Medway were thwarted in their bid to clinch the Kent 1 crown on Saturday after suffering a 27-0 defeat at the hands of Old Olavians.

They travel to second-placed Old Gravesendians this weekend needing one point from their remaining two matches to wrap up the title.

On Saturday Medway were again hard hit by injuries, with coach Taff Gwilliam saying: “I had more first team regulars watching on the touchline than actually playing, but I want to take nothing away from Old Olavians who deserved their victory.

“From our viewpoint, I was delighted with the character my team showed, especially the younger players who came in, such as 17-year-old Stuart Stockford, who did very well on his debut, and 18-year-old prop Sam Brice.”

Olavians pressed Medway hard from the start and led 10-0 through a converted try and a penalty.

But the real damage to Medway’s chances came when, following some good interplay, Darren Kistner scored under the posts but the referee disallowed the try. Olavians added a converted try and a penalty to lead 20-0 at half-time.

Medway conceded another converted try early in the second half.