DEVONPORT Services remain winless and at the foot of the National Two West table after they were beaten 55-31 by fellow relegation rivals Bournville at the Rectory.
It was a disappointing result for Services and leaves them with a mountain to climb now if they are to survive.
They are now 12 points away from third-from-bottom Barnstaple and 13 behind fourth-from-bottom Bournville after 10 games.
Services had the better of the first half on Saturday but did not take their chances and somehow found themselves trailing 20-19 at the break.
They then should have scored straight after the interval, but blew what looked like a certain try and Bournville made them pay by going up the other end and scoring themselves.
Once the Midlands side got two scores up, they grew in confidence and Devonport’s heads appeared to drop and the visitors took total control with their pack dominating.
Services did pick up a try-scoring bonus point, but it was little comfort to head coach Ben Russell.
“We fronted up against Luctonians in our last game, and they are a massive side and are going to be top four and pushing for the title,” said Russell.
“In the first half, we gave them (Bournville) every point they have got.
“We have gone into half-time 20-19 down and we have said ‘first 10 minutes come out and win those minutes’, but we have dropped the ball when we should have scored and then we have just accepted whatever they have thrown at us.
“We gave silly penalties away and just lost the physical battle in the second half.
“We just got dominated second half. You can coach as much as you like but you have to front up for 80 minutes, which we never seem to do.”
Services are conceding an average of 50 points a game.
“If you look at some of the points we are conceding, some of them are just soft,” said Russell.
However, Devonport’s head coach is not writing off his team’s chances of staying up just yet.
“We are only 10 games in,” he said. “But we need a win before Christmas.”
The first 20 minutes on Saturday was like a basketball game, with the sides trading scores every few minutes.
The visitors took the lead in the fifth minute when winger Joe Jenkins scored in the corner following a scrum after Services had knocked on deep in their half.
But the home team replied immediately when lock Mike Rickard scored from a catch-and-drive move to make it 7-5.
Services then took the lead when Charlie Groves scored a fine try under the posts after pressure from a line-out. Sam Brown added the conversion to make it 12-7.
However, Bournville reduced the gap with a penalty by in-form goalkicker Jacob Fewtrell and then went back in front with an interception try by centre Sam Grimshaw.
Straight from the re-start Services responded. The visitors knocked on the kick-off and Devonport attacked brilliantly from the scrum with Shaun Crawford and Groves involved before the ball came to Elliott Pocknell to score. Brown added the conversion to put his side 19-17 ahead.
Bournville then had full-back Sam Clarke yellow carded, but crucially Services did not make the extra man pay. They wasted three great opportunities to score and extend their lead.
Had they taken those chances then, the outcome might have been different, but as it was, it was Bournville who took a narrow lead into the break after Fewtrell kicked a penalty to make it 20-19.
Services should have scored at the start of the second half. Centre Pocknell made a great break and Groves supported him well, but, unfortunately, he could not gather the final pass to score.
And Bournville went straight up the other end and showed Services how to do it with Clarke crossing in the corner and Fewtrell brilliantly converting.
Five minutes later Bournville extended their advantage to 34-19 with a try from close range by Jake Thompson.
Groves did pull a try back after replacement Ethan Millard had done well running back a deflected kick, but then it was all Bournville for the next 20 minutes.
The visitors’ scrum really started to dominate and Services were giving away too many penalties.
Kieran Henderson, Callum Nicholls and Clarkson McLeod all added further tries for Bournville who went 55-26 up.
The Midlands club did have Oscar Fawkes-Underwood yellow carded late on, and Devonport scored a fifth try courtesy of winger Charlie Over, but it was little more than a consolation effort.
REGIONAL TWO SOUTH WEST
IVYBRIDGE took advantage of Penzance-Newlyn’s lack of a game to move to the top of the table after edging out Devon rivals Okehampton 31-28 at the Showground.
The Bridgers, who have only lost once this season, had Harry Newman-Wild in fine form with the boot, converting all their four tries and adding a vital second half penalty.
Okehampton had taken a 14-0 lead early on with converted tries by Saul Holliday and Leon Horn, but Ivybridge pulled it back to 14-14 before half-time with forwards Aaron Williams and Jack Skinner crossing the whitewash.
After the interval, Ivybridge went 28-14 ahead thanks to tries by backs James Cantin and Newman-Wild.
Okehampton, though, cut the gap to one score with a converted catch-and-drive effort by Joe Mawle.
But straight from the restart, Ivybridge got a penalty and Newman-Wild kicked it to move his side 10 points clear and give them some breathing space.
The home team did come back and Roman Alford added their fourth, which Luke Simmons again converted, with two minutes to go, but Ivybridge were able to hang on and pick up a valuable five points on the road.
Coach James Sloan said afterwards: “We made hard work of it, to be honest.
“We gave them two silly tries to go 14-0 down. But we scored two tries before half-time – one right at the end – and then we came out firing second half.
“We played some good rugby, but then got sucked into a battle, which is what they were wanting.
“There were a few yellow cards and they kind of built their way back into it, but Harry’s kicking from the tee won us the game.”
He added: “That’s two away wins in a row we have done, so we are starting to build.
“We have improved from last year and the lads know how to grind a result out, which is nice to see.
“To win at Okehampton is always tough.
“I think last year we might have lost that game, but just a year of experience has shown that we can grind a victory out.
“We are where we want to be, but all our eyes are just on the next game.
“It is just about week-by-week for the lads; we are not looking too long-term.”
CUP GAMES
TAMAR Saracens found Counties Two Cornwall side Liskeard-Looe too strong for them in the Lockie Cup as they were beaten 52-12 at Lux Park.
Liskeard-Looe might be finding wins hard to come by in the league, but that higher division experience told on Saturday.
“There were a lot of miss tackles by us, we had no patterns and were weak in the scrum,” said Tamar Saracens coach Pete Lethbridge. “Line-outs went okay, but that’s about all.
“It was a bit disappointing, but as I said to the boys afterwards, we have honoured that game and we are now in the RNEC Cup.
“That was probably Liskeard-Looe’s strongest side, and they were very direct and well-drilled.
“We didn’t start well to be fair. In the second half, particularly the last 20, we came into the game and played some patterns, but the damage was already done by then.
“I don’t know why the boys weren’t at the races, although there were some outstanding individual performances. However, the most important thing is we played the game.
“We just needed a game after not playing last weekend.”
Stephan Breedt and Jacob Blasdale scored tries for Sarries, with Rob Hall adding a conversion.
That was the only Lockie Cup game played at the weekend, with the Plymstock Oaks v Old Techs and OPMs v Plymouth Argaum ties cancelled.
In the Ellis Trophy, there was a cracking game at St Mary’s Field where the University of Plymouth narrowly edged out Plympton Victoria 38-35 in a thriller.
Plym Vic were leading at half-time, but the students came back to take the win and progress in the competition, while Plym Vic will drop into the Pedrick Cup.
Alex Buckley, John Charlick, Bryon Poole, Kev Jefferies and JP Browning all scored tries for Plym Vic, with Buckley adding the conversions.
“It was a really good, well-played game,” said Plym Vic chairman Chris Hunt.
“We played some great rugby; in fact there was some fantastic rugby played by both teams.
“Our scrummage was really good, although our line-out wasn’t so good, but we supported well and we rucked well.
“A great game of rugby was had, which was the main thing.
“It’s about building a bit of momentum for us.”
Plymstock Oaks II progressed in the Ellis Trophy by beating OPMs II 54-12 at King George V Playing Fields.
The first half was tight and Oaks II only led 19-7 at the change of ends, but they pulled away in the final 40 minutes.
The visitors ended up running in eight tries, with Jacob Chapman bagging a hat-trick. Joe Donnelly added two, while Daniel Rosson and Tom Fitzpatrick also touched down to go with a penalty try. Fitzpatrick added six conversions.
Devonport Services III have joined Oaks II and the University of Plymouth in the next round of the Ellis Trophy after they beat Tavistock II 36-5 at Sandy Park.
Rohan Johnson scored two tries for Services III, with Ollie Mytton, Aaron Duffield, Trysten Green and Davies Seales also touching down and Mytton adding three conversions.
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