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South West One West

Bideford 30,

Kingsbridge 7

After last week’s narrow loss, and this fixture being the last before the Christmas break, Kings knew that to come away with anything from this game they would have to play their best rugby to date.

It seemed Kings had been left a present under the tree as they had lots of possession in the Bideford half early on.

Unfortunately, Bide­ford did not allow any room at the inn as the hosts regained possession and cleared to take play into the Kings’ half.

It would stay here for large periods of the first half, putting the defence under enormous strain which may have been broken sooner had Jon Merrin not put in some courageous cover tackles.

Things were not helped by a hamstring injury to Isaac Ray­worth, who was just starting to look dangerous.

With the three wise men (or not so!) in the front row being put under huge pressure from the Bideford pack, it was only a matter of time before the referee awarded a penalty to the hosts, who duly converted the kick for 3-0.

Soon after, Kings­bridge were under their posts again after more dominance at the scrum led to another score for Bideford and an 8-0 score.

This was far from a silent night for Kings­bridge as the opposition powered over the whitewash again following more time in Kingsbridge’s 22, with the score now at 15-0.

Ali Hamilton was again in the thick of the action, winning invaluable turnovers whenever possible.

As the play seemed to have evened out again Ed Howlett gobbled up an interception and was charging to­wards the line to give Kings a gift-wrapped try, but it was short lived as the referee pulled the play back for a penalty (Bah hum­bug).

At the break it remained 15-0 to the hosts.

Going into the second half, it was never going to be easy for the visitors, but they gave themselves an opportunity early on.

A clever backs move got them close to scoring but it was judged to have been held up over the line. However, this did restore some belief into the Blue and Whites.

From the resulting scrum, a Christmas miracle really did happen as the Blues won the ball for one of the first times all game.

With clean ball to play with, Ben New­man gave a decisive pass to Dave Stevens who, like a shooting star, raced over to put down in the corner. George Jones put the fairy on the tree by adding an excellent conversion to bring Kings right back into the game.

As much as this gave the visitors a boost, it also shook the hosts into action once again.

Solid defence and good line speed kept Bideford at bay, until a penalty was conceded and Bideford did not hesitate to kick to the corner to bring their ever-effective maul into play.

However, like the great bearded man himself, Tom Meatyard delivered the goods for the away side as he won a priceless turn­over on their own line to temporarily relieve some pressure.

Kingsbridge’s de­fence was soon called upon as Bideford pressed hard, and Ben Newman was sin-binned for being offside in the defensive line.

Bideford took full advantage by adding another three points to their tally.

Kings’ remaining Christmas spirit was quickly squashed as Bideford crossed for two more quick tries as the visitors ran out of puff.

The 30-7 final scoreline did not do justice to the away side’s persistence and commitment.

They can now look forward to a Boxing Day trip to Salcombe, while the A XV will entertain the Grey­hounds in the annual morning fixture at High House.