In a low-scoring encounter, Exeter came home victorious from Old Redcliffians to maintain their winning start to the new season.

Coming into this week, EURFC was flying high on top of the table following 4 bonus point victories from 4 against some tough opposition. A big win last week over new boys Dudley Kingswinford continued our rich vein of form coming into a familiar encounter with Old Reds.

A team we have faced 4 times in the past 2 years, with each game coming down to the final minutes, including last season’s 24-all draw at Scotland Lane.

Early on both teams struggled to find rhythm, both looking to take the ariel route and force mistakes through good kick chase.

After 10 minutes Exeter was the first to attack, with Rob Gordon slicing through and putting an expertly weighted grubber kick behind the fullback. Ed Volley couldn’t latch onto it but applied enough pressure to force a lineout.

That was the pick of the action for much of the opening exchanges, as both teams looked to play a forward-orientated game. However, the pace of the game was slowed down by the constant lineouts and scrums.

Eventually, it was the visitors who made the breakthrough. After some strong carries from the forwards on the try line, Ollie Webb made a half-break. The hooker picked through the ruck getting right up to the line and pushing Old Reds onto the back foot. Will Smears immediately fired it to Woody Pugh hitting a hard line. Despite some strong defence, the centre was able to power over and get the ball down to open the scoring.

The game settled back down soon after, as either side traded kicks to win the territory battle.

Exeter had another opportunity late in the half as Pugh broke the line after a lineout, offloading the Will Smears who was dragged down a couple of metres short. However, the chance would go begging as a slight knock-on let Old Reds off the hook.

HALF TIME SCORE: OLD REDCLIFFIANS 0 – 7 EXETER UNIVERSITY

Exeter started the second half the better, however, some costly handling errors and penalties cost them again and again, allowing the hosts to clear their lines and relieve pressure.

Despite this early dominance, Old Reds grew and made a crucial breakthrough. Breaking the line around halfway, the hosts got into the 22. Wasting no time, the ball was immediately spread wide into the hands of winger Finn Murphy. He had the pace to beat the covering defence and score under the posts.

Things were beginning to look up for Old Reds, however, a tip-tackle from substitute Francisco Souto brought them crashing back to earth. Shown a yellow card for dangerous play and reducing his side to 14-men for next 10.

The game continued to be a tense encounter, with both sides not wanting to give anything going into the final 15, but then the chances began to come. Toby Ferguson was inches away from diving on a kick from Alex Gozzard and Ed Volley was held up just short. The scores remained level, but Exeter were probing.

Eventually, the dam broke. 5m out Elliot Young hit Ronan Kelly at the lineout. Despite the maul being sacked, the forwards kept their cool and backed their tight game. As a result, Milo Hallam was able to crash over to score his first try of the season and relieve a lot of pressure.

With just 7 points in it, it was always going to be a tense finish. A strong forward pack had been a key advantage for EURFC and that was further enforced late on. A couple of scrum pens and dominant carries kept the boys in green on the front foot heading into the final 5.

This is how Exeter sealed the victory. The front row drew the penalty on the Old Reds line and with the clock in the red Jack Park opted to take the 3 points. The fly-half knocked it over from dead in front to secure the win and deny Old Reds a bonus point.

FULL-TIME SCORE: OLD REDCLIFFIANS 7 – 17 EXETER UNIVERSITY

The start of the BUCS season was always going to be a difficult one for EURFC, however, the boys put on a professional performance getting the job done and walking away with victory.

Despite losing the top spot, we remain unbeaten and looking in good shape for the season ahead with just a point separating us and Luctonians at the top of the tree.

And it is the black and whites who we face in our next Nat 2 outing. We welcome them to Topsham in 1st vs 2nd clash which is bound to be a thriller.