HARWICH and Dovercourt Rugby Club coach Shane Manning praised his side for an excellent, all-round display in Saturday’s 32-12 victory at Ipswich Magpies.

The Suffolk side have been one of the form sides in Eastern Counties League division two south – winning all bar one of their games since Christmas.

However, they were no match for second-placed Harwich.

“It was an excellent display from the lads against a much bigger side,” said Manning.

“We stuck to our game-plan and structure and it paid off.

“Everyone contributed and that’s very pleasing.

“It’s been the same all season, in regards to our scrum and line-out being dominant, and that shows a lot of character, because most of the time it’s against bigger opposition.

“Our backs were particularly excellent.

“They contained the big Ipswich backs and scored excellent tries.”

Manning says there is still a chance his side could be promoted, depending on how the league is structured next season.

“We still don’t know what’s happening, but Saturday’s display, combined with the rest of the season, shows we deserve to be in the league above,” he said.

“Ipswich have won all but one of their games since Christmas, but didn’t cause us any real problems.

“I just hope the powers that be see our results and see we deserve to be promoted.”

Harwich now have another week off before hosting Hadleigh.