Swifts in top form to sweep past second-place Deepings

In what was a must win encounter for Bedford Swifts they defeated visitors second-place Deeping 48-29 in the Midlands 4 East South, writes Stuart Smith.

Barkers Lane remained a fortress pas the hosts produced the goods in this league fixture to take a comprehensive win.

An exceptionally strong start from Swifts saw them rampant in the early stages, notching up a 10-point lead, through a try from Prop Solomon Sahota and Jordan Marshall securing the conversion and a penalty.

The visitors had some big runners up front, which Swifts did well to keep a lid on, but Deepings started to build up a head of steam themselves in the first half, trading scores with Swifts and keeping themselves in the match.

At half-time, Swifts were firmly in the driving seat and were looking to extend their lead to put the game to bed and bag the bonus point win.

Although the scoreline was healthy in Swifts favour, with further trys from Tommy McCollin, Stephen Hill, Waide Allen, and a brace for debutant Ed Brown, Swifts were by no means performing to their full potential.

Ill discipline meant that for two weeks in a row, Swifts played out the final 10 minutes of the match with just 13 men on the pitch and allowed the visitors two consolation tries.

Jordan Marshall had another notable performance, securing six conversions and two penalties with a 100 per cent success rate but it was Waide Allen who bagged the Man of the Match award, for an all round excellent display.