Visitors Sandbach confirmed their current league-leading status in Regional Two North West with an outstanding defensive performance that ended Douglas Rugby Club’s four-match winning run at Port-e-Chee.

The only fixture in R2NW to survive the freeze on Saturday, both sides had only lost once at home this season and even a solitary point for Douglas would move them up to seventh.

Opening salvos saw Douglas with the slightest of edges in the early scrums, but both lineouts were functioning well and it was the Cheshire side who opened the scoring.

Territory from Matt Randle at number 10 set up a Sandbach lineout in the corner and from the rolling-maul skipper Jimmy Gore claimed the 12th-minute try which Randle converted for 0-7.

Sandbach then pounded away with long periods of possession and were happy to move the ball wide where there was plenty of pace.

Douglas were more than equal to the test, with Josh Duncan and James Ross robustly marshalling the midfield with thumping tackles and Conor Garland up front in charging form helped relieve the pressure.

Not until the 38th minute were Sandbach able to unlock the miserly Douglas defence when Max Beadle finished off another maul near the posts and Randle added the extras for a 14-point lead at the break.

Douglas emptied the bench with Percy Hampton, Blake Everson and Ryan Wren’s introduction, scrum-half Nathan Robson made several darts to no avail, and Kyle Martin and Harry Hewson found few opportunities to break.

Everson demonstrated perfectly the art of the jackal in retrieving ball on the ground and Liam Kirkpatrick’s work in the line-out was almost flawless, but in attacking mode Douglas were stuttering in the face of stifling and efficient defence.

A 78th-minute penalty was converted by Randle for 0-17 and ironically Douglas were camped on the Sandbach line as referee Daryl Richards blew for time.

TONY WILSON-SPRATT