NORTH TAWTON 21 TORRINGTON 6

IT might have been a bit colder weather wise off the pitch but it was a hotly contested contest on the pitch. Make no mistake, a local derby against Torrington is always important to get the bragging rights sorted out from the get go.

Torrington arrived full of confidence after a big win the previous week and they were looking to be the first team to beat North Tawton this season.

For their part, with a strong looking team out, the Tawts had no reason to be overhauled by the visitors.

The first 15 minutes or so the Tawts probably spent more time in their own half than they would like, but without conceding any points the North Tawton defence proved its quality.

It has to be said, with the Torrington team seeming to have some quick backs in their line up, a somewhat more even match for the Tawts than in previous weeks was becoming apparent.

A big blow to North Tawton after 20 minutes was the loss of Ben Sharpe with another shoulder injury having just playing his way back from a similar type of injury.

With the score locked at 0-0, it was going to take something special to break the deadlock.

Step up Si Quick who gathered the ball well in his own half.

A half break turned into a good run which turned into a good kick/offload with Luke Dennis over for the first very important points.

The conversion was added by Gary Sizmur. It has to be in the running for try of the season. The result now standing at 7-0.

You could feel the frustration coming from the away side. They seemed to be having more territory and possession, but in no time with a second try by Dan Dennis and a kick by Gary Sizmur the result was 14-0 going in to half-time.

The second half got underway from the touch line faithful.

The Tawts got on the wrong side of the ref and a brace of penalties for high tackles committed by the Tawts gave Torrington renewed hope and points on the board - 14-6 and an hour gone.

With plenty of vocal support from the good numbers that had come up the road from Torrington the away side set about trying to reduce the points margin further.

This North Tawton side didn’t give points up easily and with a bench clear out in the shape of four changes the Tawts dug in for a fantastatic final 15 minutes.

A yellow card for the home side did not help the cause, but a try from Matt Baker, with a kick from Gary Sizmur did, taking the score to 21-6.

Pushing as hard as they could, Torrington could not add to their six points final score.

North Tawton all-in-all, produced a well-deserved win with Torrington proving to be a good side and as always hard to beat.

Two good teams, a good ref, rugby the winner.

Man of the match was Dan Dennis.

Chris Phare