A minute’s silence was held prior to St Albans Rugby Club’s game against Actonians to remember two stalwarts of the club – a game which saw the young Saints side just slip to a 31-28 defeat.
Peter Baines and Peter Clarkson, a long-standing member of the club’s committee, both lost their battle with cancer.
And the team, fresh from four straight wins, were confident they could add to that against an Acton side who had yet to win.
But the Londoners had obviously not read the script as they produced a display that belied their lowly league position.
Saints led 7-3 by half-time, Aaron James-Nicholas getting their score, but four tries in the opening 15 minutes of the second half gave the visitors a commanding lead.
St Albans did have a George Sanders try to celebrate and when George Elliott and James-Nicholas added two more they sensed a comeback.
But Actonians stuck to their game plan and kept up their enviable ball retention skills to deny Saints any further opportunity.
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