MALVERN Rugby Club were hopeful of picking up two points on Saturday when they entertained Newbold at Spring Lane but the beefed-up visitor's pack soon had the home side in trouble.

Although Malvern took the lead with a penalty they found themselves 19-3 down at the break. A second half revival brought them level with the visitors, who then were gifted a score to win 19-26.

Director of rugby David Robins was understandably disappointed at the outcome, but pleased at his side's second half comeback.

Robins said: "To pull back 16 points is a fine achievement, having not been able to counter the very effective Newbold rolling maul until we beefed the pack up with Adie MacBurney and Matt Richardson. The boys put together a great fight-back, even though we had yet another fairly untested back combination, especially at nine and 10, as they had never played together before.

"The last try was a sickener, letting Newbold back into the driving seat for the last 10 minutes, but that's the penalty we pay for not closing the game down. More worrying is the injury picked up by number eight Jamie Anderson. It looks like a dislocated shoulder, which is a major blow, as he has fast become one of our most effective players.

"On the plus side, Matt Richardson made a big statement when he came on, putting in an enormous performance. We now have to retrench for this week's game at Aston Old Edwardians, who we just pipped at Spring Lane early in the season."