Old Halesonians 43 pts Ludlow 0 pts

COACH Dave Irish is preparing for ‘March Mayhem’ after Ludlow slipped into the Midlands One West relegation zone.

The ex-Malvern player has called all Ludlow’s remaining matches ‘six-pointers’ as they face a battle to avoid the drop.

“We have to treat every game from now on as a cup final and, to coin the football term, a six-pointer,” said Irish.

“We have three huge matches next month against teams in and around us.

“They will be a vital couple of weeks and, by the end of March, the relegation issues will be all done and dusted.

“Berkswell and Balsall have opened up a bit of a gap on us and it’s now a case of chasing them down.

“We are now heading full tilt to Walsall this Saturday and we will be hoping to cause a bit of an upset before we prepare for March Mayhem.”

Irish said Ludlow put up a brave display before going down 43-0 at promotionchasing Old Halesonians last Saturday.

“It was a tough game and they were just too strong for us,”

admitted Irish, whose side trailed 15-0 at the break.

“The amount of possession was 80 per cent in their favour and we could not get our hands on the ball.

“They have a couple of exceptional players - and that’s why Old Halesonians are pushing for promotion.

“It was a great defensive effort because we tackled very well and restricted them to three tries in the first-half. We felt we were in touch and we might get something out of the game.

Irish says the returning Matt Wilkes has been a replacement for Ludlow’s last two matches but he’s in contention for a starting place this Saturday.

But Sam Wilkes and Will Norton are still struggling with ankle problems and Dan Rawlings pulled up with an injury in the warm-up last weekend.

“Over the last few weeks, we have been frustrated by the weather,” said Irish.

“We are back in the bottom three but we have got a bit of momentum.

“We had a draw against Stratford, a blip against Stoke and last Saturday was always going to be a tough match.

“A g reat spirit remains in the squad - we have taken a lot of good sides to the wire. Walsall will be another tough fixture but we beat them earlier in the season.”