THE Bahamas were beaten 37-18 in their NACRA Rugby Division One promotion match against the USA South Panthers on Saturday at the Winton Rugby Centre.

A dominant second-half performance by the Americans took them clear of the gallant Bahamians, who had twice held the lead, and two late tries gave them a flattering margin of victory.

USA South stormed into an early lead when they cut through the Bahamas defence for a converted try but the Bahamians kept their discipline and hit back with two penalties. An evenly fought match then swung dramatically in the last ten minutes of the first half with a penalty to the Americans being cancelled out by a Bahamas try.

Leading 13-10 and the clock running down towards the interval a poor Bahamian clearance gifted the Americans the chance to attack for a try and to take a 17-13 half-time lead.

If the Bahamas seemed dispirited by that, they emerged for the second-half with determination and scored a superb try, going the length of the field to score and regain the lead at 18-17. But USA South began to take a grip on possession and their dominance started to tell. Two penalties took them back in front and, as the Bahamas tired, two late converted tries put a gloss on the scoreline.

Victory gives the USA South Panthers promotion to the North Caribbean Zone Division I, while the Bahamas drop into the zone’s Cup Pool.

USA South has been a mainstay of American rugby since its NACRA debut in 2013 when they emerged as regional champions. They continued their early success with a runners-up finish in 2014 but last year they lost twice to finish bottom of the North Zone Championship pool.

The Bahamas performance on Saturday was a great improvement on the last time the sides met. In April 2013, USA South romped into a 30-0 half time lead before winning 42-15.