The Forest of Dean is the hottest of rugby hotbeds and it could get just that bit hotter if Drybrook return from Exeter University with top marks on Saturday.

Just three points separate the runaway top two in South West One West with both boasting identical playing records of 18 wins and two defeats from their 20 games.

It’s the students who have their noses in front ahead of Saturday’s crunch clash and Drybrook go into the game knowing that defeat would leave them with a lot of ground to make up over the final five games.

Not that they are thinking that way, of course. They’ve already beaten Exeter University once this season and with people like forwards coach Chris Fortey in their ranks, they’re heading down to Devon firmly believing that they’ll be top of the table when they head back up the M5 on Saturday evening.

“It’s a huge game,” said Fortey, “it’s going to be very tasty. They’ve got plenty of speed and power but our guys are relishing the challenge.

“We’ve got the best defence in the division and if we go there and perform as we know we can then we’re confident that we’ll go well.”

Both clubs have suffered shock defeats since the turn of the year. The students lost at lowly Teignmouth and, even more surprisingly, Drybrook lost 7-5 at bottom club Clevedon.

“I don’t know what happened there,” admitted Fortey, the one-time Gloucester hooker. “We had a few out but fair play to Clevedon. Mind you, the pitch was awful and if I say it was awful it was really bad!”

Those losses for the top two show just how competitive this division is and there may well be more twists and turns over the final weeks.

Both teams are on the road three times in their last five fixtures and Fortey said: “We’ve got some tough games at Launceston, Thornbury and Newent coming up. It’s all to play for.”

Newent are Drybrook’s final opponents of the season and their near neighbours are the only team other than Clevedon to have beaten them this season – on the opening day of the campaign.

Exeter University’s final game of the season, meanwhile, is just up the road at Matson.

Only the top team from the division are guaranteed promotion to the South West Premier with the runners-up facing a play-off against the second-placed side in South West One East.

Fortey, who is in his second season with Drybrook, added: “We’re trying to finish as high as we can with potentially going into a higher division – that would be remarkable in the club’s 125th anniversary year.”

Indeed, it would be for a club that have a come a long way in recent times.