EBBW Vale are pledging to battle until the bitter end after keeping the relegation dogfight going with a spirited weekend win over fellow basement dwellers Pontypool.

The Steelmen not only got the win that they needed to keep alive hopes of beating the drop but they denied Pooler a losing bonus point at Eugene Cross Park.

It is the time of year when sport does more for maths than Carol Vorderman ever could. The bottom club are still eight points back with just two games left, but they have given themselves a chance of a miraculous escape.

It is still Pooler’s to lose but if they fail to bag at least a pair of points from their last two games of the campaign then Ebbw can save themselves.

“The fight goes on and our boys won’t stop until it is over,” said director of rugby Rowland Phillips.

“To have given ourselves a chance with the win over Pooler is a great feeling because the players have worked so hard.

“The cherry on the cake would have been four tries but we got the win and denied them a losing bonus point, so two out of three isn’t bad.

“It is terrific to see them with smiles on their faces and to have a feeling of achievement.

“It’s a shame that it has come this late in the season but we are still up for the challenge and we still have hope.”

Pooler head coach James Chapron admitted that the Steelmen were worthy winners and challenged his players to put things right over the coming week.

They host Newport on Wednesday evening before heading to Aberavon for their final game on Saturday.

“The boys are massively disappointed but they have two more chances to put it right,” he said.

“We need to improve massively. We didn’t seem to create a lot in attack and that piled pressure on the rest of our game.

“We weren’t able to build phases because they destroyed us in the contact area, which made us more and more cautious as the game went on.

“Our destiny is in our own hands - we beat Newport at the Park last year and hopefully we can do the same again.”