SALISBURY RFC were left ruing their misfortune as Witney clinched a one point victory with seconds left to play of the ten minutes stoppage time inexplicably added by the match referee.

The home side, who probably deserved victory over all, had been rocked when, Josh Green, had carved a path to the line with seconds of normal time left to give the visitors a four point lead which Matt Loader extended to six with the conversion.

Witney threw everything they had at the visitors’ line but robust defence kept them at bay and when they conceded a penalty Loader’s clearing kick to touch looked to have finished matters. But as the clock ticked down Salisbury were penalised back toward their line and, from a scrummage, conceded the vital score, and watched helplessly as the kick ripped the match from their grasp.

The Oxfordshire started the brighter of the sides and scored down the left wing after a period of pressure but the visitors responded with Jack Sheldrake crossing the line to score. Loader added the conversion points and followed it with a penalty. Some poor tackling allowed Witney to run in a score but when Dom Porter was held up over the line, Loader added a further penalty, as the half ended at 14-13.

The second half saw Witney extend their lead with a penalty before the metronomic boot of Loader put the visitors ahead. The hosts looked to have won the game with a drop goal, not a frequent occurrence at this level, before the drama of the last ten minutes unfolded.

Salisbury will lick their wounds, hope that a few players return from the treatment table, and look forward to entertaining Swindon in two weeks time.