UNBEATEN Rams ran in seven tries for the third successive game with a dominant win over rivals Henley at Old Bath Road.
Seb Reynolds’ men are the early pace-setters in National 2 South as the only side with three wins from three so far, all sealed with an additional bonus point.
Henley also came into the game with a perfect start so far and they led during the early exchanges.
But first-half tries from Alex Seers, Miles Lloyd and Tom Vooght put the hosts 17-8 ahead.
And Rams stormed clear after the restart with Colin Thompson, Robbie Stapley, James Baker and Joe Duffelen all crossing the whitewash in a crushing 43-13 success.
“It was a slow start for us as we had to fight to get on top physically,” said head coach Reynolds.
“The effort of the front five was outstanding.
“It was extremely pleasing to see.”
Rams began in an unfamiliar fashion, finding themselves in a series of powerful scrums.
And the Hawks used the slow start to their advantage, getting their noses in front on 15 minutes thanks to a Joe Butler penalty.
But the home side worked their way into the contest, patiently building their way up the field with clearance kicks to try and box Henley inside their own 22. The pressure told when Seers found a gap to score just outside the posts.
The visitors responded in kind straight from kick-off as winger Sam Portland burst down the left before being stopped short, however the barrage towards the line eventually led to Rams’ Ben Henderson being sent to the sin bin.
This allowed Hawks to make the extra man count with a line-out drive finished off by Tom Emery.
That proved to be as good as it got for Henley as their 8-7 lead quickly disappeared before half-time with Lloyd sniping over before a kick to the corner allowed Vooght to also cross the whitewash.
Reynolds’ men continued pressurising after the break, going further ahead to claim their bonus point when Thompson crashed over.
Hawks captain Sam Lunnon quickly pulled one back, but further Rams tries from Stapley, Baker and Duffelen clinched the win.
Rams go to Old Albanian on Saturday (3pm).
RAMS: Duffelen, Rossiter, Bryant, Jones, Denham, Seers, Lloyd, Kidd, Henderson,
Baker, Taylor, Thompson, Collis, Vooght, Stapley (c).
Reps: Drew, McDonnell-Roberts, Guttridge, Richardson, Cole.
Referee: James Clarke
Attendance: 653
