Evesham 5, Bredon 11

SATURDAY'S hosts made a disappointing start in their new lea-gue after crashing to defeat against their local rivals.

The match was a battle between a powerful Evesham pack and the speedy Bredon backs and the home side started well and were soon encamped in the Bredon half for long spells of the first half.

Dropped passes and poor refereeing, though, meant the home side failed to capitalise on their possession.

Dave Scott was having a superb match dominating the line-out, while Chris Maritza was at his rampaging best.

Line-out ball was gathered 30 yards out and driven forward. The Evesham pack combined brilliantly for Maritza to power over for an unconverted try.

The Bredon backs always looked threatening but could only manage a penalty in reply.

The visitors came out for the second half fired up and launched attack after attack but a penalty was their sole reward.

Evesham then put together some attacks of their own, but again were thwarted by some injudicious refereeing decisions in crucial areas of the field.

As Evesham legs tired, Bredon saw their chance for victory and scored a deserved try out wide.

The match ball was sponsored by Buzz Ele-ctrics.