Circumstances beyond the club’s control forced Norton to play the Semi-Final of the Bath Combination Cup against Keynsham at Broad Plain in Bristol, losing the advantage of the home fixture.
At the start, neither side could take control of the game, with both having sustained periods of pressure in their opposition’s half. Keynsham were first to break the deadlock with a penalty goal.
They extended their lead with a converted try following a five metre scrummage before Taylor slotted a penalty to collect Norton’s first points of the evening. The first half continued with both teams having the upper hand for periods, but the defences held firm. The Norton side made an uncharacteristic number of unforced handling errors; these may have been due to playing under floodlights, stopping them building a good, attacking platform.
The second half saw Norton cut out these mistakes and compete hard at the breakdown, depriving Keynsham of good ball. As the half progressed, Norton’s fitness and power kept the pressure on their opponents.
Centre, Mitchard, crashed over to score a try converted, making the contest a three-point game, but was injured in the process and forced to leave the field of play. As the game moved into the last quarter, Norton were the stronger of the two sides, keeping their opponents on the back foot and gained another penalty, this tied the game at thirteen all.
At the eighty-minute mark, the referee called a halt to the proceedings, with the scores still deadlocked. As per the competition rules, Keynsham were awarded the win, as they were in effect, the Away team – no extra time is allowed in the games preceding the Final. The players from both sides seemed unhappy with the way the evening ended, but Keynsham move on to play in the Final against Chippenham on Wednesday evening at Bath Rec.