Shrewsbury 12, Spartans 54

The story of Spartans' season so far continued as they travelled to Shrewsbury more in hope than expectation, but in another tough encounter with a large and RFU coached Shrewsbury they gradually took control of the game and chalked up another win from a lively performance.

Forced into giving more full debuts, the bench stood up very well and the Men In Black got off to another flyer on the huge and perfect pitch. An early try from the backs showed exactly what was required; keep the ball away from the big Shrewsbury forwards and play basketball whenever possible. The home forwards were desperate to slow thing down and gain some control of the game, but Spartans were having none of that and the GPS computer was struggling to cope with the yards covered by the black shirts. Despite having the advantage of the conditions and the gradient, Shrewsbury struggled to keep up, and some good passages of play by the visitors saw the homies stuck in their own half. As time ticked by the elderly touch judges suffered, going behind the posts on several occasions as Spartans stretched their lead to 30 points with four further tries and yet more immaculate kicking from Tom Hardy. However, the latter stages of the first half saw Shrewsbury gain a foothold as they hung onto the ball, and the home side were rewarded with a try to please the previously numbed large crowd on the touchline.

The Blackness were in no mood to slow up and showed plenty of ambition and effort as the second half began with the conditions in their favour, but after a half time rollocking there was no way through the home defence and the scoreboard operator took a well deserved rest. After an initial period of stalemate he was busy again as the visitors added to their lead but the home side came back into the game and it was Spartans' turn to defend. The home forwards started to gain some control of the game, but small mistakes were punished by Spartans supporting each other well and breaking out of their half to occasionally threaten the Shrewsbury tryline. This pattern continued into the last twenty minutes, but some over enthusiasm in defence cost Spartans dear as three men were sent to the bin in quick succession. As the scoreboard passed fifty points Shrewsbury showed some real grit and determination to finally force a consolation penalty try, but as the final whistle blew Spartans claimed a deserved win and a place in the next round.

This week Spartans resume their league campaign and face a test of their credibility when they host a very physical Balsall & Berkswell at Coppice Lane. (3.00pm).