It wasn’t enough to prevent Welsh from bowing out of the British and Irish Cup, as they finished third in Pool 2 behind Scottish and table toppers Pontypridd, but it was their third win in a row since their defeat to Scottish at the Kassam Stadium just before Christmas.
“18-3 it wasn’t looking good but the spirit never went from us,” said Burnell. “Just before Christmas against Bedford and London Scottish awe just seemed to lack that bit of spirit, but today it was there. The bench once again made a difference for us – very pleased with the win.”
Six James Love penalties had seen Welsh trail 18-3 before captain Tom May went over in the corner just before half-time.
“Everybody would have expected me to rant and rave at half-time, but I didn’t. We just sat down quite calmly and assessed where we were at,” said Burnell.
“The boys were trying; it was just the composure in our game in certain areas. We addressed that and got the well deserved win.
“We scored two tries; we looked as if we wanted to play. They never really looked as if they wanted to play. They’re a very good defensive team and they just wanted to defend against us.”
Top of the Greene King IPA Championship table, Welsh return to league action next Sunday when they take on third placed Leeds Carnegie – their B&I Cup campaign at an end as a result of defeats to Scottish (at Newbury) and Pontypridd in the opening two rounds, despite then winning all four of their remaining pool games.
“The London Scottish performance at Newbury was a very disappointing performance, and in all fairness at Sardis Road Pontypridd were a fantastic advert for what rugby is about with 4,500 people in there all shouting and screaming,” said Burnell, whose side have recovered well from defeats to Scottish and Bedford Blues before Christmas.
“We lost two games and we’re now in the process of going back into the Championship campaign – it’s all about getting back to Oxford and a big performance against Leeds next Sunday.
“The losses before Christmas weren’t something we wanted, but it certainly made us sit down and reassess where we’re at.
“A good win out in Jersey, a good win against Pontypridd last week and another good performa
Welsh comeback impresses Burnell
Justin Burnell heralded London Welsh’s spirit after watching his side overturn a 15-point deficit to beat London Scottish, 21-18, at the Richmond Athletic Ground.
