With the assistance of some sloppy Saxons turnovers they led this encounter until the final play of the 1st half when the game turned on the award of a penalty try as a short-range Saxons scrum drive was pulled round illegally. The hosts upped their game 2nd half, their superior physicality gaining the upper hand over Mowden Park who never gave up but were hamstrung by the loss of key playmakers to injury. The game ended with an all-in Saxons maul driven over in the corner to secure the 4-try bonus point.

The Saxons’ lineup showed some minor changes to the starting XV at Leicester Lions. Caolan Ryan and Pete White were rested and Mark George dropped to the bench to give Nick Adams his first start at tighthead. In the 9 jersey Will Harris also made his first start, while James Rodley was back in the starting lineup and Chris Depper & Lucas Roy-Smith came on to the bench. The crowd of around 500 fell silent for a minute’s silence in memory of club stalwart Roger Parkes who had lost a long and courageous battle with cancer since the last home fixture.

The Saxons’ kick off preceded an 3 minute set of phases that went without the interruption of referee Michael Tutty’s whistle, the Saxons mounting a wave of attacks until Nigel Mukarati was penalised in the shadow of the Mowden Park posts for going off his feet at the tackle.

DMP kicked for touch but were turned over in the lineout, the Saxons conceded another penalty for side entry in attack though enabling DMP to launch a tap and run counter from deep in their own half. Jamie Hearn looked to have contained an innocuous-looking kick into the Saxons’ 22 but slipped trying to gather an awkward bounce, leaving the elated visitors’ right winger a free run-in to the corner for a rather soft converted try. 5min 0-7.

Stung into action the Saxons turned over another DMP lineout and ran a set of phases through the threequarters. Sione Tu’ipolotu’s chip ahead looked to have been caught by a defender but Robbie Hurrell snaffled his offload to launch another drive that went left then right, A cut-out pass found Tom Jarvis who stepped inside to score despite the tackle of DMP’s openside flanker whose head collided with his knee. Jarvo was replaced by Sam Baker but DMP’s flanker played on, inadvisedly perhaps given what happened to him subsequently. Hearn’s conversion flew wide, 11min 5-7.

Both sides coughed up turnovers following the restart before the Saxons conceded a penalty for playing the ball in an offside position in front of their posts, the DMP fullback slotting the kick at goal. 16min 5-10.

A Will Hurrell break came to nought as the fit-again DMP openside turned him over in the tackle, launching a flowing counterattack that was only just held out by last-ditch tackles from Hearn & Tu’ipolotu deep in their own 22. The Saxons got a big drive on in the scrum forcing a penalty as DMP’s front row popped up.

A promising Saxons foray into DMP’s 22 got held up on the goal line and the ball squirted out of the scrum just as it looked that the pushover was on. Play reverted to scrappy turnover exchanges and kicks ahead before Ben Barkley took quick flat ball into contact with DMP’s openside who mistimed his tackle and bounced unconscious off his chest, preluding another lengthy injury stoppage before he was helped off the pitch.

The Saxons next attack foundered with a knock on, DMP’s chip chase counter reaching the Saxons 22 where a lineout was conceded. DMP’s no.8 secured the throw and drove through for a soft 2nd try. 28min 5-15.

Good work by the Saxons pack secured a short restart kick, DMP then playing the ball on the floor in the tackle in front of the posts to enable Hearn’s kick at goal to reduce the deficit. 31min 8-15. The margin was restored however after an isolated ball carrier got penalised in kicking range for holding on. 34min 8-18.

An untidy restart was secured by the Saxons pack, launching a set of short forward drives that reached the shadow of DMP’s goalposts before referee Tutty called an unplayable. The Saxon’s scrum drove forward but again the ball squirted out of the side before DMP’s lively scrum half got penalised for going off his feet. The Saxons took the pragmatic option and Hearn secured another 3 pointer. 35min 11-18.

After some kick exchanges the Saxons secured an attacking scrum with Mr Tutty informing the players there was a minute remaining until halftime. A Harper drive followed another big shove and runs from first Hughes and then Will Hurrell were held up inches short of the line. DMP’s tighthead was lucky to escape a yellow card for a red zone side entry offence, and with time up the Saxons’ opted to scrum (law note that a further passage of play must be allowed following penalty or free kick awards even if time has expired). With the Saxons’ getting a drive on DMP’s loosehead prop dropped his left shoulder to pull it round, referee Tutty responding with a blast on the whistle and run under the posts to award a penalty try. Hearn converted, halftime 18-18 and of note that DMP’s scrum half had limped off with a hamstring injury.

DMP missed a penalty attempt conceded off the restart for another soft offside offence, preluding a series of infield kick exchanges from the 22 dropout. DMP switched to running from deep with ball in hand but were kept out by solid Saxons defensive work. A further DMP penalty attempt flew wide following a side entry offence, the dropout return secured by Sam Baker who carved a lovely break to run from one 22 to the other. A DMP tackler failed to roll away in the subsequent drives, allowing Hearn to put the Saxons into the lead for the first time with another penalty kick. 49min 21-18.

The next quarter of an hour was scoreless, the Saxons looking to play territory while DMP looking to run anything from deep but conceded turnovers as their support runners started to tire. Eventually DMP’s winger dropped a clearance kick deep in his own half, providing the Saxons a scrum platform from which they forced another penalty as DMP’s front row popped up again. DMP looked to have cleared the danger when a knock-on was booted downfield, but back came the Saxons to secure an attacking scrum in their 22. Harper’s drive from the base was held up short but George finished the job off, forcing his way over from short range. Hearn slotted a difficult conversion. 66min 28-18.

DMP threw caution to the wind and upped the tempo, a threequarter break just faltering as what looked a probable tryscoring pass failed to go to hand in the Saxons 22. Their forwards pulled a rabbit out of a hat to drive the Saxons scrum off their own ball, but another threatening threequarter move was intelligently bottled up by Nathan Bressington. The Saxons cleared their lines and attacked again but turned the ball over in the tackle in DMP’s 22, back came the counter with ball in hand but a great Hughes cover tackle forced the move into touch near halfway. The lineout was secured but the attack was halted by an ugly high tackle on Sam Baker that DMP’s centre can count himself fortunate not to have been carded for. With the seconds ebbing away the Saxons opted to chase the bonus point and kicked to touch in the DMP 22, from which a driving maul was joined by most of the backs. It was forced over in full view of the assistant referee who was well positioned ahead of play to confirm Harper’s grounding to referee Tutty. 80min 33-18. Bonus point secured, cue vuvuzela chorus and a minor skirmish on the goal line.

With less than a minute to negotiate from the restart the ball was secured by George and a after a couple of drives Lucas Roy-Smith hoofed it over the stand. Full time 33-18.

Coach Mike Umaga commented : ‘Mowden Park came here looking for a win today, we had to show character under adversity out there. We aspire to being a championship-winning side and that needs us to have the ability to win ugly if necessary, it will be tough again next week but we know we can grind it out if we have to’.

A word of credit where it is due. The management of this game was a huge challenge for the 3 officials, the product on display was much the better for the experience & teamwork they demonstrated. The string of injury stoppages and constant chatter from the players would have driven a saint to distraction, and it is to referee Tutty’s credit that he managed this firmly but sympathetically. He insisted on - and enforced - a contest at the breakdown area, enabling both teams to secure turnover ball, and he got the big calls right by seeking and acting upon input from his assistants. Crucially, he also understood the dynamics of the front row and correctly identified the offending parties at the scrummage.