Old Leamingtonians 20pts, Pershore 17

A TRY deep into stoppage-time sentenced Pershore to defeat last Saturday as their promotion hopes received another jolt.

No one seemed to know where the nine added minutes came from but Leams made the most of the overtime to finally breach the visiting defence and stun the Piddle Parkers.

A much-changed visiting side played extremely well and dominated the opening 40 minutes.

They won quick ball at ruck situations and scrum-half Sid Hirons had a field day.

Outside half James Martin was also heavily involved and he enjoyed a terrific afternoon, taking the ball on the gain line he was strong in attack and gave width to his backs with long and accurate passes.

A quick tap penalty released Adrian Hanson who cut inside two defenders before releasing Ben Pullen who outsprinted the defence to score under the posts.

Robin Haines added the extra points before Leams replied with a couple of penalties but Pershore's expansive game was rewarded with two excellent tries to take a 17-6 lead.

Both were the result of patient build-ups as the forwards string together six or seven phases of play before the ball was spun wide for Richard Jenkinson to score.

A magnificent inside pass in the tackle from Ian Hurley led to the next try that was finished off by Hanson. Both conversions went begging and that would prove crucial in the final count.

Leams used their only attacking weapon - the driving maul - to maximum effect after the interval when all they did from set-piece plays was pick up and drive. It was carried out illegally but effectively!

The pressure drained Persh-ore's resources and it wasn't long before the visitors' lead was reduced.

The loss of the injured Carl Evans meant the introduction of Russell Humphries alongside son Ben in the front row and Pershore looked like holding out for the points until the official saw fit to find nine extra minutes and Leams stole an unlikely victory.