Bristol in a very untraditional red strip got the game underway and a nervous-looking Esher gave away an early offside penalty following a long advantage from the referee (in which he was consistent throughout)  Nicky Little went for the posts and Bristol led 0 - 3 with just a minute or so gone.  A good take from the restart set up a driving maul that sucked in the defence before Dan Montagu stormed into space, popped the ball neatly up for Dan Norton who, in turn, romped over untouched.  He made use of the large in goal area to loop round closer to the posts and Little, his task made easier, added the extras.  Three minutes gone and 10 points to the good.

The Esher supporters may have feared the worst at this point; Bristol attacked again before a penalty halted the visitors momentum and a long kick to Esher into the Bristol half.  Esher attacked dangerously from the lineout and Bristol infringed in front of the posts to give Whitehead a nice loosener which he sent over to narrow the gap to 3 - 10.  Notwithstanding this setback Bristol kept the ball in hand and Ollie Hayes powered close to the try line before the referee called a forward pass as the ball moved away from the breakdown.  Bristol were not long to be denied though, and Jack Adams finished off a good move with a typically robust burst (and equally typical absence of passing) that took him over by the posts for a converted try and a lead of 3 - 17 after 15 minutes.

At this time Bristol may well have felt that the job was essentially done but Esher had other ideas.  Scrappy play from Bristol allowed the hosts to gain confidence and poor tackling allowed Esher to make a fine break out left before sweeping back right for Stuart-Smith to plunge over for a try that Whitehead converted well.  Esher were right back in the game. Bristol tried to galvanize themselves and briefly threatened when Norton popped up in the centre.  Quick lineout ball also saw Bristol put in a strong drive that went close.  The home defence was equal to the task and the half ended with no further score.

The large contingent of Bristol supporters may have detected ominous parallels with last week's match and this feeling received a boost when Ulph kicked a penalty from out wide to edge Esher closer at 13 - 17 with just one minute of the half played.  They continued in similar vein and launched another attack down their left wing channel.  The defence was feeble.  Sean Marsden chased back desperately and looked to have been obstructed as he attempted a last ditch tackle but it was an unconverted try for Mackenzie but an 18 -17 lead for Esher.

The host's collective tail was up.  Yet again Esher attacked on their left and made excellent ground with only a poor final pass preventing the score.  The pressure told on Bristol and Ulph nailed a penalty to increase the margin to four points.  Esher looked confident now and correctly identified Bristol's weakness out on the right wing.  Again only over-anxiousness prevented a try as the ball was knocked-on.   Now it was the turn of the Midfield defence to open up and Esher poured through to take the ball up to the line.  The ball went out right and Loizides touched down despite the attention of three Bristol tacklers.  The try went unconverted when the ball struck the cross bar but still it was 21 - 17.

Bristol tried to strike back and were rewarded for their efforts when replacement Adrian Jarvis slotted over a penalty.  However, as I seem to have to write every game, Bristol then negated this by giving away an immediate, if inexplicable, penalty.  29 - 20 with just over a quarter of an hour remaining.

Bristol appeared increasingly frantic and despite being vulnerable to Esher attacking from deep kicked the ball away, fell off tackles and allowed Esher back to the 5 metre line.  Esher elected to keep things tight and in this area Bristol's defence was, as usual, well up to the job.   Despite this Bristol looked confused, lethargic and continued to defend poorly round the breakdown.  Norton's pace barely prevented a bonus point try as Esher chipped ahead. 

The paucity of ideas and commitment was exemplified by a clean lineout win for Bristol that was clumsily knocked-on under no pressure whatsoever.  So egregious was this error that it looked to have stirred Bristol out of their torpor.  They held on to possession instead of kicking it away and worked their way into the Esher half.  A drive from a lineout could only be contained illegally and the brandishing of a yellow card saw Esher reduced to 14 men.  Wisely Bristol chose to scrum and, stunningly, as it wheeled and crumbled the referee sprinted behind the posts for a penalty try.  Jarvis provided the conversion and Bristol were back in it at 29 - 27 with four minutes to go.

Revitalised, Bristol pounded away but a difficult, long range penalty kick from Jarvis drifted wide.  Bristol attempted to run the ball back from the restart only for a deliberate knock-on to prevent the defence from being outflanked.  Sadly for Bristol the officials failed to spot the seriousness of the offence and time ran out.

What to say?  Bristol started brightly and then Esher worked out that our defence was vulnerable if they ran at it.  Initially this was most obvious on our right (although this may have been because that was where I was nearest to the action) but eventually we also crumbled around the breakdown.  It was deeply disappointing to lose in this manner and the way in which some heads fell and a lack of urgency when we fell behind was troubling.  And yet there remain aspects to the game that inspire hope.  When the ball is kept in hand we look to have the pace and inventiveness to make progress and when the pack get their act together they can worry their opponents.  Clearly we lack strength in depth and injuries may cost us dear.  The midfield needs beefing up and the front row could do with a bit more bulk (come back soon DC, there's pies a waitin').  Some players are on a steep learning curve at this level and the crucial thing is that they keep their confidence in their ability.  Perhaps we should too?

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