WORTHING WORTHY AS LEAGUE LEADERS

It was not merely a case of travelling well beyond the other side of the Metropolis to take on the side second in the table and beating them. The weekend's M25 tanker spillage made them so late and travel weary they had to beg their hosts to agree to a 15-minute delay in kick-off time, just so they made it out onto the pitch properly kitted up.

Getting the journey out of their legs took the first half. By then they were 11-6 down. Stortford drove over from a five-metre lineout, then wiped out two Ben Coulson penalties with two of their own.

Unsettled, they made plenty of unforced errors and that brought pressure on themselves but signs that the recuperative process was nearing an end was a touchdown by New Zealander No 8 Rowan O'Gorman on the stroke of half-time.

It followed an encouraging series of scrums and mauls against the feared Stortford pack '” but it did not count: there had been an accidental offside.

Worthing included lock Ben McGowan and scrum-half Mike Imrie, both despite injury scares in the previous match. After the interval Worthing took up where they left off and four scrums against the head by hooker Simon Alcott signalled a conquering of the enemy pack.

The platform shoud have been undermined 15 minutes into the half, however, when an altercation left full-back Duncan Taylor, another of the four New Zealanders, sidelined in the sinbin.

But 14-man Worthing maintained the pressure and O'Gorman unwrapped a splendid eighth try of the season. Breaking from close to halfway his dummy opened up for himself a 30-yard sprint to the line.

Taylor's return ended Stortford's bid to exploit Worthing's manpower deficit and after a 75th-minute scrum he and wing Coulson combined for Coulson's fourth try of the season, his 117th point of the campaign, and a winning scoreline.

The remaining minutes contained little to worry Worthing. The job was accomplished. It was their fourth away victory in five league trips '” the one loss was at Cambridge '” and Worthing are unbeaten at home.

WORTHING: Taylor; Coulson, Butler, Stewart-McDonald, Stephens; Dudley, Imrie; Storer, Alcott, Bennett, Dove, McGowan, Phillips, Levett, O'Gorman. Bench: Nacagilevu (Bennett 55), Kirchell (Phillips 66), Outen.