Clevedon lost a hard fought encounter at Matson, with the conditions making it difficult to play expansive rugby.

Matson 12 pts

Clevedon 7 pts

This was a hard fought encounter played in horrendous conditions and the biting wind and sleeting rain made it difficult to play expansive rugby.

Clevedon, playing down the slope with the wind at their backs, struggled with the elements as the sheer power of the wind made passing nigh on impossible.

The return of Blaize Bosley to the front row helped Clevedon to get on top at scrum time and it was from pressure on the Matson scrum where Clevedon opened the scoring when Jack Crew pounced on a loose ball to touch down under the posts, converted by Jordan Mein.

Matson replied almost immediately when Clevedon failed to clear their lines, the ball was lost and made for an easy try for the Gloucester hosts.

The rest of the half saw both sides battling hard to gain momentum which was difficult when the line-outs were an lottery.

The second half saw Clevedon playing into the elements and their tactics of keeping the ball tight seemed to be paying off as they made inroads to the Matson half.

However, on more than a couple of occasions, the slippery ball was dropped. Matson had their fair share of possession but were met with determined defence led by Adam Coles and Rusty O’Brien.

The deadlock was broken after 50 minutes when Matson manufactured an unconverted try out wide to lead 12-7.

The next 10 minutes saw both sides battling hard to gain the edge and with light fading, wind blowing and horizontal rain lashing, the referee called both captains together to halt proceedings to confirm victory for Matson and a losing bonus point for Clevedon.

Head coach Nick Hill said: “I was really proud of the spirit the lads showed today, especially in the second half and they deserved a point for it. A special mention must go to our travelling supporters who all got absolutely drenched.”