Sheppey are still waiting for their hard work to be rewarded after a fourth straight loss.

The Rams were on the wrong end of a heavy scoreline last Saturday, beaten 75-10 at home by Blackheath 3rds in Kent 4.

Coach Pete Jones accepted that his side had come up against a team of exceptional quality but is looking ahead to a more evenly-matched contest this Saturday when they host Dartfordians 2nds.

Like Sheppey, Dartfordians are yet to win this season.

Sheppey have at least picked up a handful of bonus points from their defeats, while Dartfordians have come away empty-handed from their three losses.

Reflecting on the Blackheath game, Jones said: “Sometimes you have to accept that you’re playing a much better team and I would expect them to win this league and go through the next one, too.

“The calibre of players at that club is really strong and it’s nice to play these sides, you don’t play them very often.

“For the lads, it’s good for them to see the difference in ability at different levels.

“It was unbelievable, and as much as the lads were disappointed to lose, sometimes you just play against good players.

“The lads were trying everything and doing what we had worked on during the week, trying to slow the ball down to get defenders on their feet. They were cutting some really good angles and lines and, fair play, if they don’t win the league I will be amazed.

“The lads we played against last Saturday are probably good enough to play three divisions above where we are.

“For us, we’re not in must-win territory but what we do need is to get some points on the board. We need to start showing some sort of return for the work we’re putting in.

“Dartfordians have had a few injuries and they’re one of those teams I think we’ve only beaten once in about three years. We’ve come close a few times.

“A lot depends on availability. A lot of that depends on training. It’s at home so that’ll probably mean some more people can play. It’s not must-win but we do want to get a result.”

Blackheath’s victory was their third in three games, with Rye and Old Colfeians also winning all their fixtures so far in what is shaping up to be a strong top three.

Jones was impressed by Blackheath’s attacking quality, especially in the backs.

“Their backs were unbelievable,” he said. “They scored with the first touch of the game and that was probably down to us not being set properly, but they were.

“They just tore us apart. They went 12-0 up, and then we actually scored which was good from a planned move.

“This is how you can tell you’re playing a good side, because we’d run that move and scored. We tried it later on, and their two defenders just shut it down as soon as it happened. And he said to the guy who carried the ball, ‘you did me once - you’re not doing me twice!’”

Sheppey’s try scorer was Tom Doran and Mitch Ware kicked five points.

Jones said: “I think up front we matched them to a certain extent, it was just the difference was their backs. They were quick, dynamic, they executed skills well and at pace, and at our level if you have pace it’s just deadly.

“At half-time it was 26-10 and a lot of the chat was positive. There were things we had to work on but second half, fitness kicked in and they tore us apart and sometimes you have to say, ‘okay, it happens’ and we have to move on from that.”

Shepersham, the combined Sheppey 2nds and Faversham 2nds team, were beaten 40-10 at Snowdown in Kent Rural B last weekend. They visit Deal & Betteshanger 2nds this Saturday.