OUR second successive season in Western Counties West League proved equally as difficult the previous season although, in fairness, the standard of rugby in this league is improving and there are certainly no easy games.

Results in the league proved that everyone had the capability to beat all other sides on their day.

The early part of the season was a difficult time as we struggled with a number of injuries and by the end of round six we were firmly rooted at the bottom of the league with no wins and just a couple of losing bonus points.

However, three of the games really could have gone either way and the difference between a four-point win and a nil point loss was indeed very marginal and, but for a couple of decisions, we could just as easily have been in mid-table with 12 points.

A turning point came in the Devon Senior Cup First Round at home against Devonport. Having already lost the league game against the same opponents two weeks earlier plus the fact that they were in second place in the league ensured we were very much the underdogs.

We did come away with a well-deserved 20-3 victory thanks to tries from Declan McDonnell and Devon Hosegood plus two conversions and two penalties from Mark Lee.

A league victory at home against St Austell by the narrowest of margins (24-23) boosted morale but could not lift us from the foot of the table.

Defeat at Tiverton the following week was particularly disappointing, a game that we felt we were the better side for three-quarters of it during which time we were seldom troubled.

Unfortunately, the opening 20 minutes of the second half proved decisive as Tivvy came from 8-10 down to lead 27-8 and from thereon we were playing catch-up. The lead was reduced to 10 points by the end but not enough to gain a bonus point.

A 36-10 win against visiting Burnham-on-Sea, a side we had never previously played, helped us move up a place and a single point defeat at table topping Truro, whose winning penalty came a couple of minutes from time, was enough to give a sense of belief that we were good enough to get ourselves out of trouble.

Fifth place Wadebridge were the next visitors to Blagdon and a Jason Luff hat-trick plus a try, a penalty and three conversions from Mark Lee, produced another bonus point win although still not enough to lift us out of the relegation places.

A basement battle at Bude ended with a two-point defeat, again the winning points for the opponents coming in the dying moments not for the first time during the season nor would it be the last.

We reached the mid-point stage with a home game against another top six club, St Ives, a side that had been going particularly well and a 17-13 win saw us move out of the bottom two for the first time and eight points clear of bottom placed Wellington.

The second half of the season started badly with six successive defeats from which we earned a meagre two losing bonus points and once again we were back at the bottom of the league.

The defeat at home against Sidmouth was particularly galling as their winning try came in the 50th minute of the second half, 10 minutes over time when there had been no stoppages for injury.

Total bewilderment at the decisions of the Dorset match official which we genuinely believed cost us the game in the 7-13 defeat.

Time was running out by the time Tiverton paid a visit in mid-February and there would be no better occasion to get the season back on the rails.

At this stage we were five points away from safety and eight points behind Tiverton who had also been struggling and getting sucked into the relegation battle.

Another Jason Luff hat-trick plus tries from Josh Lee, Mark Nott and Ben Wonnacott plus five conversions and a penalty from Mark Lee enabled us to see off our neighbours in style 43-12.

The trip to Burnham the following week resulted in a last minute defeat but nonetheless a losing bonus point but still in trouble second from bottom.

With games passing by we were in need of some wins and, much to our relief, and somewhat like London buses, three came along in succession all against Cornish opposition.

A last minute Josh Lee try produced a 20-16 victory over Truro followed by an excellent 27-20 bonus point win at Wadebridge, the only side we managed to complete the double over. By the time we hosted Bude, both clubs were out of the relegation spots level on 39 points but still only seven points separating the bottom four.

A 31-14 bonus point win enabled us to move out of the bottom four with two games remaining, away at St Ives we were soundly defeated but at home against bottom side Wellington, when a losing bonus point would have been enough to keep us in WCW for next season.

As it worked out, the 22-5 victory was more than enough.

There was always the feeling that we were too good a side to get relegated but such is the standard in WCW at the moment that I suspect every other side felt the same about their own performances.

It was certainly the tightest relegation battle for many seasons as it literally went down to the final round of games.

The change of fortune coincided with the introduction of Premiership players Ali Hepburn and Sam Hill to the coaching panel and the players bought into what they were trying to achieve.

Our defence stiffened up and in attack we did the basics right. It has been a real pleasure to have players of this calibre working with us and the fact that they have committed to helping next season augurs well for the future.

The First Fifteen record for the season was P27 W10 D0 L17 F488 A 591.

Captain Josh Lee and prop Dan Manns appeared in all 27 games, winger Devon Hosegood and scrum-half Ed Brady (24), fly-half Mark Lee and full-back Gareth Mason (22), No 8 Mark Nott, hooker Bobby Mogford and winger Jason Luff (21).

Jason Luff ended as the First Fifteen top try scorer with 14, Josh Lee (6), Mark Nott (5), Matt Dayment and Devon Hosegood (4). Mark Lee scored 140 points with the boot.

Paul Harris