The Calne Crusaders (2XV) (sponsored by the Spice of Bengal) continued their impressive league form with a hard fought win over Devizes 3XV.

This was an important game for Calne who had struggled in the past to get a result against their neighbours but there this did not stop the league leaders Calne from walking onto the Devizes pitch in confident mood.

The initial exchanges were very even with both packs trying to get the upper hand. Calne had made a number of changes to their pack with Nick Raven playing tighthead and debutant Simon Fry as Hooker. As the early minutes passed it looked like another tight game between the two sides. With just 9 minutes on the clock prop Nick Raven took the ball into contact and then howled in pain as it became clear to everyone that an ambulance would be required to treat his badly broken ankle.

The rested/injured Chris Austin came onto the pitch to take over at tighthead and he went straight into a scrum. This time, the scrum drove forward and put the Devizes team on the back foot. Calne started to dominate in action and it was not long before Calne hooker, Simon Fry charged over the line for the first score.

This seemed to inject urgency into the home side and from the restart they attacked the Calne line. After some missed tackles and poor defending in general, Devizes scored and then converted to take the lead 7-5.

Calne then pulled together again and showed great determination as the forwards and backs combined well to push play into the Devizes twenty-two. This time it was (number 8) James Morten who charged for the line leaving the defenders hanging on hoping to halt the advancing Morten. However, as he tried to ground the ball it was dropped backwards and Tom Blomfield dived onto the ball to score a well deserved try which he duly converted to make it 7-12 to the visitors.

Again Calne seemed to relax a little and waiting for the next attack and Devizes did not disappoint. After pounding their way up the middle of the park the forwards offloaded to the backs and the winger sprinted down the right touchline and was only caught by a desperate tackle by Andy Pitchley. However, this tackle was high and even though the Devizes wing was over 15 metres from the Calne line, the referee gave a penalty try to the amazement of everyone. The conversion in front of the posts put Devizes back in the lead 14-12. With the match swinging backwards and forwards it looked like another very close game was on the cards with both sides showing grit and determination to claim the win.

However, it was the league leaders Calne who turned up the heat. Captain Tom Morten put in an impressive (man of the match) display and with the defensive line tightened and the forwards and backs working well together it was only a matter of time before Calne started to show their superiority. The impressive Matt Golden wriggled his way through a number of tackles to score the next try which reclaimed the lead for Calne 14-19.

However, this time a defiant Calne did not let their hosts back into the game and pushed forward to secure the win. Ed Gillams produced another solid performance and the family crew of Jason, Craig and loosehead prop Paul Wood put in good performances.

With a number of subs available for Calne, there were always going to be changes in the second half and Gareth Pavey came on for James Morten and he immediately made a great impact as he proved an unstoppable force as he scored the next try for the visitors making the score 14-26.

However, to their credit Devizes kept battling until the very final whistle but great tackling prevented them from getting close enough to score. Another Calne attack was mounted but this time a penalty was awarded in front of the posts which Tom Blomfield took to make it 14-29.

At the end of the game both sides knew they had taken part in a tough game which was played with both skill and spirit. However, it was Calne who took the spoils of victory to maintain their position as league leaders.