Sidmouth 2nd XV went down to a narrow 31-28 defeat to hosts Honiton 2nds in a pre-season close encounter between the teams at Allhallows, writes Terry O’Brien.

Sidmouth 2nd XV went down to a narrow 31-28 defeat to hosts Honiton 2nds in a pre-season close encounter between the teams at Allhallows, writes Terry O’Brien.

Sidmouth played down the slope in the first half. Despite dominating the opening quarter, they failed to trouble the scoreboard.

A missed penalty in front of the posts and a determined defence were the main contributory factors.

The pressure eventually told on the half hour, when Aaron Down powered his way over on the blindside of a ruck after good approach work by the forwards. Jake Watts added the conversion.

On a rare visit into the Sidmouth 22, Honiton opened their account in the final minute of the half, when they created an overlap for the outside centre to run over. The conversion by the fly half levelled the scores going into the break.

Honiton dominated the third quarter to build up a strong lead thanks to tries scored by the right winger on the overlap, by a prop from a tap penalty move close to the line and by the number eight, who dropped onto a loose ball from a lineout close to the Sidmouth line. One try was converted.

The Quins staged a spirited comeback and tries by Ryan Davies and Matt James, both converted by Jake Watts, closed the gap to three points with ten minutes to go.

Honiton reasserted themselves with a converted try from a tap penalty move before Ryan Davies capped an outstanding performance by driving over from the base of a ruck in injury time. The conversion closed the final deficit to three points.