Ledbury were given a harsh introduction after their promotion in a 51-7 thrashing against Stratford upon Avon.

The first XV faced the visitors in their Regional 2 Midlands West curtain opener on Saturday (September 7).

Having gained promotion for the second time in three seasons, the squad travelled to Stratford with a full-strength squad, playing on a pitch they had not visited in nearly 20 years.

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The match began at a rapid pace, with Stratford's winger Charlie Powell scoring the first try after a lineout, putting them ahead 5-0.

Ledbury's pack flexed their muscles by dominating the home team at scrum time, but Stratford nonetheless extended their lead to 8-0 with a penalty.

Cody Richardson Wall got the visitors on the board as the forwards drove over the line for the score, before Iolo Bubb added the extras to bring the score to 8-7.

Stratford piled on the pressure following the score, which saw Bubb sent to the bin for deflecting a scoring pass.

The host's centre Lewis Mellor outmanoeuvred and outpaced the Ledbury defence to score in the corner, making the score 13-7.

Despite Ledbury's efforts, an error by winger Lewis Turner allowed Stratford's Johnny Smith to hack the ball on and hare after it to score, bringing the score to 20-7.

Ledbury continued to press but were unable to break through Stratford's robust defence.

The second half saw Ledbury start strong, but Stratford's Mellor intercepted the ball and ran 70 metres to score his second of the game, bringing the score to 27-7.

Despite Ledbury's dominance in the set piece, their backs were unable to find space, which repeatedly resulted in turnovers.

Mellor completed his hat-trick as he supported the breaking Powell, before Stratford added another shortly afterwards.

Frustration was setting in as Ledbury started losing their patience with the referee at scrum time, which soon filtered into errors that saw Stratford twice turn over possession for the final two tries of the game, bringing the final score to 51-7.

Despite the heavy loss, the young Ledbury side showed promise, particularly the pack.

The Ledbury backs, however, with several newcomers, were under considerable pressure and had little opportunity to showcase their skills.

Next week, Ledbury will face Shipston-on-Stour at home at 3pm on Saturday (September 14).