TWO second-half strikes from Cris Pavey saw Premiership leaders the Rendezvous mount a superb comeback in a 3-2 win over fellow high-fliers the Duke of Albany.

The Duke came into the game on a huge high after seeing the previous week’s defeat against the Rodwell overturned due to the title holders having fielded three Magna Dorset Premier League players in their starting line-up.

The Weymouth Sunday League committee punished the reigning champions by stripping them of the points and awarding a 5-0 win to the Duke, which moved them into second place, just three points adrift of the Rendezvous ahead of their titanic clash at Budmouth.

The adverse weather conditions and falling temperatures over the weekend ensured the clash was a battle and it was the Duke that drew first blood on 10 minutes when Dean Williams latched on to a through ball from Kevin Lowe to find the net from just inside the box.

The impressive Karl Dean then levelled with a header before sending a shot against the frame of the goal as the Rendezvous began to pile on the pressure.

However, the Duke stood tall, and moments later they restored their lead when their front two combined to good effect again for Lowe to fire home.

It remained 2-1 until midway through the second half when the Rendevous eventually pulled level. This time it was Michael Stone who supplied the pin-point cross for Pavey to nod home as the league leaders began to turn up the heat once again.

The Duke tried to respond but with 20 minutes remaining their opponents came up with what proved to be the winner with Chris Skinner pulling the ball back from the by-line for Pavey to tap into an open net.

The victory takes the Rendezvous’ latest winning streak to four games and sees them retain their four-point lead at the summit.

The Britannia, who lie second, remain hot on the heels of the table-toppers after they continued their impressive run of form with a 15-1 victory over basement boys the Railway Tavern.

Elliott Gould (5), Liam Gould (4), Bryn Lewis (4) and Shane Sheridan (2) did all the damage for the Portlanders, who have now won their last five.

Another team that appears to be enjoying a purple patch in the top-flight is Tuatara Bar who walloped Weyline 8-1 to extend their unbeaten run to six games.

Danny Dancer (2), Tom Grattidge (2), Andy Graham (2), Phil Anderson and Charlie Kenderdine were the men on target for the fifth-placed side, while Aaron Aldom replied for Weyline, who have lost their last three.

The New Inn are also one to watch at the moment. They followed up their previous week’s success over Weyline with a 5-3 victory against Snookes.

As for the Rodwell, they secured a 4-1 win against Bar 314 to remain in the top three.

Meanwhile, there seems to be no stopping Quayside in the Championship. Bobby Darch’s men hammered 10 without reply past bottom club the Dolphin to extend their lead at the summit to seven points.

Darch, Matt Brown and Craig Causer all claimed hat-tricks with Phil Lee adding the other from the penalty spot.

The Alex still hold a game in hand on the table-toppers but they lost further ground following a 3-3 draw against SAS at the Stalls.

The second-placed side fought back from 3-1 down to claim their share of the spoils as the visitors extended their unbeaten run in the league to seven games with goals from Ben Stanton, Sam Moors and Rob Golsby.

It also ended 3-3 between the Old Ship Inn and the John Gregory, who registered through Liam Puckett (2) and Dan McGarrigal.

In the league’s other two fixtures, the Old Castle battered the Golden Lion 9-2, while the Market House record a 6-0 success at Broadmayne.