Banbury Bulls were edged out in a fiercely contested fixture at Liberty Way, falling 25–19 to Nuneaton in their fourteenth match of the season. Despite leading for large portions of the second half, a late Nuns penalty sealed a narrow defeat for the Bulls, who will feel they let this one slip away.

The match began with Banbury asserting early control. A couple of well-earned penalties had the visitors camped deep in Nuneaton territory, and the pressure told when Quade Leo powered over from close range. Tommy Gray added the extras for a 7–0 lead.

But Nuneaton hit back with a well-worked driving maul that rumbled over the line, levelling the scores. A yellow card to the hosts for a high tackle gave Banbury a brief numerical advantage, but they were unable to convert that into points before the break.

Half Time - Nuneaton 7-7 Banbury

Banbury came out positively after the interval, freshened by a triple substitution as Quade, Millsy, and JT made way for Drabble, Leo, and Triggs. The impact was immediate. The Bulls gained territory through hard carrying, and eventually Kelvyn Togia crashed over, shrugging off two defenders for the try. Another Gray conversion made it 14–7.

Nuneaton responded, however, first with a well-executed try down the blind side after a 5m scrum, and then another score when a Banbury injury left space on the wing, which the hosts exploited. With one conversion missed, Nuns moved ahead 19–14.

A scrum penalty against Banbury allowed Nuneaton to extend their lead to eight, before the Bulls responded with a determined passage of play that ended in Jacob Turner diving over. The conversion missed again, but Banbury were within a score at 22–19.

The final few minutes saw Banbury push for the win, but an unfortunate knock-on was followed by an offside penalty, giving Nuneaton the chance to nudge their lead to six. The hosts then saw out the match by booting the ball into touch, ending Banbury’s hopes of a dramatic late steal.

Full Time - Nuneaton 25-19 Banbury

It was a frustrating afternoon for the Bulls, who had moments of quality but couldn’t maintain control long enough to see the game through. With the Bulls on the road again to Burton, Banbury will be eager to turn possession and territory into points as they look to return to winning ways.

Nuneaton RFC
Starting XV
15 Joseph Wilson; 14 Nemani Rayabo; 13 Travis Bennett-Allcock; 12 Ryan Preston; 11 Takudzwa Chawadya; 10 Lucas Brindley; 9 Ben Kirby; 8 Martin Wood; 7 Oliver Mitchell; 6 Ben Haywood; 5 Thomas Aherne; 4 James Moreton; 3 Benjamin Dawes; 2 Louis Addleton; 1 Ryan Marsh;

Replacements [/b
16 Jack Iles; 17 Benjamin Mitchell; 18 Michael Volaikisuva;

[b]Banbury RUFC
Starting XV
15 Joe Mills; 14 Callum Tarbit; 13 Quinten Blythe; 12 Dan Hale; 11 Charlie Cranley; 10 Olly Venni; 9 Ollie Nicholl; 8 Matt Dandy; 7 Campbell Clifford; 6 James Hibbert; 5 Jacob Turner; 4 Doug Backhouse; 3 Simon Bailey; 2 Kelvyn Togia; 1 Quade Leo;

Replacements
16 James Leonardi; 17 Jacob Drabble; 18 Oscar Triggs;