The Saxons switched from rapier to bludgeon at the start of the second half, loosehead prop Mark George bagging a brace, but there remains life in the Dudley dog and to be fair they scrapped their way back into the game. The last half hour became a rather dour, error-strewn affair, a raft of substitutions contributing to the Saxons’ loss of focus in a game already comfortably won.

The Saxons lineup showed several changes from the short trip to Finstall Park a week earlier. Jamie Hearn was restored to kicking duties from the left wing, with Stef Shillingford also returning to play his former club. Pete White & Sione Tu’ipolotu traded starting & bench places, with Chris Depper’s return to full fitness pushing Nile Dacres back into the engine room at the expense of Ben Hughes. Jordan Page stepped up to the starting hooker slot, leading the team out in recognition of his 100th appearance in club colours, Dale Garner consequently dropped to the bench where he was joined by the returning James Hill and Adam Sturdy.

Midweek rain made for a soft Stourton Park surface that cut up as the game progressed. A gusting south-westerly breeze and broken cloud briefly put a weak, low sun into the eyes of the Saxons’ back 3 who received the kick off defending the northern roadside end. At 12ºC it was unseasonably mild at kick-off, though temperatures plummeted after the sun went down, and it being the midwinter solstice there was a lengthy period of twilight making visibility difficult for players, officials and spectators alike.

The Saxons failed to secure a scruffy kick-off but DK’s attempted quick throw-in was disallowed as was their subsequent lineout ploy as the receiver stepped inside the 5m line. The Saxons launched a set of drives that were halted when Nile Dacres compounded a handling error with a ‘lazy runner’ penalty, centre Gareth Bown’s kick securing touch in the hosts’ 22. A wayward throw was secured by Chris Depper at the tail but the threequarter attack was held up and Pete White’s chip through picked off. With their forward drives meeting brick wall resistance Bown punted deep over Bressington into the 22, the covering White struggling to contain an awkward bounce that fell to the boots of chasing wing Ryan Smitherman who might well have scored had the ball not also eluded his grasp.

Another DK lineout throw failed to go 5m, White tapped and ran it left, the attack reaching the home 10m line before flanker Joel Barrett was penalised for failing to roll away at the tackle. White tapped and ran again, linking right to Page who found Bressington at full throttle out wide. After breaking Smitherman’s tackle he outraced the cover to register the opening try in front of the scoreboard. It went unconverted, 7min 5-0.

A set of DK attacks ended when Ben Barkley unceremoniously dragged Stourbridge M&J old boy Liam Marshall into touch near halfway, but possession was coughed back up when Dacres was penalised for holding on in the tackle. With the wind on his back Bown fired a howitzer of a touchfinder to the far 22, another throw to the front worked back to hooker Luke Greenwood who was only prevented from scoring when the alert Bressington bundled him into touch.

Robbie Hurrell found himself on defensive duties when he fielded a chip into the Saxons’ 22, after a short gallop he linked with Bressington who set up quick ruck. A long White cut-out pass found Shillingford who handed off 2 defenders and set off downfield, the cover defence was drawn by interpasses with the supporting Jarvis & Dacres, Shillingford taking a return pass to score in pretty much the same spot, again it went unconverted. 16min 10-0.

The Saxons pack ground the restart back to halfway before a Robbie Hurrell crash ball drove a big hole in the defensive line. The ball was worked to Gary Dipple who took a return pass from Eji Uzoigwe to sprint clear and score under the posts, Hearn successfully converting. 20min 17-0.

As the Saxons kept the tempo high DK skipper Ed Parry just failed to grasp a seasonally gift-wrapped interception that would have put him clean through. A tackle offence by Greenwood gave the Saxons a penalty in front of the posts that they opted to kick for the corner and maul but were again penalised for holding on at the tackle as the forwards looked to pull in defenders with pick & drives. DK cleared but their lineout throw was again picked off by Depper and they conceded another penalty in the tackle area which drew a lecture & warning for Parry from referee Guy Steele-Bodger. It was again kicked to the corner but DK’s pack repelled the initial maul and then won the scrum feed from another that was held up. White was penalised at the base of the scrum for playing his opponent off the ball, DK again clearing only for Dacres to poach their lineout ball. After a set of drives the ball was worked down the backline where Jarvis came in at pace to carve through a huge gap and score the bonus point try, though Hearn’s conversion attempt rebounded off the uprights. 30min, 22-0.

The restart drew another DK penalty for slowing the ball release at the tackle, flanker Sam Pedley copping a yellow card for persistent offending. With a man advantage the Saxons opted to turn the screw, kicking to touch on the DK 10m line. Hurrell secured the lineout throw and White fed the backline, Hearn’s run reaching the 22. Quick ruck ball was moved back right to Uzoigwe who put Dacres through another sizeable hole in the defensive line to score under the posts, Hearn converting. 34min 29-0.

A wayward pass gifted DK a lineout near halfway but they again coughed it back up to Uzoigwe at the tail. The Saxons backline attacked the misaligned defences, Jarvis taking an inside pass from Shillingford then linking right to Bressington who turned on the afterburners to round the cover. Hearn slotted the conversion, 36min 36-0. The restart saw a Groundhog day sequence of a wayward pass to Hearn going into touch and DK’s lineout ball picked off, this time by Dacres. Dipple snuck through a gap near his own 22 and offloaded to Shillingford who simply drew the cover and fed Bressington for his hat-trick try, again out wide right and unconverted. 39min 41-0.

The Saxons looked to attack again as the 1st half clock ran down but an obstruction conceded a penalty that Bown gratefully kicked to touch. Half time 41-0.

With Pedley’s return imminent the Saxons pressed an early 2nd half attack but Bressington’s wide pass to Hearn just drifted forward. Good work by Nigel Mukarati secured a penalty when DK scrum half Connah Jones was caught in possession behind a retreating scrum, Dipple banged the kick to the corner where a Saxons maul was driven over with Mark George the man to score. Hearn converted, 46min 48-0.

A Saxons’ handling error from the restart gifted several minutes’ possession to DK who strung together a lengthy set of phases with ball in hand but were unable to penetrate the hosts’ 22 before knocking on. Jones infringed at the scrum and the Saxons cleared, the lineout followed by set of drives that were held out until Dipple shimmied through a gap and was brought to ground just short of the line. The ball was worked quickly to George who crashed over to register his 2nd try in the right corner. With the wind now working in his favour Hearn slotted the conversion. 52min, 55-0.

The first set of substitutions were made and George came within an ace of scoring a hat-trick on the next drive but was held up in the tackle over the line, the attack stalling in the next phase though when Mr Steele-Bodger took a dislike to some clumsy footwork around the tackle area. DK stuck with the ball in hand approach and were able to take a series of phases as far as the Saxons’ 22 after a Parry line break, but turned possession back over in a maul. It was kicked straight back to them though, and with a 2nd wave of replacements coming on the Saxons seemed to lose the initiative as DK gained confidence. The remainder of the game was scoreless and scrappy, misdirected touch kicks, frequent handling errors and blasts of the referee’s whistle making continuity difficult for both sides as the midwinter gloom set in. At one stage Depper was brought down just short of the line but control of the ball was lost as the pack tried to drive the subsequent scrum forward, and neither side was again able to take possession into their opponents’ 22. Fulltime 55-0.

Coach Mike Umaga commented ‘A very clinical 1st half but we failed to get back into our stride in the 2nd. We’ve talked about being ruthless & racking up points in games like this, though as we found out last season points difference isn’t a crucial as winning games & securing league points. At the end of day though we took the 5 points & we’re still in the mix, we’ll take that. Nigel Mukarati’s workrate was exceptional out there today, but I thought the backs were key to our performance, none more than man of the match Ben Barkley who did some really good work.