Sheppey hold on to the ball during 18-15 defeat to Vigo at The Ditch

Sheppey's battle to gain a first win in Kent 1 continues after a narrow home defeat on Saturday.

The Islanders were beaten 18-15 at The Ditch by Vigo and have now lost their opening six league matches.

Head coach Frank Davis rued a couple of missed chances but was glad to see his team competing well.

He said: "It was close game and good game between two teams who wanted to play rugby and with a referee who was outstanding and left us to our own devices.

"We missed two kickable penalties but everyone is working hard and the team spirit is high. It’s now just a case of getting into a winning habit.

"There are still a few things to iron out but we’re no longer at the stage where I’m telling the players how to pass left and right and how to tackle. We’re now teaching rugby players how to play rugby."

The visitors went ahead with a try from James Weller and only a good intervention from Chris Baines denied them a second.

Dan Seager’s penalty opened Sheppey’s account but they conceded a converted try and found themselves 12-3 behind.

Yellow cards for Dan Martin and Simon Stanton saw Sheppey temporarily reduced to 13 players but the hosts managed to reach the interval with no more points conceded.

Marc Shepherd’s second-half try pulled it back to 12-8 and Nathan Nichol scored under the posts to put Sheppey ahead. Seager added the extras to give the home side a three-point lead.

However, two penalty conversions put Vigo back in front, including one
from the halfway mark, as they edged home.