A BRAD Titcombe screamer from his own five metre line in the final play of the game gave Basingstoke the win in Round 6 of Counties 1 Hampshire against Trojans.

The side weren't at their best, but scores from Alfie Rowley, Riley Darragh and Jak Arthur along with doubles from Callum Anderson and Titcombe got the side over the line in a 45-38 bonus point win.

Basingstoke were slow out of the blocks, with Trojans taking full advantage and earning the points of the game. Trojans' fly half kicked the home side into the corner, before an effective set piece rolled over the line from five metres out.

'Stoke reacted well, with some effective carrying in the forward pack earning valuable ground in Trojans' 22. Callum Anderson took it upon himself to charge from the line from 5 metres out, barging his way through two opposition defenders to score his first of the day.

Two scores followed in quick succession, with Trojans unable to deal with the unrelenting pace of the Basingstoke side. Alfie Rowley saw a gap and exploited it to score his third try of the season, before Oscar Rowley broke the defensive line with a hard line through the middle off the kick off, where Riley Darragh was on his shoulder to gleefully accept the offload and run in from 30 metres out.

With three tries before the end of the first quarter against a side in the bottom four, Basingstoke perhaps became complacent, assuming Trojans would roll over and the result would be a foregone conclusion. Defensive pressure was non-existent and Trojans took advantage, earning a score down the right hand side.

Basingstoke scored their bonus point try not long after, when Callum Anderson scored his brace off a tap penalty move. The Welshman was stopped just short of the try line, before using all of his 6'7 frame to reach out and score his fifth try in three first team appearances. The prop was to be denied his hat-trick however, succumbing to a prr-existing hip injury shortly after the score.

Trojans earned two more scores of their own before the half time whistle, taking full advantage of the passive Basingstoke defence. From a comfortable 14 point lead, ending the half 24-26 left the game very much in the balance going into the break.

The start of the second half saw Titcombe earn his first score of the season, showing some top class footwork to break through the defensive line and devastating speed to pass the full back and go the distance.

Following that score, Trojans were very much the better side, significantly aided by the visitors playing some of their worst rugby of the season. The defensive intensity never really came and some uncharacteristically poor decision-making meant the match was being played entirely on Trojans' terms. Things worsened when Titcombe was given a yellow card for a tackle off the ball and Trojans scored twice in quick succession to take the lead back for the first time since the five minutes mark, with ten minutes to go.

Jak Arthur - coming off really strong form with five tries in two weeks for the Dragons - was making his 1st XV debut and took his opportunity with aplomb. Put into space on the left flank through Oscar Rowley's outrageous overhead pass, the winger displayed searing pace to burn past his opposite number as well as the Trojans full back to earn a score against the run of play. The score was at 38 apiece, and Basingstoke were fighting to keep their winning run going.

As per the rest of the second half, the final stages were exclusively played in Basingstoke's half. Trojans earned a scrum penalty 15 metres in from the touch line and went for posts, however their attempt was hooked to the right of the uprights. With time nearly up and Trojans entirely in the ascendancy, the home side were the favourites to win before Titcombe's individual brilliance brought the side home.

A knock on from Trojans inside Basingstoke's 22 saw the ball work its way to Titcombe just shy of his own try line - his intent to run clear from the get go, attacking a beleaguered defence with aplomb. Playing intelligent, heads up rugby, he clocked two forwards were ahead of him and exploited the advantage to break the line. With only his opposite number to beat, the full back had speedster Arthur with him in support. Wary of the pace displayed by the debutant for his earlier score, the defender was caught in two minds about where the threat was and the Basingstoke age group product took full advantage, veering right to show him a clean pair of heels and dotting down under the posts to grab the win from the clutches of defeat.

While Basingstoke got the win they were after, they will be keen to put the performance behind them and aim to fix some work ons exploited in this fixture. The side face Havant next weekend, the leagues runaway leaders, in a test that will put Basingstoke's credentials to the test.