The 1st XI’s opening fixture saw them slump to a 6 – 1 defeat at Richmond & Kew FC. Despite the score line, the match was actually an even contest for just shy of an hour.

The Ruts went ahead on 34 minutes courtesy of a Will Mortimer strike at the end of some concerted pressure. However, the Hosts levelled a few minutes before half time when a fortuitous cross evaded Keeper Evan Watson who had pulled off some terrific saves earlier in the half. So we were level at the Interval.

The last half hour or so was a different story, as the Ruts succumbed to making too many errors which were punished ruthlessly. We move on again next Week!

The 2nd XI were in reality a mixture of our 3 Junior sides and they were badly let down by 4 no shows on the day! This was always going to be a tough game against a decent Frenches Athletic Reserves and our 47 year old 4th XI Manager got plenty of minutes to boost his keen fitness. The final score was a very hefty 13 – 2 defeat.

Best wishes to our New Sunday XI in their opening fixture tomorrow and also any other Ruts sports teams on the field of play.