Bedford Blues won their first points of the Premiership Cup campaign with a bonus point 26-6 victory over Ampthill in front of a busy crowd on Friday night.
3,845 fans were in attendance as a brace of tries from Dean Adamson and Tommy Herman secured maximum points as well as the Battle of Bedfordshire bragging rights under the floodlights at Goldington Road.
Ampthill had been scoreless in their last two encounters against Ealing and Bath, but they were on the board almost immediately from the kick off as visiting captain, Josh Barton pinged over a penalty in the opening moments.
The home side hit back straight away; Dean Adamson collecting his own kick on the left wing to score his 134th try in Blues colours, and with Maisey sending over the conversion, Bedford were 7-3 ahead in a pulsating beginning.
Only an early injury to Ampthill’s Valentino Mapapalangi punctured a pacey start, although the visiting side threw away a golden opportunity to regain the lead after Arthur Thomas couldn’t hold on to the ball with the try line at his mercy.
They were made to pay, as Alfie Garside broke clear on the right wing shortly after. His pass inside found Alex Day and he in turn found Blues’ perennial try scorer, Dean Adamson who ran in his, and Bedford’s, second try of the night.
An excellent Barton penalty reduced Bedford’s lead to eight points, and although Ampthill pushed for a try towards the end of the first forty minutes, they went into the sheds 14-6 behind at half-time.
Herman scores secure bonus point
A series of early penalties gave Ampthill the initiative as the second half began scrappily, but once again they couldn’t capitalise with the game continuing to be notable more for its mistakes than its quality.
By the hour mark, the ball was almost exclusively in Ampthill territory as the Blues turned the screw towards their third try which duly came, albeit in ugly fashion, from Tommy Herman.
Maisey’s conversion made the score 21-6, with a little over a quarter of an hour for Ampthill to find a response.
The bonus point came after 68 minutes, again thanks to a big shove on the near side, with Tommy Herman also claiming a brace as Bedford’s fourth try put the game out of sight for Ampthill.
Every visiting attack ended with a blast of the referee’s whistle against the away side, as Ampthill once again left a game without a try on the board.
It’s been 254 minutes of action since their last, in what has been a torrid few weeks for Paul Turner’s men.
The encounter petered out in a haze of knock-ons, penalties and medical timeouts, bringing an end to an attritional encounter that saw Bedford run out 26-6 winners.
The win puts five points on the Premiership Cup scoreboard for the Blues, but they will need some special results if they are to progress from this tough pool, with top tier heavyweights, Bath to come at Goldington Road in a little over a fortnight.
That will complete the first cohort of cup fixtures, with the reverses taking place during the next international break in February.
Bath and Bristol face off on Saturday lunchtime in the other encounter in Pool D, while Harlequins and Sale beat Ealing and Caldy respectively in the other two fixtures taking place on Friday night.
