by Kevin Redsull

Deal referee Matt Carley’s first match in charge of an Under-20 Six Nations Championship match was almost ruined by rain at the weekend.

Carley had been appointed to take charge of the Italy v Wales international in Viterbo on Friday.

He said: "When I first arrived at the ground I thought there was no way the game could go ahead because the whole pitch was under water after all the rain they’ve had in that part of Italy.

"But the Italian officials said to me, ‘Don’t worry, if you put the kick-off time back a bit we’ll get the pitch ready’ and they called in the local fire brigade to pump the water off the pitch."

The match kicked off only an hour later than scheduled and Carley added: "It rained again during the first half and at half-time the two coaches raised their concerns and said they would be happy if we only played for 60 minutes so that the result would stand. But the rain did stop and we played a full game."

Wales won 25-10 and Carley added: "Despite the weather, it was a great experience and the Italian hospitality after the game was second to none."

Carley reverts to domestic rugby duty when he takes charge of the Championship game between London Scottish and Jersey on Saturday.

Former Deal and Betteshanger junior Danny Herriott made his third appearance for England under-20s as a replacement when he came on five minutes from the end of their 40-10 victory over France at Worcester on Saturday.