Tribute South West One West
Newent 48,
Kingsbridge 16
Kingsbridge produced a fighting display against Newent, who pipped them two seasons ago in an end-of-season promotion battle, but will rue lapses of concentration in both defence and attack.
They fell to a 48-16 defeat but left nothing out on the field, with Tom Meatyard outstanding all game.
Kingsbridge took an early lead after some fiery opening exchanges through a penalty from Jones.
A long kick to the corner and some fine footwork from Newent then saw them score the game’s first try under the posts with the conversion good to make it 7-3.
Almost straight from the restart the home side were penalised again and Jones punished them with a fine penalty for 7-6, before back came Newent with two penalties to take a seven-point lead.
The game, played at an outstanding pace, ebbed and flowed, with each side having good moments in attack.
Kings hit back when Parrott made good yards for the visitors, taking them close enough for Jones to slot another penalty and cut the deficit to 13-9.
After a poor exit from the restart Newent punished Kings with a second try to lead 20-9.
A silly mistake from the kick-off followed and Newent were awarded a scrum, pushing the visitors back to within kickable distance for them to take a further three points and a 14-point lead.
Kingsbridge had two more long-range attempts to close the distance before half time but to no avail, Jones hitting the post with his last effort.
The second half saw Kings put immediate pressure on Newent and forcing them to defend illegally, so much so that they had a player sin-binned for hands in the ruck.
The visitors pilled on the pressure and Powell, prominent throughout the game, emerged from a pile of bodies, scoring a deserved try. Jones added the extras for 23-16.
This was as close as the game got as Newent started to apply real pressure and in what is becoming a familiar story in the second half for Kings, they began to fall off tackles and saw their attacks become more desperate, allowing crucial mistakes to happen.
Newent scored a penalty and another try in quick succession, Kings losing Banfield to the sin bin in the process, to leave the score 31-16.
Taking full advantage of their numerical superiority, the home side scored another converted try after some desperate defending from Kings and added another after what was an incredibly long advantaged played.
With the score now 43-16, back came Kings, showing the grit they have displayed all season, only for their attack to be stopped dead in its tracks as Newent intercepted and raced away for the last play of the game to score and a final score of 48-16.
This was another gutsy performance from Kings, who must find a way of playing for the full 80.
They promise much and deserve to start picking up more points along the road. Hopefully the comfort of a couple of home games will see them back to winning ways.