South West One West

Bideford 18, North Petherton 20

A DRAMATIC last-minute drop goal from Jacob Beleski sealed the points for North Petherton in a less than fluid game, writes Simon Freeman.

Defence ruled the day, nullifying the attacking ambitions of both sides.

The lead changed numerous times with the last decisive play belonging to Petherton and Beleski, who kept a cool head to strike the killer blow.

The early play moved from set piece to set piece with little chance for the teams to build any momentum.

The defending was uncompromising and there was little opportunity for the flair players to find space or orchestrate time with the ball.

The first score belonged to Bideford after a series of short drives and a clever offload created the space for a deserved score.

As they had done in previous weeks, Petherton responded positively and began to move the ball with purpose.

Last year’s captain, Sam Williams, who has started the season in fine form, continued to keep Pethy moving in the right direction with the support of the rest of the forwards to level the scores.

The middle section of the match allowed Bideford to take a comfortable lead as Petherton began to concede penalties with the home side taking advantage with some clever plays.

Bideford scored a penalty and a converted try.

A few words to each other under the posts focused the visitors, particularly in keeping things simple rather than trying to force situations.

Pethy started to make smarter decisions, and were rewarded with tries from Chad Lowrie and Damian Griffin, Harry Roberts converting one.

The home team drove immediately back to put the visitors under pressure, and in the 70th minute they slotted over a penalty to move in front by one point.

The visitors refused to yield, and after another series of short drives Beleski calmly stroked the ball through the uprights to clinch the game.

Pethy captain Damian Griffin said: “It was quite a scrappy game, but considering all the factors it was a good win against a tough side.

“I made a few wrong decisions, but we stuck together and we’ll learn from it.

“This puts us in good spirits for the match next week, which, as always, will be incredibly competitive.”