With the league leaders hosting third place Bangor at Dromore, this was going to be the highlight of the weekend's fixtures. Dromore were unbeaten in the league and, with the best defensive record so far, points were always going to be difficult to come by. Bangor’s attack would have to be on top form if they were to put a dent in Dromore’s impressive record.

The strong wind was blowing diagonally across the pitch, and was going to add some benefit to Bangor in the opening half. However, as Bangor kicked off, a strong gust carried the ball too far and play was brought back for a Dromore scrum. Not the best start, and one that Dromore seized upon as they pushed forward into Bangor’s twenty two. It took just 2 minutes for the Dromore attack to show their speed as a chip through the Bangor defence was chased down and finished with a try. The conversion was added which gave the home side an early 7-0 lead.

The ease with which Dromore had scored was a worrying sign, but the Bangor players responded well and kept the home side at bay for the remainder of the opening quarter. During this time, Bangor found themselves on the receiving end of the referee’s whistle, with captain James Leary forced to seek clarification on a number of occasions. Eventually it was a Blair Morgan offence that saw him yellow carded and Bangor reduced to 14 men. From the penalty, Dromore’s lineout, catch and drive was executed well, resulting in their second try which moved them to 12-0.

Once again Bangor dug in to prevent any further scores and, with Morgan’s return 10 minutes later, looked ready to go on the attack again. However, another yellow card – this time for an innocuous push by Mike Weir – handed the advantage back to Dromore who, in similar fashion to before, used their extra forward manpower to force another unconverted try on the stroke of half time.

As the sides turned around, Bangor faced an uphill task in the second half with a 17 point deficit to overturn, a prevailing headwind to play into, and feeling like many of the decisions were working against them. Nonetheless, Bangor started with renewed purpose and were soon beginning to make their presence felt in the scrums and loose play. This forced Dromore into some desperate measures and were soon penalised with a yellow card to hands in the ruck. A good kick from Gareth Millar gave Bangor an attacking lineout deep inside the Dromore twenty two. The long throw-in maybe wasn’t exactly what was planned, but Jack Andreassen was the most alert as he gathered the ball and burrowed through the Dromore defenders to score Bangor’s opening try which, when converted by Rhys Larmour, brought the score to 17-7 with 35 minutes left to play.

It may be unusual for Dromore to feel under pressure at home, but this swing in momentum prompted some desperate and clumsy tackles that soon led to their second yellow card, this time for a dangerous tackle. Unfortunately, Bangor weren’t able to take as much advantage as their opponents had in the first half, but this clearly unsettled Dromore. During a particularly loose passage of play, a speculative kick ahead looked to have been covered by the Dromore defence. However, as the ball bobbled out of their hands, Millar pounced and got the touchdown, much to the surprise and dismay of the Dromore players.

With the score now at 17-12, and the game well into its final quarter, the home support were unusually quiet. Bangor had moved into a losing bonus point position, and could possibly do even better, given their impetus. The on-field tension was palpable with the home side now upping their physicality, both on and off the ball, as they pushed for their fourth try bonus point that would keep them at the top of the league standings. A long kick into Bangor’s twenty two in the closing minute was pushed into touch by Bangor, giving Dromore a final attacking lineout. Bangor worked hard to hold the subsequent drive, but somehow in the melee of bodies, Dromore managed to squeeze over in the corner to save their blushes and break Bangor hearts with a final 22-12 bonus point victory.

The events of the first half eventually proved too difficult for Bangor to overcome, but their attitude and effort in trying to recover are worthy of credit and deserved better in the final reckoning. It will certainly be very interesting to see how the teams react when they face each other again in the return fixture next weekend at Upritchard Park.