Three points separate Devon clubs in another rugby classic

The amazing rivalry between Barnstaple RFC and Brixham RFC delivered one final act of drama at Pottington Road.

After an epic race for promotion to the National League pyramid, Barum just pipped the Fishermen to promotion with just one point separating the two clubs in their league encounters.

It was written in the stars that they would meet again in the Papa Johns Community Cup, and with a place in the semi-final up for grabs, the first leg in South Devon served up a sensational match, Brixham holding off their North Devon visitors to secure an enthralling 47-38 victory.

The Fishermen took that nine-point advantage into the return leg in a sunny North Devon, and Brixham struck the first blow to extend their overall advantage to three points via a Mitch Pinkus penalty.

Barnstaple responded with a heap of pressure on their visitors and Brixham succumbed with an infringement that resulted in a yellow card for Jason Capaldi and, more importantly, a penalty try for the hosts.

Barum now had their tails up and crossed the line in a more orthodox manner with a score from James Fraser to lead 12-3 on the day, and just a point behind on aggregate. The home crowd roared with approval, as these Devon rivals once again showed how this rivalry has developed into the stuff of legend.

Brixham rallied for the next try, just before half-time, Connor Doneathy dotting down to make it 12-10 and the visitors had a seven-point cushion to protect in the second 40 minutes.

Inevitably, the first twist after the break fell in favour of Barnstaple, Ryan Lee scoring the try and Jordan Petherbridge slotted the conversion, 19-10 in favour of the hosts and all level in the aggregate score.

A penalty restored Brixham’s narrow advantage but Barum then took the overall lead for the first time since the early stages of the first leg in South Devon, Brandon Moore notching the try with 20 minutes left to play and the Fishermen now had to recover a two-point deficit.

Back they came, working through the phases for Andre Simonetti to dive over and everyone inside Pottington Road took a deep breath. 24-18 to Barum, an overall three-point lead for Brixham.

In a climax packed with enormous tension, Barnstaple threw everything at their visitors, with Brixham talisman Matt Crosscombe picking up a red card. Despite that setback, the Fishermen just held on for the overall victory. Another brilliant encounter and a credit to Devon rugby.

While Barnstaple can still take huge satisfaction from their league triumph, Brixham move on to a semi-final showdown at home to Oundle RFC from Peterborough at Astley Park on Saturday.