Rosslyn Park 11 Lydney 12

Was this really the same team that deserved to win at Canterbury?

When the pack are not rampantly punching holes in the opposition and sucking in defenders, then Park's attacking options look distinctly predictable and well-worn.

With all respect to their replacements, lacking both first-choice props Huggett and Blom, and, particularly, lock Michael Poppmeier, whose absence in turn forced Adam Gates out of the back row, Park lacked their customary dominance up front; having skipper Mike Count warming the bench looked increasingly like a self-inflicted wound.

Park started as if they meant business. Following a jinking run from John Swords the visitors were caught offside 10m inside their own half after only three minutes, and Richard Mahony hitting the penalty.

It was a dour struggle, of which Park were getting the better in terms of territory and possession.

Mahony put in some prodigious long kicks with the breeze in his favour, but his side lacked the penetration to convert their superiority into tries.

A further penalty was gained, at an acute angle, but this time Mahony narrowly missed.

Lydney were at this stage well bottled up and their first real chance of a score was on 21 minutes when fly half Mark Davies hit a speculative drop goal attempt that fell wide.

However, two minutes later he was on target with a penalty and for all Park's possession it was 3-3.

The home side continued to press, Jon Underwood in particular running through tackles to try to create something.

He was stopped at the cost of a penalty but again Mahony was slightly off target.

It was then Park's turn to concede penalties, two of them in rapid succession, the second of which was in front of the posts on the 10m line and Davies accepted the invitation to kick his side into a 6-3 lead.

That inspired Park to move up a gear and for the first time they really had the visitors on the rack.

At a line-out in their 22, Lydney were penalised for taking out a man in the air.

From the penalty Park, again drove at Lydney, got an attacking scrummage they appeared to have lost when the referee blew for another penalty and yellow-carded a bemused Lydney winger, Andy MacRea.

There were several surges at the line and the visiting defence were warned that a penalty try was imminent.

That sanction proved unnecessary when Park eventually found Adam Gates in space on the left and the lock went over in the corner for 8-6.

They continued to press into injury time against 14 men, but their best chance came to nothing when penalised for not releasing.

Park started the second half at breakneck speed, running at the visitors from all angles and gaining a penalty in front of the posts, which Mahony converted for 11-6.

However, restored to full complement, Lydney began to get the upper hand, and when Park did get into their half some intelligent kicking, notably from Davies, would return play to the other end.

Lydney were rewarded for their troubles with a penalty after 55 minutes to allow Davies to reduce the arrears to 11-9.

A good Park attack up the left saw Nick Harlock bundled into touch close to the line.

Lydney replied with what would have been a great solo try by MacRea had he not put a foot in touch when rounding the last defender.

Generally, the play was now mostly in Park's half and the omens did not look good when, with 10 minutes to go, Adam Gates was penalised within kickable range and shown the yellow card.

Davies missed the penalty and Park had the nous and collective spirit to take the game to Lydney, at one point driving them backwards despite being a lock short.

As they neared the visiting line they really needed only to play a couple of minutes of "up your jumper" rugby to eke out a win they scarcely deserved.

But eventually the ball was passed back to Sam Browne at scrum half and he chipped past the defence, chasing his own kick which went dead.

From the drop-out Lydney hoofed the ball well into the Park half, won possession back and passed back to Davies whose long distance drop kick sailed between the posts to put the visitors 11-10 in front.

Park attacked again deep into injury time and worked the ball back to Mahony whose attempt to salvage things with a drop goal of his own was hooked narrowly wide of the far post.

Once more Park let a win slip by after conceding a late score.

What once looked like bad luck begins increasingly to look like negligence.

Lydney were in all honesty a poor side, who couldn't score a try.

So where does that leave Park? If they're not careful, sleepwalking into London One - apparently without an alarm clock.

Park: Watkins; Riley, Swords, Paul, Harlock (Browne); Mahony; McCluggage; Charlton, Ritchie, Frazier (Heenan); Gates, Forster; Jones (Count), Cooper, Underwood. Sub did not play: TauialoPark scorers: Gates (T), Mahony (2 P)Lydney: Jones; MacRea, Holder, Johnson (Whitney), Beechey; Davies, Williams (Thomas); Smith (Davies), Lewis, Price; Roberts (Bashford), Kiely; Wilkes, Jenkins, EmeryLydney scorer: Davies (3P, DG)