Gloucester Premier

Cirencester 8

Cheltenham Saracens 10

Match Abandoned

CIRENCESTER and Cheltenham Saracens saw their match abandoned following a mass brawl late in the second-half.

Two players from each side were sent off in an ill-disciplined affair, leaving the referee little choice but to cut the game short.

It was unknown if Sarries would be awarded the win given their lead before the abandonment, and the official Gloucester Premier League website is yet to clarify with their league standings.

Nevertheless, Cirencester were happy to be back playing at the Whiteway after a significant break from playing on their home territory.

It was the third time the two sides had met this season, and with both Ciren and Cheltenham having won one each ahead of the weekend clash, Saturday's game was deemed the ultimate decider.

The game started with both sides trying to find any weakness in each other’s defence.

With ball retention good by both, it became clear that this game was going to be tight, and so it turned out to be.

The Sarries were turning to turn Ciren at every opportunity with a kicking game that was going to be a trend throughout.

Ciren were enjoying the lion’s share of the possession, and went into a three-point lead with a Charlie Marshall penalty kick.

Sarries responded against the run of play with a chip and chase before an opportunist try was scored, and conversion kicked for 3-7.

Ciren immediately hit back with a penalty that was kicked five metres from the Sarries line.

The Ciren pack secured the line out ball, set up a drive that was stopped, but the ball passed to James Fisher who crashed over from close range.

The conversion was missed, making the halftime score Cirencester 8-7 Cheltenham Saracens.

The second period went as the first half did with Ciren having a greater share of the possession.

With two kick-able penalties missed, Sarries went up the other end and slotted a penalty to give the visitor a decisive advantage.

Play continued with Sarries a man down in the sin bin, yet Ciren failed to capitalise on this advantage.

However, with 13 minutes remaining and frustrations mounting, fists flew in a mass brawl that resulted in four players receiving red cards, two from each side.

The referee then abandoned the game much to the dismay of the players and supporters with the score at that time being 8-10.

As things stand, Cirencester are third in the league table after 12 games, four points clear of fifth-placed Cheltenham Saracens.

Cheltenham were on course for consecutive wins over the home side, but were left to rue their own indiscipline that saw them lose three men during the weekend encounter.

The match could be replayed at a later date, or Saracens could be given the win as they were leading with not long left on the clock.

Cirencester will, of course, argue they still had time to get back into the match, so the outcome of this weekend's match still remains a mystery.