Dreadnoughts defeat hands Cheetahs crown

THE Portsmouth Dreadnoughts have missed out on the SFC South division two title.
Portsmouth Dreadnoughts head coach Luke Head-Rapson Picture: Vernon NashPortsmouth Dreadnoughts head coach Luke Head-Rapson Picture: Vernon Nash
Portsmouth Dreadnoughts head coach Luke Head-Rapson Picture: Vernon Nash

That's after they suffered a 20-0 defeat '“ their first of the season '“ at the hands of the Hertfordshire Cheetahs, who subsequently went on to lift the crown.

Head coach Luke Head-Rapson said his side were simply not good enough on the day '“ two weeks after his troops beat the newly-crowned champions 23-12.

'˜The whole team is disappointed,' he said.

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'˜I know a few of the players are disappointed about their performance.

'˜But Hertfordshire were better than we were, it is as simple as that.

'˜Everyone is pretty upset and angry.

'˜We are hoping to get back on the horse this week, though, and then get our minds ready for the play-offs. 

'˜We have to move on and focus on what's next.'

The Dreadnoughts went behind in the first play of the game, after the Cheetahs offence ran the ball downfield for a touchdown.

They missed the two-point conversion to lead 6-0.

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The visitors were forced to punt the ball for many of their first-half plays.

After the break, the Dreadnoughts pushed upfield and got in position for a field goal. But their 25-yard effort was blocked.

Before the quarter came to an end, the hosts extended their lead to 12-0 through another touchdown.

And they put the game '“ and the division title '“ out of the Dreadnoughts' reach with a touchdown in the final moments of the game.

This time, they converted the extra two points.

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Head-Rapson said his side were too inconsistent and that is something they need to focus on.

'˜Our offence need a more consistent performance and the defence need to do better on turnovers,' he added.

'˜We didn't take our opportunities, we had them but didn't take advantage.'

The Dreadnoughts travel to Hastings on Sunday for their final division game.

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Head Rapson said:'We haven't had a big gap between the two games and we now have one eye on the play-offs. 

'We will probably look to rest some our key players or they will play less than usual.

'We have to secure our ranking for the play-offs.'

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