SWINDON rugby club suffered their second Regional Two South Central loss in a row after going down 40-5 at home to local rivals Marlborough last weekend.

Marlborough – who are the early pace-setters in the division – could have won by more at Greenbridge but still comfortably did enough to secure a bonus-point success on their travels.

The visitors were on the offensive from the off and were rewarded with a try in the sixth minute when flanker Josaia Visei charged through the middle to score. Marlborough’s early dominance continued when Number eight, Toti Taufa powered his way over the try line from the back of a lineout deep in Swindon territory. Marlborough created further opportunities, but poor handling cost them the chance to increase their lead.

Swindon replacement Liam Popowicz received a yellow card midway through the first half, and the home side were made to pay when a kick was placed in the vacant left-wing area for Ben Fulton to run on to and score. Will Grant converted to maintain his 100 per cent record from three attempts – a significant turnaround in fortunes from the opening game’s horror show.

A rare foray into the visitors’ half brought Swindon’s only try of the game in first-half stoppage time. A kick to the right wing gave Luke Francis-Turton the simplest task to score. But the first-half scoring didn’t finish there as a free-flowing move down the right wing led to Amori Nailago crossing the try line for the visitors, although there was a suspicion of a forward pass in the build-up.

The second half started in the same vein, with another Marlborough try courtesy of Jack Lynd. The forward displayed his considerable strength to burst through the centre to score.

Although James Pittams and Ben Fulton were sin-binned in quick succession for the visitors, Swindon were unable to convert any points despite holding the territorial advantage. The match became scrappy and disjointed as time wore on, a pattern which suited Marlborough with the lead they had developed.

A jinking run on the left wing from Marlborough substitute Akariva Seruvatu late on saw him evade a couple of tackles and cross the try line to put some gloss on the victory for the visitors. Will Grant converted to make it five from six for the match.

Elsewhere in the division, Devizes romped to a 41-10 victory at home to Buckingham. In Regional Two Severn, Chippenham beat Cheltenham 29-19, but Trowbridge lost 34-21 to Chosen Hill Former Pupils. In Regional One South Central, Royal Wootton Bassett lost 22-12 at home to London Welsh.