On a cold but still Tuesday evening, Bangor put their recent COVID problems behind them as the 3rds hosted Instonians 3rds at Upritchard Park. The visitors got the game underway and very quickly got into their stride, particularly in the loose play where their effective rucking provided them with several turn-overs. Although under the cosh for long periods of play, Bangor held Instonians at bay and, after 25 minutes, were rewarded for their perseverance when Sobby crashed over following a line-out and drive. With the addition of the conversion, this gave Bangor a 7-0 lead.

It looked like this would be the half time score, but a penalty conceded in the 39th minute allowed Instonians to claw back 3 points with a successful kick at goal.

As Bangor kicked off for the start of the second half, it was obvious that Instonians had found another gear and immediately put the home side under pressure within their own twenty two. It looked inevitable that Instonians would get over the goal line, but determined defending and good clearance kicks kept the visitors at bay. It was only after 17 minutes of the second half that Instonians added a second penalty to cut Bangor’s lead to 7-6. Having soaked up so much pressure, Bangor finally let their defence drop when their restart was run straight back by Instonians who slipped through the tackles and eventually scored to the right of the Bangor posts. With the added conversion, Instonians had leapt into a 7-13 lead.

Bangor’s situation wasn’t helped soon afterwards by the yellow card shown to Josh Nelson, and the subsequent kick for goal which stretched Instonians’ lead to 7-16. In the space of 5 minutes the game had turned dramatically and, despite Bangor’s efforts to get back in touch, Instonians controlled the remainder of the game to secure their victory.