Despite securing a bonus point victory on the road Player Coach Scott Rudkin accepted that this was a below par performance and that his side have yet to hit form this season. The Elks ran in 6 tries but
were never totally convincing as they conceeded four on day when tackling appeared to be an optional extra.

Rudkin added 'We did not play well but we won. It's frustrating that after we started so well we let our standards slip, lost our patterns and allowed Loughborough back into the game, but I'll take winning ugly every time over loosing pretty'. Some of Elks lack of form could be blamed on the growing injury list with Fowkes and Mills missing from
this game, adding to the already sizeable roll of absentees.

The Elks made the perfect start when Connolly profited from good approach work by Chenoweth, Lamb and Haigh to dummy his way over with only one minute gone. He converted his own try to give the visitors a 0 - 7 lead. Dan Taylor, making his first appearance of the season, stretched the lead to 0 - 14 when Bennett's line out take was moved to
Gatehouse whose offload in the tackle gave Taylor the space to crash over. Any thoughts that Loughborough would lay down were dispelled when they reduced the arrears to 7 - 14 after a line out drive was collapsed and the referee awarded a penalty try which Locke converted.

As the Elks entered sleep mode a comedy of errors close to their own line allowed Sounds to pounce on a bobbling ball. Locke again converted to make it 14 - 14. The visitors response was instant . Lewis Taylor, Corcoran and Rudkin took play deep into the home twenty two. Stoker won the line out, Pringle and Clarke took the ball on to set up a ruck,
Haigh picked and danced his way through a throng of defenders for the first of his 2 tries. Connolly converted to reclaim the lead at 14 - 21.

With the half closing Smith scored in the corner for the Elks when his pace allowed him to claim his own chip ahead and dive over.

Loughborough had the last act when Locke slotted a penalty after a line out infringement leaving it 17 - 26 at half time.

The home side had the better start to the second half and were on the score sheet within minutes when missed tackles allowed the centre to score wide out. With a slender 2 point lead at 24 - 26 the Elks task was made more difficult when Chenoweth was yellow carded and Clarke was forced to retire to be replaced by Charlton. Despite being a man down the Elks increased their lead when Bennett boshed his way through a forest of tacklers for a try converted by Connolly.

Garland replaced Chenoweth 25 minutes minutes into the half and was immediately into the action to claim a line out, but a turnover allowed Loughborough to take play close to Elks line where a Moore tackle kept it intact. As the home side attacked from a five metre scrum Haigh intercepted a loose pass and sprinted the length of the park for an uncoverted try, stretching the lead to 24 - 38.

Loughborough ensured a nervous last ten minutes when they claimed a try from a line out drive and Locke further reduced the lead to 32 - 38 with a penalty after thirty eight minutes. The Elks however secured the game into injury time when Haigh slotted a penalty to leave the final score 32 - 41.

Man of the match Simon Bennett.