EVESHAM gave their Midlands Two West (South) survival hopes a huge shot in the arm with a crucial 25-13 victory over Old Coventrians on Saturday.
The Avonsiders and Southam both moved four points clear of second-bottom Old Covs thanks to key wins, leaving bottom side Rugby St Andrews a point further adrift with two rounds of fixtures remaining.
Evesham, who will need to win one of their final two games to be sure of staying up, face a tall order this Saturday when they visit second-placed Old Laurentians before finishing the season with a home game against Rugby St Andrews in what could be a winner-takes-all contest on April 13.
Evesham, who went into Saturday’s match on the back of four successive defeats from a tough sequence of games, held their nerve to claim a much-needed win.
The home side started brightly with an early try for their leading try-scorer Ashley Icke and, although Tom Williams missed the conversion, he atoned with two well-taken penalty kicks.
Williams also added the extras to a try for Liam Berry just before half-time to leave Evesham 18-3 in front.
However, Old Coventrians dug in after the break and clawed their way back to 18-13.
The building tension was eventually dispelled by Evesham captain Andy Robinson who broke clear to set up a second try for Berry – much to the delight of the home fans – and Williams added the conversion to complete the scoring.