Devon 2 League Ilfracombe RFC 45 North Tawton RFC 0 THE strong southerly wind blowing across the lofty Ilfracombe pitch affected the kicking from hand throughout this first League fixture for North Tawton, but players from both sides adapted well to the conditions. The match was dominated in the first half by the strong Ilfracombe pack. Early in the match some last-ditch tackling by Tawton resulted in the referee awarding a penalty try to the home side for a high tackle. This gave Ilfracombe an ideal start of 7 points. North Tawton put together some good phases of play, mostly coming from line-out drives by the pack. Their three-quarters were unable to penetrate, however, and were called upon to make a number of good defensive tackles as the Ilfracombe runners began to find gaps. Despite their efforts the try count increased and the pack was working hard to contain the Ilfracombe eight. Injury to winger Ryan King brought on David Fewings and shortly after that a rib injury to prop Peter Wonnacott ended the front row pairing with his brother Danny, and John Griffiths was called on. Two tries by Ilfracombe were converted as the score rose to 31 in favour of Ilfracombe. This could have been higher but for some excellent Tawton tackling, notably by Matt Weekes at fly-half, Zac Matravers and Alfie May in the centre, who stopped a threatening break out with one crashing hit. Tawton played much better in the second half, and despite leaking another try to Ilfracombe pressure fairly early on in the period the team showed good spirit and produced pressure of their own on the home side?s line. A tactical replacement in the centre brought on Ross Lawrence for Dave Quick. The breakthrough did not come, however, and Ilfracombe broke Tawton?s tiring defence and went over for the final try, which was converted It was encouraging to see several younger players taking the field, though injuries continue to cause problems for team selection. North Tawton are keen to recruit new players to supplement their playing squad. Any players interested should contact the club chairman on 01837 82516.