Walcountians got off to a scintillating start with two tries in the opening five minutes. The first came in the second minute when powerful lock Dom Bell opened the scoring with a try converted by fly-half Matt Hodgson and, barely three minutes later, centre Ben French added a second after No 8 Kieran Clarke won a Bec lineout and set centre George Charnock away on a linebreak to create the scoring opportunity.

The opening 20 minutes was totally dominated by the Counts as the pack, anchored by solid scrummaging from props Harry Marsh and James Ford, dominated the set scrums. Walcountians also dominated the lineouts through spectacular leaping from flanker Sam Charnock, while Ford and hooker Jamie Blackmore were rampant in the loose and drove Bec back at every opportunity. This led to the Counts third try in the 15th minute when scrum-half James Bacon made a sniping break after the Counts pack had set up a rolling maul from a lineout.

Bec hit back in the 20th minute when full-back Morgan Jones intercepted a loose Walcountians pass and sprinted from his own half to touch down for a try. This promoted a mini-revival by the home side which saw the Counts’ line under pressure for the first time in the match, and they narrowed Walcountians’ lead in the 26th minute when prop Ben Jones drove over for a try from short range.

This woke Walcountians up and full-back Hal Mogridge stretched their lead to 14 points in the 34th minute when his diagonal run opened up the Bec defence and was finished with the visitors’ fourth try of the day.

The second half gave Bec the advantage of the considerable slope at the Openview ground and they took advantage of it to score two tries in the opening ten minutes through fly-half Joe O’Brien and winger Brandon Wyatt. But Walcountians refused to be disheartened and the introduction of replacements in Michael Beaubrun, Omarie Brown, Lucas Dore and Tony French provided fresh legs. Omarie Brown was unlucky to have a try disallowed in the 20th minute as he was bundled into touch, but the Counts made amends a minute later when Kieran Clarke drove through the Bec defensive cover for a try after breaking from a ruck close to the Bec line. Matt Hodgson kicked his fourth conversion to give Walcountians an 11-point advantage.

The home side mounted a desperate last-ditch attempt to salvage the game in the closing minutes and made the final minutes anxious for Walcountians after centre Callum Maskery scored a converted try five minutes from full-time. However, the Counts held out in the closing minutes of the game to record a well-earned victory.

Next Saturday, Walcountians take on local rivals Chipstead in a match which could propel them into fourth place if they win. There are signs that Walcountians now have a settled side and this represents an encouraging change of fortune after a difficult few years. Kick-off at Clock House, Carshalton Road, Woodmansterne is at 2pm.

Old Walcountians:- Mogridge, Fletcher-Rogers, French (B), Charnock (G), Sanders, Hodgson, Bacon, Marsh, Blackmore, Ford, Bell, Lawrence, Togbolah, Charnock (S), Clarke.

Subs:- Beaubrun, Brown, Dore, French (A).