Andover 49 Bognor 14

Normal service was resumed at the Goodship ground last Saturday as Andover blew away the challenge of a bright young visiting Bognor side, with a performance of power pace and invention, that was far too much for a team that ran Andover very close in the away fixture before Christmas.

From the outset Andover looked far more switched on than in the last two games and dominated every facet of the game possibly apart from the lineout.

The Andover scrum in particular was at its destructive best from the outset, with the returning Ryan McGealy and Roman Barton Knott also adding a physical edge around the park.

Andover front row of skipper Alex Hibdige, Tom Waite and James Monck were in the mood and within minutes Andover elected to scrummage a penalty giving man of the match Jake Dixon the chance to power over for the first of his hat trick of tries.

Just five minutes later the impressive number eight was at it again finishing superbly after a scrum against the head.

Bognor then enjoyed a good spell of possession but Andover turned in an incredible defensive set with Waite, Niko Rowe and Stan North all contributing hugely, before from another powerful attack, Tom Erskine fed North, who finished well to increase the lead further.

From then on it was all Andover. 

Bognor tried manfully to stem the tide, but with such a mismatch at scrum time, and with the returning Ioan Gwynne Davies pulling the strings, it wasn't long before Dixon completed his trio and gave Andover a first half bonus point.

At half time Andover added Callum Barber Starkey to the pitch as the game opened up and his extra pace was soon a factor.

Almost from the restart Andover scored the try of the game. From an incredible counter attack involving the impressive Jack Stott, North and Dixon, Tom Erskine finished neatly.

Bognor were forced into uncontested scrums as the Andover pack steam rolled them once again, but it was the visitors who profited. 

Bognor unbowed, came at the 'All Blacks' with the cleaner ball they enjoyed, and this time their flying winger made Andover pay with a fine try to add to the brace he scored in the first encounter. 

Andover quickly regained control however with Trenton Small joining the fray, after Arlo Matley's unlucky yellow card, giving the impressive Harrison Pape counter attacking opportunities in the increasing open spaces.

His threat pushed Andover forwards again and when Rowe and North again combined, Rich Retallick popped up to score another very good try.

Undaunted Bognor came back again with another try of their own, but Andover finished the stronger with Pape finishing another fine attack to give Andover a convincing win.

Retallick converted all seven scores for a personal haul of 19 points as Andover stay in the promotion hunt.

Director of rugby Andy Waite was pleased with the performance. He said: "We improved a lot today and showed a lot more maturity in the way we played. The pack were superb, but the backs were also very good and although we probably left a few points out there it was very impressive."