BOLTON School scraped into the quarter-final of the Daily Mail Schools U18s RU Vase by virtue of being the away team after drawing 3-3 with Old Colwyn side Rydal Penrhos School.
Their last eight clash will be away at either Worcester Royal GS or Solihull GS who have yet to play.
Fly-half Anthony Mellalieu grabbed the vital penalty in the 70th minute with a sweetly struck shot.
Bolton were put under early pressure and went behind in the fifth minute when they infringed the offside line in front of the posts and Gareth Wynne added the penalty. After that despite strenuous efforts from both sides both defences held firm.
Eight minutes into the game, full back Dave Fitzmaurice launched a high ball over the Welsh defence. As winger John Booth and Dale Rawlinson chased, Rydal took possession and turned the Bolton defence with a long spiralling kick into try-scoring territory. Skipper Steve Evans, jumping in the line-out at four, clung onto to a crucial throw-in for his lines to be cleared.
With a quarter-hour gone, an exciting three-quarters, link seemed to provide Bolton with a glimpse of a score, winger Chris Maffei being dragged down short. That was that; from the one solitary attack to half-time it was all defence, much of it hovering around the visitors, twenty-two metre line. Jack Sunter provided the example as tackle followed tackle, sustained pressure almost providing Rydal with the crucial second score. Bolton,s back row, Oliver Byers at OE8' and flankers Mitra Baldeo and Gary Valentine, held firm in covering the fringe at each breakdown.
Two minutes from the interval a Rydal penalty kick sailed wide and then, with prop David Varol to the fore, their driving pack just failed to ground the ball under the posts as the half-time whistle blew. Another three points went begging five minutes after the restart. A possible nine-point deficit was restricted to three and, in the conditions, recovery would have been almost impossible.
Swift ball from scrum half Adam Arif put Mellalieu in position for a drop goal from 30 metres, but the attempt to equalise dropped just short. A blood injury to Valentine offered both teams a respite from the claggy conditions, but still possession fell Rydal,s way. Baldeo lifted Bolton,s spirit with a dynamic thirty-metre charge down the right and the balance of play altered.
Fitzmaurice joined the attack, play arrived at the Rydal five-metre line and at last it was Bolton,s turn to go forward, but Chris Lawrence,s powerful drive was wrapped up by some fine work from Patrick Leach at outside centre. Now the home side was seeking the sanctuary of the Bolton half; in turn Bolton required terrific defence to retain a chance.
Then it came: Mellalieu,s dramatic last-minute equaliser.
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