrow victory.

The Men In Black began the game with the strong wind against them but despite the home side spending a lot of time on the attack they were unable to find a way through Harpenden's resolute defence.

Only a last ditch ankle tap stopped Westcliff's Paul Radley from opening the scoring, but the speedster made no mistake the next time around racing in on the left wing to score what turned out to be the only try of the game in the 30th minute. The conversion drifted wide.

Both sides had penalty opportunities but they either drifted wide or fell short with the weather conditions playing a significant part in both side's failure to take their chances.

In the second half and with the wind against them, Westcliff made sure they kept the ball and frustrated the Men In Black.

With 63 minutes on the clock, Harpenden were penalised 32 metres out and Ben McKeith sent a perfectly judged penalty through the posts to complete the scoring.

Harpenden came again at their opponents but this time it was their turn to be frustrated by some determined defending.

Harpenden appeared to have found a way through with a sudden break away but Westcliff's try-scoring hero Radley raced across from the opposite wing to put in a try saving tackle and leave Harpenden still looking for their first win since September.

Harpenden are without a fixture this weekend but return to action the following Saturday when they welcome Woodford to Redbourn Lane.

Harpenden's second string recorded a good victory in the National Cup running out 18-10 winners against Finchley.

They will now face Stevenage or Enfield in the next round with the tie set to take place in January 2010.