Douglas Rugby Club remain ninth in Regional Two North West, having come close to claiming a losing bonus-point at the final whistle against Sandbach on Saturday.

Unfortunately, the Everest they’d been faced with after a 26-0 half-time scoreline was just too high.

That solitary point would have been due reward for triumph over adversity, having travelled without six players from the win last time out, forced positional changes and then enduring injuries mid-match.

A swirling crosswind made Douglas debutant Nathan Robson’s intro tricky and life for hooker Gihard Visagie at the lineout throw in was no less fraught.

Although up front Douglas had an edge in the tight and Blake Snell and Conor Garland thundered around the fringes, Sandbach were on top.

Tries from Jack Seddon, Laurie Essenhigh (2) and Matt Davies and three Henry Mitchell conversions in a 30-minute Sandbach blitz, compounded by losing flanker Percy Hampton to injury, could have sunk the Manx side without trace.

The recovery signs were there though, as the half ended with Douglas desperately close to a score as Robson was adjusting well to conditions.

The Douglas bench was emptied with Phil Cringle, Lewin Scarffe making a first XV debut and Carl Markl-Ferns continuing his welcome return, but Sandbach opened the second-half scoring with a blind-side try from skipper Jordan Hearth.

Then Douglas responded. Visagie locked on to a rolling Douglas maul to plough over and Robson’s assured conversion visibly lifted the team.

Sandbach hit straight back as scrum-half Essenhigh bagged a third and Josh Brookes went in at the corner, but the second Douglas score via a penalty try was reward for a dominant scrummage.

As the Douglas pack began to squeeze the Sandbach eight into submission, a surging Douglas maul put full-back Sam McCord into a hint of space.

His speed did the rest as he cut the midfield apart and sprinted past the last lines of defence, turning Douglas thoughts as Robson converted, to try-bonus point possibility.

A last Sandbach try for 50-21 didn’t deflect from the competitive 24-21 second-half scoreline, even as an 80th-minute Douglas handling error finally dowsed the chance of any bonus point reward.

TONY WILSON-SPRATT