Wisbech return to winning ways against Mersea Island at Harecroft Road

Amid Storm Bert, Wisbech were in search of their first win after four defeats on the bounce.

A tight game in wet windy conditions at Harecroft Road made for excellent watching for the neutrals as two strong sides fought hard for victory

The Men in Red got the game underway and very quickly got on the front foot, dominating the ball deep in Mersea Island territory but were unable to convert the possession and territory into points.

Centre Jiko Jikomainukurua was unfortunate to have his try disallowed when it was deemed help up

Luke Green received a yellow card which put pressure on his team for the next 10 minutes.

The Wisbech forwards set the physical benchmark, with Kerrie McMullen putting down an early marker earning a penalty at the first scrum against the head.

Strong carries from the back row saw Solomon Prestidge and Ethan Garford ensure front-foot ball for the backs to attack the from.

Sam Anderson led the backline carried strongly to get over the gain line setting up several phases while centre Jiko led a rock-solid defence in the midfield.

The remainder of the half was very tight as they went into the half-time break 0-0.

A stern, yet fair, half-time talk from coach Leonard Veenendaal refocused and encouraged the team to go out and play their game, shake off the shackles and just go out and enjoy the game.

The second half began and was incredibly close from the off, Wisbech was now playing into the wind which had significantly picked up.

Full-back MJ Wright with two outstanding breaks out of his own 22 sparked the Men in Red running the ball more efficiently, which released the pocket rocket Ethan Garford to cross the whitewash for the first points of the match, the conversion on target to put Wisbech in the lead 7-0.

From the restart poor Wisbech organisation allowed Mersea straight back in to level the scores at seven-all.

Another storming individual effort from Ethan Garford beating three defenders to score in the right-hand corner, restored the Wisbech lead to 12-7.

Mersea sparked a spirited comeback to again level the score 12-all.

The introduction from the Wisbech bench of Josh Anderson, Luke Hare and Ollie Lake injected energy as the Men in Red started to dominate possession in the Mersea half.

With five minutes left on the clock, Luke Hare - making his first appearance from in injury in 15 months - made a storming run down the left touchline to set up an attacking ruck on the Mersea 22.

From the ensuing phase, Solomon Prestidge beat two defenders with a dominant run before a perfectly timed offload to the ever-present Ethan Garford who dived over under the post.

Sam Anderson with the conversion hit the upright, fortunately, it bounced the right way to make it 19-12 in favour of the host.

A valiant defensive effort from Mersea kept Wisbech from further increasing their lead and the four-try bonus point.

A monumental shift from the Boys in Red secured the win at the full-time whistle.

A superb defensive effort and a hat-trick of tries from Ethan Garford along with Luke Hare who made an outstanding effort off the bench was named joint Elgoods Man of the Match with Luke Hare.

Wisbech will next be in action when they travel to Wymondham on December 7.