After a fantastic win last week that also happened to be an incredibly entertaining
game to watch, whichever side of the result your loyalties lie, let's hope we can keep
that momentum going in the run up to the extended Christmas sabbatical.

Passports and phrase books are packed and the first team lads are eagerly anticipating their longest away trip of the season, combined with their unusually sophisticated return
journey CPD of cheese and wine tasting for beginners. (lets hope it's for the return journey anyway.)

Hertford will probably start favourites for the game as our opponents, North Walsham,
sit just above the relegation zone thanks to superior points difference. They have
two wins and a draw to their name this campaign, but do appear to be on an upward
trajectory in terms of performance of late.

Their last two outings have seen them one point off of a losing bonus point
against high flying Letchworth and a 13 all draw against Tring, so write them off at
your peril.

The team remains similar to last weeks, apart from the loss of talisman Alex Banna,
who has gone in for 100,000 mile service and a few prosthetic replacements.
Hopefully he'll be back on the paddock next week.

This means that Alex Kay returns to his favoured back row position and Ben Ridgewood
replaces him on the wing, where he finished last week. The empty slot on the bench will be
filled by replacement back, Morgan Jackson.

The game will mark the 50th cap for Hertford scrum half David Hale (pictured) who intends to celebrate by staying on the pitch for 80 minutes. Well done David.

The next two games will see us complete the first round of fixtures which will give a
proper impression of how the season is going. Currently lying 6th It's fair to say most
would have bitten your hand off for that position after the slightly rocky start, but it's
also notable that we are only one good five point win away from third position
It's all to play for!

At the time of writing it looks as though the 2nd XV also have a game tomorrow. Not
only that, but they're playing at home, only their second home game of the season. So if you're not travelling to North Walsham come and see a very good 2nd XV take on Southend.

But be warned, whatever game you're watching tomorrow, be sure to wrap up well
and ensure you're carrying plenty of ballast, as things are likely to be a little gusty,
courtesy of storm Darragh. Contrary to some opinions, the storm has not been
named after 2nd XV hooker Darragh Connolly, even though he quite often has a
stormer.

Kick off will be 3:00 PM on the main pitch.

If you can't wait until 3 PM for your rugby fix, then the termites is the team for you. They
will be at Hoe Lane hosting Royston 2nd XV.

See you there. Mine's a Guinness
(Although I'm getting a tad concerned about news of a global draught Guinness shortage and would therefore make a personal plea to anyone who's very existence does not depend on this particular nectar to avail themselves of an alternative beverage.)