Cinderford were narrowly beaten by Welsh Premiership visitors Pontypridd in a highly entertaining pre-season friendly.
The match was played in three thirty-minute sessions, with the home side recovering from a 26-3 deficit early in the second set to almost snatch an unlikely looking victory. The visitors were much the stronger outfit in the opening 30 minutes, and they scored three well-constructed tries to earn themselves a 19-3 lead, with a Joe Winfield penalty being the only reply from the Foresters. When Ponty broke clear to score again in the second session it looked as though Cinderford were in for a tough afternoon, but they rallied superbly to score tries through Will Hendy and two from Dec Fissenden, along with two conversions from Winfield to make it 22-26.
The final session was an end-to-end affair, with Will Baldwin scoring a try to put ahead for the first time but the visitors quickly responded. Then a break from Hendy put Sam Allford away to score, with the conversion from Joe Langbridge making it 34-33. However, the Welshmen once again regained the lead with a further score in the closing stages and their defence then held firm to close out the game.