Cambridge Rugby Club lose battle of RFU Championship’s bottom two teams away at Caldy

A last-gasp penalty condemned Cambridge to a 31-28 defeat at Caldy on Saturday.

It appeared that Gareth Baxter’s 79th-minute try – along with Steffan James’ successful conversion – had earned visiting Cambridge a draw from the battle between the RFU Championship’s bottom two sides.

However, in the final piece of action second-from-bottom Caldy were awarded a penalty – and Lewis Barker made no mistake from distance.

Cambridge’s director of rugby Richie Williams told the Richie & Jacko Podcast: “To have the character to come back and be really disciplined in the 22 to score that try and make it 28-28 – we knew we had time for the kick off.

“We needed to be really brave with our decision making. We wanted to win that game, but I think 28-all would have been fair.

“It’s just little moments in the game that we didn’t quite get right. We got penalised a few times for a double roll and that’s ultimately what gave them that penalty.

“Fair play to Lewis Barker for kicking that. That’s a tough kick. He’s stood up, he’s slotted it and he’s got them the five points.

“I’m proud of the effort and the endeavour from the players today, but equally really disappointed that we didn’t quite do enough to win the game and get the five points.

“It’s always a tough one to digest when you lose a game like that – it’s a sickener.”

Cambridge will play their last game of the 2023/24 season on Saturday, 25 May at home to Bedfordshire-based Ampthill.