Stratford, Shottery and Shipston rugby clubs have their say as player shortage take its toll on Warwickshire Merit League fixtures

ALMOST half of the fixtures in a county merit league have not been fulfilled and that does not come as a surprise to bosses of clubs on the Herald patch.

Going into the Christmas break, the Warwickshire League, which has three divisions, has seen 47 out of 103 games (45.6 per cent) classified as a walkover in a damning statement of lower XV rugby.

The majority of matches not being played is down to teams not having enough players, however, there are claims the issue is exacerbated by those who are unwilling to travel for away games.