Old Halesonians 71 Shrewsbury 0

OLD Halesonians delivered an inspired performance to rout Shrewsbury in the first round of the North Midlands Shield on Saturday.

In the process, Hales scored an impressive 11 tries to send shockwaves across the cup draw.

The sides, who swapped leagues last season but both lie second in their respective tables, were completely mismatched in size and strength.

From the kick-off the hosts were aggressive at the breakdown and their first score came when powerful lock Eoin McMahon powered over.

Additional first half scores came from prop Thomas Dempsey and McMahon, exhibiting great power when bulldozing over from close range.

Hales also scored a try through winger Alex Church in the corner when Joseph Western broke through the Shrewsbury backline but found himself isolated and almost boxed into the corner, before floating a long pass out to Church.

The second half saw Hales turn around with their tails up and the wind in their favour.

The omens did not bode well for the visitors and Tristan Laga and substitute Steve Gollings interchanged beautifully with the three-quarters to claim a score each eary in the half.

As the game approached the final quarter, Hales continued to pile the points on with Church, claiming yet another man-of-the-match performance, completing a hat-trick of tries from wide out.

Debutant full-back Greg Woods, finished off a perfect start to his senior career with a try under the posts. Ben Smith then scored a sublime converted try to take his personal tally to an impressive 21 points, after converting eight of his11 kicks at goal. A late score from captain Chris Wagstaff sealed the victory for Hales, who now face Pershore away in the next round.