Ignatians IIs crashed out of the main cup competition of Herts-Middlesex Merit Table Two after suffering a disappointing 33-21 away loss to Datchworth IIs, but the threes are through to the next round of their cup competition after Bigglewade IIs conceded the fixture.

Again, the twos found that a combination of a lethargic start and lack of a platform can prove costly and,
although they had the advantage of the gradient in the first period, the more incisive Datchworth IIs raised their game on their home patch and set their stall out in the form of a 17-0 lead.

Datchworth continued to hound Ignatians and extended their lead to 23-7 at the interval, although the visitors rallied in the second period by collecting a further two tries, but inevitably they had too much of a mountain to climb.

Ignatians crossed the whitewash three times and the try scorers where known were Dan McDermott,
playing at scrum-half, and the experienced Andy Roper playing out of position at full back. Tim Yaworski converted all three.

Team spokesman Martin Baker felt that the twos had delivered a curate's egg of a performance. He said: "In parts, the twos played some sublime rugby but they also let their standards drop and that proved their undoing.

"The side need to be far more dominant in the set-piece and more physical in the tackle, although that's not to denigrate some fine individual performances. Rondel Bernard had a fine game as did the returning Josh Webb."