'Referee, referee what's the score?' Cracking local derby to be replayed after the score is miscalculated!

​In the last second of an intense Eastern Counties Division One West contest between Thorney and Peterborough Centurions at the Ron Jacobs Playing Field the city side were awarded a last-minute penalty.

Believing they were leading 27-25 the Borough second team booted the ball out of play rather than kicking at goal to end the match.

But it soon transpired the match referee had recorded a converted try to Borough rather than a penalty earlier in the match so Thorney were actually in front 25-23.

Confusion reigned as Borough would have kicked the penalty at goal if they had known the correct score to try and pinch a one-point win so the match will now be re-staged later in the season.

The bizarre end to the game rather overshadowed what had been a fine game in difficult, blustery conditions between third-placed Thorney and a city side who are now ninth.

With the wind at their backs Borough opened up a 20-5 half-time lead with Thorney’s try coming just before the interval from skipper David Crooke.

The home side then used the elements well in the second-half and raced into the lead with tries from winger Alberto Miguel, prop Dino V Perna and flanker Tom Deplancke with fly-half Lewis Parker adding a conversion and a penalty.

That put Thorney 25-20 up everywhere, but in the referee’s notebook before a Borough penalty closed the gap to two points with 10 minutes to go.

There were no further points with both sides believing they were in front!

A Thorney spokesman said: “Both teams were unsure of who had won but our video playback showed the score as 25-23 to Thorney.”

Will Sismey and Theo Briston scored tries for Borough with Harry Anderson kicking two penalties and two conversions and Ben O’Connor also kicking a penalty.

Borough director of rugby Shane Manning said: “If we had known we were down by two points we would kicked the penalty and won by a point!”

It’s Borough’s first season of league rugby. They have christened the team ‘the Centurions’ in recognition of the club’s 100th anniversary this year.

Thorney have won seven of their nine league games to sit behind leaders March Bears, who have won all 10 of their league games, and Cantabrigian seconds in the table.

Thorney beat Cantabrigians in their previous fixture. The village club are just a point off second place and have two games in hand.

The league resumes on January 6 when Borough host Bury St Edmunds thirds, but Thorney have to wait until January 13 for their next game at home to Cambridge thirds.