Wells travelled to Horsham on Saturday knowing that a win was vital to get their season up and running after a somewhat stuttering start.

Playing on the RFU’s artificial pitch in fine conditions, the away team could not have got off to a better start with Theo Rimmer touching down in the corner after a flowing move from a lineout.

The conversion was missed, however it was not long before Wells were back on the scoresheet, this time Mike Doherty collecting a speculative cross-field kick to race in for the try, this time Joe McEvoy was successful with his conversion.

Horsham did respond with a penalty kick, but from a scrum in a good attacking position Wells created sustained pressure and Doherty crashed over for his second try, with the conversion unsuccessful.

At this stage Wells looked dominant, and you would have expected them to kick on from here, however the home side had other ideas, and their forwards seemed to have the upper hand in the set piece, forcing a couple of penalties the second of which was kicked through the posts to bring them back to 6-17.

Horsham found renewed confidence, and Wells started to slip off a few first up tackles, and after a period of sustained pressure Horsham scored their first try of the match which was converted, 13-17.

At this point Wells started to get on the wrong side of the referee and were penalised for a few high tackles which led to a team warning, one more and a player would go to the bin.

This gave the home side plenty of possession and good field position, and another wave attack saw them score a try under the posts, easily converted, to take the lead 20-17, time for Wells to re-group.

With just a few minutes left before half time, Wells had an attacking lineout on the Horsham 10 metre line, and a well-rehearsed maul drill saw Sam Crichton crash over for a much-needed score, and a bonus point, with McEvoy converting to give Wells a 20-24 half time lead.

Wels started the second half strongly, but were still prone to a few errors, compounded when Dave Thornton was yellow carded for another high tackle.

Despite being a man short, Wells forced a penalty just inside the Horsham half after a great burst from Josh Curtis, which McEvoy struck beautifully between the posts, 20-27.

Horsham failed to make 10 metres from the re-start, and Wells tapped the penalty quickly before the Horsham defence could realign itself properly, Curtis took full advantage off this showing great pace and footwork to score the best try of the match, McEvoy converting 20-34.

Now Wells were playing their best rugby of the day, and another flowing move saw them with what should have been a walk-in try, however Nick Doherty threw out a wild no-look pass which was intercepted and Horsham went the length of the field to score under the posts, converted, 27-34 and game on when Wells should have been 3 scores clear.

Horsham then had an opportunity to close the gap further with a penalty attempt which went wide of the posts, and Wells cleared their lines.

Wells declined a kick at goal themselves a few minutes later, opting for touch, but lost the ensuing lineout. However, Horsham tried to run the ball out through phases from deep, and Dave Thornton time his jackal to perfection to win possession, then debutant Ethan Thompson showed great footwork to jink through the Horsham defence and score the crucial try, Mike Doherty converting 27-41.

Overall, a much-needed win and improved performance by Wells against a tough, determined Horsham side who never gave up. The coaches will be a little frustrated with some aspects of play, but with the new players still bedding in this squad is starting to show some real promise and Wells can look forward to their next home game against Wimbledon with a degree of confidence.