AFTER two strong wins, the Westcountry Wasps travelled to Brighton on Saturday, March 14, to face the Brighton & Hove Sea Serpents.

The Wasps started the match strongly and quickly put pressure on the Serpents defence. Their early dominance paid off when Travis (No.14) crossed the line for the opening try to give the Wasps the lead.

Following a Serpents knock-on, the Wasps had a scrum, but play was briefly halted due to a Serpents injury. Once play resumed, Joey (no22), returning to action after seven months out through injury, was unfortunately shown a yellow card for offside. With the numerical advantage, the Serpents capitalised and scored to level the game 5–5.

From the restart, the Wasps regained momentum. A strong lineout set the platform for another Wasps try, pushing the score to 5–12. Soon after, Sam (No.11) added another try, which was converted by Ed (No.13) to extend the lead to 5–19.

The pressure continued with James (No.5) crashing over for another Wasps try, taking the score to 5–24.

After another stoppage for a Wasps injury, the Serpents prepared for a lineout but lost possession, gifting the Wasps further opportunities. From a scrum where the Serpents initially secured the ball, a turnover allowed Daf (No.9) to score, again converted by Ed, bringing the score to 5–31.

The Wasps continued to dominate the breakdown. A ball steal led to No.8 Tom powering over for another try, with Ed adding the conversion to make it 5–38.

In the final play before halftime, the Serpents attempted to build from a messy lineout which was brought back for a scrum. The Wasps stole possession and produced a lovely passage of passing and support play, finished off with a try by George (No.10). Half-time score: Serpents 5–43 Wasps. The Serpents started the second half and by winning a lineout, play became scrappy as both sides traded possession through knock-ons and scrums.

Eventually, the Serpents broke through to score their second try, bringing the score to 12–43.

The Wasps responded quickly. After Travis (No.14) was held up near the line, the ball was moved to Joey (No.22) who crossed for a try, with Ed converting to stretch the lead to 12–50.

The rest of the half saw repeated Serpents lineouts, but the Wasps’ defence and breakdown work proved dominant, with multiple turnovers and territorial kicks keeping the pressure on.

Another Serpents lineout was stolen, leading to a break finished by Travis (No.14) for his second try, pushing the score to 12–55.

The Wasps maintained control through the closing stages. After sustained pressure and another attacking scrum, they added a final try by Travis (no14) to bring the score to 12–60.

The final moments saw a Serpents scrum and some late exchanges before an injury to a Wasps player resulted in the game being called.

Late pressure allowed the Serpents to add one more score before the end.

Final Score: Brighton & Hove Sea Serpents 17–60 Westcountry Wasps.

Photography courtesy of Steven Godbeer.