BASINGSTOKE RFC face their biggest game of the season when they travel to relegation rivals Gosport and Fareham on Saturday.

Their Hampshire rivals are just above ’Stoke in the London One standings, having three more points from one less game.

When these sides met in the reverse fixture earlier in the season at Down Grange, Basingstoke scored eight tries as they romped to a 60-15 victory.

Gosport have lost all eight of their away games this season, but at home their form is a lot better.

They are unbeaten in their last four outings at Gosport Park, having drawn their last two games against Charlton Park and Brighton, after victories over Cobham and Dover.

So ’Stoke could well find life a lot tougher in south Hampshire than they did at Down Grange as they look to complete their second league double of the season.

Last Saturday, both sides lost to promotion-chasing sides. Gosport went down 43-25 at Sutton and Epsom, while ’Stoke were beaten 22-7 by visiting Chobham.

Basingstoke defended to a man in the first 40 minutes, as the Surrey side only managed to score 12 points. They added two more unconverted tries after the break, before a ’Stoke consolation try.

Basingstoke RFC head coach Gareth Lewis said: “Having looked at the video of Saturday’s game, we produced a lot of good work in the first 30 minutes, stealing their line-out and taking the ball from their ruck.

“Chobham then used their experience, started to move the ball around and scored their points.

“We had an excellent last 20 minutes and finished very strongly, which I was pleased to see.”

Looking ahead to Saturday’s game, Lewis said: “Gosport do not travel well, as they have a lot of navy guys in their team. I am expecting a tough game and it is a tough place to go and play.

“It is a must-win game for us and we will take the positives from last Saturday’s game and hopefully get a result.”