Wisbech suffer heavy defeat to Ipswich at Harecroft Road

Wisbech were handed a heavy league defeat on Saturday when they were beaten 43-12 by Ipswich at Harecroft Road.

The Men in Red struggled to cope with Ipswich who had been relegated from the league above with two tries the only highlight for the hosts.

Injury troubles and unavailability continue to present a selection dilemma for director of rugby Leonard Veenendaal, who once again had to dig deep in the player resources to fulfil the league match.

Ipswich took an early lead 5-0 with an unconverted try, and although Wisbech responded well easing their way into the flow of the game but ultimately succumbed to the oncoming Ipswich storm.

Two converted Ipswich penalties stretch the visitors lead to 11-0.

The Men in Red responded with a try of their own with second-row MJ Wright powering his way over the line to reduce the deficit to 11-5.

Another converted Ipswich penalty signalled a barrage of pressure from the visitors before scoring a further three tries before half-time, Wisbech had it all to do in the second half.

But Ipswich picked up where they left off, scoring another converted try in 20 minutes to establish a commanding position over Wisbech, who were desperately trying to find their way back into the game.

Trailing 35-5, Wisbech found a glimmer of hope through replacement winger Luca Hardy

Hardy, who had been on the field less than four minutes, rounded off an offload from centre Jiko to score a try in the corner.

Sam Anderson converted but it was the last time Wisbech registered points that afternoon.

Ipswich once again found themselves over the whitewash with five minutes to play.

The blow proved to be a fatal one for Wisbech’s chances and the game ended 43-12.

Wisbech, with an ever-growing injury list, face the daunting task of travelling to Ipswich on Saturday for the return league fixture.