Excellent performance

This epic away win over the league's highest points scorers was remarkable in so many ways, not least because Gordano played all but a few minutes of the second half with 14 men - and briefly with 12.

It certainly adds extra spice to the St Valentine's Day visit of Nailsea & Backwell to Caswell Lane, since the victors will be favourites to secure third place behind leaders St Bernadette's and Taunton. Reorganisation further up the league structure might even allow for a third promotion place.

Coach Keith Leaker did not hide his delight at the result: "The oldest member of our back line is only 23 but the team really came of age today," he said. "Technically you could say we weren't perfect - we didn't win much line-out ball and we gave away a load of penalties - but the spirit was outstanding and that's what counted.

"It's what I have been looking for. They really played for each other and we now know that we can build something special."

Gordano arrived at Hyde Park aware that Taunton's second string were averaging more than 40 points a game and had lost only one match, away to leaders St Bernadette's. But they settled quickly and pressured the home side into an early penalty kicked by Tim Coughlan.

The 17-year-old scrum-half was just wide with a longer range effort before Taunton mounted a dangerous counterattack which was only just snuffed out.

That signalled a lengthy spell of home pressure but Gordano's aggressive defence and dominance of the contact area totally disrupted Taunton's rhythm.

The enduring images of the game are of fly-half Aaron French repeatedly smashing Taunton's biggest ball carriers to the ground and flanker Ben Harvey and his forwards pilfering turnover after turnover. It was necessarily risky at times - the penalty count rose and after fullback Moses Tuiswau pulled the side's level with a 30-metre kick, Harvey took a gratuitous boot to the head before being yellow carded for persistent infringement.

He was still off the field when a Taunton forward appeared to deliver a headbutt in the early minutes of the second half. Leon Blackman's response was not strictly within the laws of the game but it was 'pretty final' as Basil Fawlty might have said. The Gordano hooker was shown a red card while the original offender got away with a yellow, although the damage to his nose meant that he did not reappear afterwards. With Matt Rollings also in the bin for his part in the ensuing fracas, it was very much backs to the wall, especially when just six players packed down for a defensive five-metre scrum, with centre Dean Ashfield filling in at No 8.

But the 'Dirty Dozen' met the challenge and broke out decisively when Ashfield burst through the Taunton cover from his own 22. With Harvey and Rollings restored to the action, Gordano went in search of the clinching score. Fittingly, it went to the outstanding French, appearing on Ashfield's shoulder to take the offload and stepping through a tackle to score under the posts. Coughlan added the conversion to put Gordano 10-3 ahead around the hour mark.

Taunton enjoyed plenty of possession and territory but were clearly unsettled by the Gordano tackling, to the point where even with clear sight of the line they threw an impossible pass or chose the wrong option.

With five minutes remaining, Tuiswau kicked his second penalty but then missed a third opportunity soon afterwards. All the visitors had to do was prevent a try but it was nailbiting stuff, especially after the Gordano scrum was wheeled beyond 90 degrees on their own line, surrendering the put-in. But they then did exactly the same to Taunton - at which point the final whistle blew.