ABERGAVENNY coach Gary Lawrence was forced to wait until the second half before his men finally broke a tight Nelson defence on Saturday, but later said he felt his side could have won by 40 points.

He said: "The score didn't suggest how dominant we were. I don't think they could have complained if we had won by 40 points. As it was the conditions were very windy and we set out to play a tight game."

Lawrence was not aided by injuries to several key players in the run up to the trip to Nelson, forcing him to play skipper Leighton Thomas at outside half and Nick Gethin and Stuart Sherrard at centre. And with the fierce cross wind, the only score of the first 40 minutes came for the home side.

Nelson's desperate defending had held firm but the Aber pressure continued to mount in the second half until openside flanker James Williams went over the line. Andrew Delaney later scored Abergavenny's only other try of the afternoon, with James Didcote kicking the extras.

Abergavenny remain some 12 points clear at the top of Division Three East, albeit with nearest rivals Pontypool United boasting a game in hand. But Lawrence is expecting another big win this Saturday at home to Rhymney. "Hopefully we can play some pretty rugby and get some points on the board", he said.