CHURCH Stretton RFC are hoping to end a difficult season on a high note by reaching the final of the North Midlands Vase Plate this weekend.

Stretton host old rivals Greyhound, from Hereford, in Saturday’s semi-final – a game rearranged from last weekend, when a waterlogged pitch caused a postponement.

This season has been a tough one for Stretton, who have accepted voluntary relegation from Midlands Four level just a couple of years after winning promotion.

A struggle for playing numbers was behind the decision to drop back to the lower level but club captain Daran Chard hopes a challenging campaign can still end in memorable fashion.

Stretton beat Birmingham Civil Service 32-15 in last Wednesday’s quarter-final, helped by a Tom Ward brace, and Chard says that win has hugely boosted their collective confidence.

The skipper added: “It was a great night and the atmosphere after the game was fantastic. It’s unbelievable how one win can turn a team around.

“We wanted to take that momentum into last Saturday but unfortunately the game was called off and the lads were upset about it.

“It has been a struggle this year with a lot of players having gone away to university. But we are only five years old as a club and we have to remember that.

“Everything has gone really, really quickly for us and we have been very, very successful, winning the league and winning two cups.”

One of those cup final wins was against Greyhound two years ago although they got their revenge in the early rounds of last year’s competition.

Chard added: “We are expecting it to be a really tough game but we are going into it having played the best we have played all season.

“We are looking forward to it and we are really excited – it’s been a really, really hard season but there’s a bit of a light at the end of the tunnel and potentially a bit of silverware if we can get through this semi-final.”