A CONVERTED Claude Celton try and an Ed Gough penalty were scant consolation for Tenbury as they suffered a 35-10 defeat at home to Burbage.

And that means it will be back to basics on the training field ahead of Saturday’s trip to Claverdon in Midlands Four West (South).

“Somebody said it was like watching schoolboys playing men,” player/coach Andy Black admitted.

“We just weren’t focussed.”

Tenbury suffered a nightmare start to the match, shipping two early tries as their Leicestershire visitors ran through a non-existent defence.

It took a while for the Penlu club to chalk up their first points – a Gough penalty – but Burbage were well clear at the break and it was left to replacement Celton to score the consolation try, converted by Gough.

“Our pre-season preparations weren’t as good as they should have been, particularly after winning promotion” Black added.

“We are in a league now where the organisation of some of the sides we are playing is better than ours.

“And while it’s not an excuse, we still have players unavailable due to working on the land – something that always affects us at Tenbury.

“That said, we are capable of producing better performances than we did on Saturday when the opposition wanted to win more than we did.

"We still have a way to go before we are playing at the same standard as last season.

"Our defence was poor and certainly not up to standard.

“It is a case of going back to basics and making sure our defensive lines are stronger and more secure.

“We are missing one or two key players but we are starting to get numbers along to the club.

"We had 20 at our training session last Thursday on we were able to name a bench on Saturday after having just 15 players for our first game of the season.”

But player/coach Black did praise the spirit shown by his side even though the players were chasing a lost cause in the closing stages.

“When the referee said there were a couple of minutes to go, we worked the ball all the way up the field through a number of phases,” he added.

"“That just showed that we don’t give up as a side – but we do have to get the basics right.”

Claverdon have had a mixed start to the season, winning their opener against Redditch only to lose to Stoke Old Boys on Saturday.