A disappointing match for the lads, who ultimately fell to a 24-38 defeat against TMV despite producing an impressive first-half fightback to take the lead into the break.

After falling behind early, the team showed plenty of character to turn the game around and establish a five-point advantage. However, a difficult second half, marked by defensive lapses, loose rucking and missed opportunities, allowed TMV to take control and pull away in the closing stages.

The game started with Will Reynolds slotting a penalty after two minutes to give us an early 3–0 lead. TMV responded well, though, scoring two converted tries in quick succession. The first came after 11 minutes, with the ball moved nicely through the hands, before a kick through and gather five minutes later extended their advantage to 3-14.

With the game threatening to get away from us, Taylor Gibson sparked some life into the performance with a superb solo breakaway try on 19 minutes, converted by Will Reynolds to bring the score back to 10-14.

Unfortunately, ill-discipline proved costly midway through the half, allowing TMV to apply pressure and score in the corner after another well-worked move through the hands. The unconverted try left us trailing 10-19 after 25 minutes.

What followed was an excellent response from the lads. Dexter Spurling crossed the line on 31 minutes after multiple phases of pressure and a powerful pick-and-go, with Will Reynolds adding the extras to make it 17–19.

Momentum had firmly shifted, and three minutes later the team completed the turnaround. Logan Jones made a break before the ball was recycled, allowing Seth Phillipson to spot a gap and ghost through the defence for a superb try. Will Reynolds converted, giving us a 24–19 lead and capping off a brilliant spell of rugby heading into half-time.

The second half, however, told a very different story.
After working hard to get ourselves into a winning position, we struggled to maintain the same intensity and composure. The second half turned into a battle between two evenly matched teams with both sides working chances to score only to be thwarted by resolute defence. However, with at the 60-minute mark, Warrington were punished as loose rucking led to a turnover, and TMV capitalised by breaking through a tiring defence to score a converted try and reclaim the lead at 24–26.

Just two minutes later, another defensive disconnect allowed TMV to exploit a gap and race through for a further converted try. Suddenly, the score stood at 24-33, and the momentum was firmly with the opposition.
Despite the efforts to get back into the contest, TMV added a final unconverted try on 70 minutes to seal a 24-38 victory.

Ultimately, this was a game that will leave the lads frustrated. The first-half comeback showed exactly what the team is capable of, with some excellent attacking rugby, strong support lines and clinical finishing putting us in a commanding position.

However, the second-half performance highlighted the importance of discipline, ball security and defensive communication. Losing possession at the breakdown and allowing gaps to open up proved costly against an opposition that was quick to punish our mistakes.
There are positives to take from the first-half response, but the disappointment will come from letting a winning position slip away. The challenge now is to learn from the second-half errors, put them right on the training pitch and ensure that 35 minutes of good rugby becomes 70.

Full-time: Warrington 24-38 TMV