Titans stumble closer towards the inevitable

The 11-3 defeat means they are now potentially a couple of games away from the mathematical certainty of the drop, although realistically they know playing in National One is nailed on next year.

Frustratingly, Titans had a good chance of making it four league and cup games on the spin in awful conditions at the Athletic Ground, having only trailed 6-3 at the break.

It would have been a lead had Drew Cheshire managed to make a difficult pass out wide stick but he agonisingly spilled the ball with the line in sight, just one of a catalogue of mistakes made by the Clifton Lane man amid the concession of 11 penalties on a day when keeping the ball tight and maintaining discipline was clearly the best policy.

Rob Kirby hit two penalties to Lee Millar's one in the first period and that was as good as it got because in the second the Londoners stifled any hope of the visitors breaking through and, to be frank, Rotherham had very little in the way of penetrative nous with few incursions into the home 22.

Jon Woodward scored the game's only try shortly after the restart, collecting out wide, and effectively that was game over.

The defeat, Rotherham's 14 in 15, means they are now 21 points behind London Scottish with seven games to play.

Bedford visit Clifton Lane next Saturday (2pm).