Teams 
Chiefs were outgunned and outthought by a very organised and determined Exeter Saracens side who fully deserved their victory.
It was clearly a case of the morning after the night before. With a number of players out the night prior and only managing around an hour’s training per week, performances are beginning to suffer. Even with limited sessions, you would still expect a full turnout. Hopefully the senior players will be back around the club before a tough January schedule begins.
Bideford struggled in the opening 20 minutes, with basic errors and missed tackles allowing the plucky Saracens to race into a 14–0 lead. Time and again Biddy created opportunities to score but lacked the composure and execution to finish off moves. Particularly up front, the mauls were too high and Saracens outthought the hosts. A held-up try over the line summed things up. Had a few of these moments gone differently, the result could easily have swung the other way. That said, full credit to Saracens, who were clinical throughout and looked the sharper side.
Bideford’s only try of the first half came from Sam Olde, with Fred Fishleigh converting. Pat Sanders also added a penalty. It felt throughout the half that Saracens’ tries came far too easily, while Biddy had to work much harder for every point.
Saracens again started the brighter of the two sides after the break, and some woeful defence from the Chiefs allowed a simple converted try. Bideford responded with sustained pressure and, after several bruising carries, Will Copp powered over under the posts for Pat Sanders to convert.
A poor scrum led to a quick penalty taken by the Saracens scrum-half, with no Bideford defenders in sight. Dec Smale added another pick-and-drive try, again converted by Sanders. A missed touch-finder then allowed Saracens to score out wide, followed by a brilliant touchline conversion to edge ahead once more. Mark Schofield pulled one back in the dying minutes, but a final Saracens penalty ended Biddy’s hopes. There could have been one last chance, but handling errors proved costly once again.
In truth, it was a disappointing performance from Bideford, and the coaches spent a long time after the game debating the next steps. With the festive break approaching, there will hopefully be time for some players to recover, others to reflect, and a few to step up to the challenge.
January presents a very tough schedule, with away trips to OPM, Topsham, and a cup tie against Bude.
