CALNE put a major spanner in the works of Avonvale's pursuit of runaway Dorset & Wilts Two North leaders Pewsey Vale as Mike Smith's late penalty earned them a first league win since the middle of December.

The match started at a frantic pace with both packs looking to get the upper hand but the Calne scrum was dominant as they made their weight advantage tell.

It didn’t take long before the home side crossed the line after number of phases, second row Bruce Harper opening the scoring.

Bath side Avonvale looked to spread the ball wide to run at the Calne defence, but the tackling from flanker Chris McAlonan and full-back Mark Webber was superb, although the visitors did reduce arrears with a penalty.

The Calne pack continued to pile on the pressure and Dave Evans, Pete Brownlie and Adrian King stood firm and made some fine breaks themselves as former coach Rich Kearney rolled back the years and made a real difference, linking well with his son Liam in the centre.

Smith finished off a good move for the next try but Avonvale came straight back and kept themselves moved to within a point with two further penalties, then sensed victory as they crashed through Calne’s backline to score a converted try.

A further Calne try got them to within a point and, with only two minutes remaining, Smith landed the winning penalty.