Nuneaton 16 Redruth 22
Nuneaton began the day with a similar sequence of four wins and four losses to that of Redruth who were one place above them in League Two by scoring difference only.
They ended it, almost literally at the death, by committing sporting suicide.
Trailing by a point as stoppage time loomed, Nuns had a defensive line-out, chose to drive, twice recycled and went untidily backwards, then finally attempted a clearing kick towards the far touchline.
Unfortunately, the kick was by lock forward Chris Jones, standing out among his backs. It was charged down and grounded for a try by centre Petaia Gidlow. Nuns' only good fortune was that the conversion missed, so preserving a losing bonus point.
It had been an evenly-matched tussle up until then with both sets of forwards flexing their muscles, and never more than one converted score separating the teams.
Nuns' prolific teenage left-winger Lee Parry had opened the scoring on 12 minutes, racing clear of his pursuers after making an interception on halfway.
Gareth Cull converted that score and restored the seven-point advantage with a penalty after a similar success by Mike Hook.
While Nuns never threatened to score another try, two more Hook penalties reduced their lead to a point and Redruth went ahead in the dying seconds of the first half as No 8 Mark Bright thrust over for an uncoverted try. Two third-quarter penalties from Cull put Nuns back in front 16-14 but Hook landed his fourth penalty goal to set up the dramatic, Chekhovian, denouement.
Harrogate 14 Stourbridge 47
High-flying Stourbridge avoided the potential banana skin of a visit to struggling basement opposition, finally emerging comfortable seven-try-to-two victors but, as so often in such encounters, it was a scrappy staccato affair for the first hour.
That was, in part, due to some whistle-strewn pernickety refereeing from the official and it was only in the final quarter that Stourbridge found their splendid recent rhythm as a young and inexperienced Harrogate team faded badly,
Despite plenty of penalties, none of them were aimed at goal and only one conversion attempt was missed, Nick Wainwright improving both home tries and Alistair Bressington amassing 22 of Stourbridge's points by putting over six conversions as well as scoring their first two tries.
His opening score was sheer opportunism, a fast dash after sweeping up spilt Harrogate ball. For his second try, the wing was on the end of an overlap when he outpaced the cover to the right corner.
Stourbridge No 8 Jim Jenner made their interval lead 19-0 when collecting fly-half Sam Robinson's cross-kick to the corner but, on the restart, poor kicking gifted a try to Harrogate, scrum-half Richard Davies putting over centre Wainwright.
Robinson got Stourbridge's fourth try from a quick penalty tap by scrum-half Tom Richardson but again Harrogate hit back quickly to trail 26-14 as Davies nipped over from behind a rolling maul.
Richardson scored the next two tries, one from his interception and 95-yard sprint from inside his own 22, the other with a break from the base of an attacking scrum.
Flanker Tom Jordan broke three tackles for the last try and Stourbridge's bonus-point win leaves them in fifth place in the table, only two points behind second-placed Blackheath, whom they meet at Stourton Park next Saturday.
