Old Priorian Saints largely dominated proceedings against a dogged and determined Old Streetonians II side, eventually running out 33-0 winners to go top of Middlesex Merit Table Division 1 - and also preventing an opponent from scoring for the first time since December 2021.

Streetonians were up against it from the first whistle, arriving with fewer numbers than the Saints and the difference was near immediate, scrum half Will Poyntz able to scythe his way through the backline to get on the scoresheet within the first two minutes of the fixture, debutant Rosco Parkin converting for an early 7-0 lead. A natural overlap often made itself apparent, which allowed winger Orlando Akuffo to receive the final pass and make it two tries in two appearances in 2026/27, Parkin once again successful with the extras.

Some suspect handling by the Saints - often in promising positions - stymied their attempts to put clear daylight between themselves and the visitors, until an excellent long pass from Parkin to Jordan Porteous gave the wing room to work infield and accelerate to score under the posts, giving OPs a 21-0 lead with around half an hour of the game played.

A yellow card for Zviadi Makaridze for a high tackle evened the contest up a little, leading to a ten minute assault on the Priorians by Streetonians deep into the first half, a stoic and stolid rearguard action prevent the East London outfit from getting their first points on the board, a three try margin between the sides at the break.

Further handling errors from the Saints - coupled with conceding a number of penalties - further prevented them from running through the gears, in a match beset by stoppages which also proved to be a momentum killer ; perhaps the finest individual moment of the match came around the hour mark, with stand-in fly half Ben Page pulling off an audacious chip and chase to secure the bonus point for OPs, able to pull off the kick with precision then beat three defenders for a fine solo try.

A typical Elvin Grant break - complete with a step to bamboozle the full back - finished off the scoring for the day around ten minutes from time to give Old Priorians a 33-0 victory in their first home game of the season, moving into first place in MMT1 for at least the next two weeks, Streetonians unable to pierce the line for any try of their own.

A very good performance from the Saints, with perhaps the only constructive criticism being that they weren't clinical enough and could have doubled the full time score if they had been able to execute their chances properly ; regardless, they also proved to be astute and resolute in defence against an opposition who did not give up despite their lesser numbers, which bodes well for their own league campaign.

There is now a two week break before the Saints head to Old Deer Park for their next fixture against London Welsh Dragons.

OPRFC Scorers

T : Poyntz, Akuffo, Porteous, B Page, Grant

C : Parkin 4