Stompers opened an important weekend for Maltese club rugby with a gutsy and impressive display against their vastly more experienced and much, much bigger visitors from the South of England.

Millbrook, who are based in Southampton, are in Malta for a weekend visit to the Stompers club, and their tour started with a full-length 15-a-side match at the Marsa on Friday afternoon.

Even as the teams took to the pitch, there were some doubts among local spectators that the essentially youthful Stompers’ side might have bitten off more than they could chew.

The Millbrook 15 were physically very imposing, and they had the look of a squad who have been battle hardened in the divisions of English league rugby.

They confirmed that impression right from the kick-off. The Southampton lads might have been in Malta for a visit, but they made it clear that they were taking their rugby seriously enough.

Backed by an enthusiastic group of supporters on the touch-line (there about 50 people in the tour party), Millbrook stuck a game plan depending on tight, disciplined forward play with their backs opening up only when they reached the Stompers’ 25.

With Stompers hampered by playing (probably for the first time, for most of them) to a referee who adhered rigidly to the much tighter Northern European interpretation of ruck and maul laws, the local side found themselves with their backs against the wall for most of the first half.

Millbrook did not take long to turn their superiority into points. Goodrich, an elusive running back who was proving very hard to tackle, went over for a try, converted by Owens – who was to have a good day with the boot. Further tries followed from Ward, Mulcahy and Blewett, two of them converted by Owens and with the score at 26-0, things were not looking good for Stompers.

But they rallied, and they did Malta proud. Tigerish tackling from the entire team was beginning to shake the English players. The forwards were countering Millbrook pack power, and adjusting better to the referee’s approach to things and the Stompers’ backs started to display the neat, quick-thinking approach that has been their hallmark for most of the season.

To the welcome accompaniment of some extremely generous support from the predominantly Millbrook crowd on the touchline, Stompers dominated the second half, scoring three tries – the first two from Mirabelli darting through the visitors’ defence, with the final one coming, almost inevitably, from Nikolic with a characteristic gallop on the left wing. Stompers, unfortunately, missed all three conversion attempts.

In between Weaver added a fifth try for Millbrook, leaving the final score at Stompers 15, Millbrook 31.