St Mary's Old Boys 15 - 12 Taunton

Taunton's promotion challenge suffered a setback in Bristol last Saturday.

They knew the match wouldn't be a stroll in the park, despite having beaten the Old Boys 24-0 earlier in the season.

For the first 30 minutes of the match, Taunton played some of their best rugby of the season. They should have been 20 points up but had to settle for 12. Flanker/skipper Pieter Tosen and centre Simon Martin crossed for tries and fly half Jon Martin added a conversion.

Steve Plummer replied with a penalty as Taunton's fire lessened and, crucially, just before the break, converted James Clarke's try.

Taunton had played up the slope, facing a strong wind in the first half and would have fancied their chances on the change of ends.

But they were denied possession by a revitalised bunch of Saints who kept their try line safe and concentrated on pick and drives to stifle Taunton's hopes.

Taunton should have won despite their lack of ball. They had four opportunities to claim a draw or win but all four penalties were missed; and 15 minutes into the second session, Gavin Curry slipped through for a try for the hosts.

The Old Boys held out until the final whistle - two points in the bag for their fight against relegation.

League leaders Exmouth, who visit Hyde Park on Saturday, are now five points clear and are racing certainties for automatic promotion with only four matches left.

Barnstaple are now in the play-off spot, despite the RFU website and Sunday newspapers' contrary views. A few weeks back, they decided that Hornets had beaten Barum instead of the complete opposite scoreline.

Taunton are, in fact, a point behind Barnstaple. They have four matches left to make up lost ground. Exmouth are visitors on Saturday. Next up is a trip to Hornets (29th March) then Brixham at home (12th April) and, to end the season, a visit to Yatton the following week.

South West 2 (West) is a minefield - shock results are par for the course. No match is a foregone conclusion. Expect more surprises before the season ends!

Bill Luckett