The Covid-forced 18 month preseason proved effective for Wasps FC as they got their pre season started with a dominant and well structured win against Kilburn Cosmos to take the Browne Cup for the 2021-2022 season.

Report from Captain Sam Williams

A powerful forward pack and a seven try haul secured a 5-47 victory for the visiting Wasps, with tries from debutant Tom Jenkins, as well as Joe Large, Ossama Aslam (2), Pete Vangelatos(2) and Bojan Cecaric. Flyhalf Paul Buffry was assured kicking for the extras, and his goal kicking and confident game management saw him awarded Man of the Match on his debut, alongside long-serving second row Charles Geary, who made a strong impact off the bench.

Wasps travelled to Kilburn with a 25-man squad, featuring a mix of players across the potential first and second teams, as well as a number of debutants. This mix of players and lack of game time wasn’t evident on the field though as Wasps got on the front foot right from the kick off and the pod structures and patterns of plays were on show from the first phase.

After marching up the field with some powerful carries and soft hands from the dominant forward pack, the Kilburn defences were tested out wide as scrum-half Oscar Fowler-Marsh started to build a slick partnership with new fly-half Paul Buffry and the ball was moved across a new-look backline. Secure hands and quick ball put Kilburn on the back foot. Wasps made their way up to the 22, where the forwards took control and smashed through the defence until number 8 Tom Jenkins forced his way over the line for the first try on 11 minutes. Paul Buffry added the extras to make it 0-7

From the restart Kilburn started to build into the game, and ill discipline and a number of high tackles found Wasps defending in their own 22 for what felt like a lifetime. Outstanding defensive shape held Kilburn out for 10-15 minutes, but eventually quick thinking and a powerful charge put Kilburn over the line. Conversion missed, 5-7 after 30 minutes.

No longer backed into a corner and able to get hands on the ball, Wasps started working back up the field. Powerful carries from club stalwarts Jim Hynes, Matt Cosgrove and Hugo Lewis proved too much for Kilburn at times and gave Wasps front-foot ball. Centre Bojan Cecaric was able to pull in a number of defenders in the middle of the park before the ball shifted right and winger/centre Pete threw a flat hard pass to captain Sam Williams on the right wing to get on the edge of the Kilburn defence. After making metres, the offload was given back to Pete, who again showed delicate hands to keep the move going and get the ball to number 15 Joe Large, who touched down in the corner for a try that wouldn’t look out of place in the Harlequins first team.

The timely try and conversion on the 34th minute renewed the Wasps intensity and took them into halftime with the score 5-14 and a lot for the coaches to be happy about.

Wasps made a number of changes at half time, but this didn’t upset the balance and momentum as the fresh players slotted in seamlessly. Replacement number 8 Ossama got himself involved instantly running some superb support lines off the shoulders to get over for his first try of the day after three minutes on the field. The outstanding Wasps scrum dominated Kilburn all day, stealing the ball against the head on a number of occaions. Using this set piece dominance, fly-half Paul was able to continue to spray the ball across the backs. With more intricate passing Wasps were back over the Kilburn try line with Pete touching down for his first of two tries on 49 minutes.

Confidence was brimming from 1 through 15 at this point, with structured defence and much improved discipline giving Kilburn very little to work with and pinning them in their own half for the majority of the second half. Forwards and backs continued to work in tandem as Ossama got over for his second try and centre Bojan was able to capitalise on some loose play to pick up a scrappy ball and dot down for his try. Special mention goes to Fly-half Paul for an exquisite pre-called chip over the Kilburn defence for Pete to gather, another highlight for the backs to add to their impressive performance on the day.

The players remained switched on and determined not to let Kilburn over for a second time, getting off the line and putting in dominant tackles. The tackle count across the Wasps locks and flankers continued to go up, but the Kilburn score sheet remained the same. The work rate and mentality of the team was highlighted towards the end of the match, when Kilburn managed to get themselves up the field. The Wasps defence held strong until finally denying them another score with some wonderful work to hold the ball up over the tryline. Back down the Kilburn end, Pete got his name on the score sheet again with the final try of the game in the 74th minute.

A dominant forward display in both the loose and set pieces gave the Wasps backline an opportunity to play and move the ball wide, with Wasps walking away with the Browne Cup after the game finishing 5-47 to Wasps. This win will give Wasps confidence and a platform to build their season on, as they prepare for two home games next week (Saturday 11th September) at Twyford Avenue.