St Ives Roosters crashed to a first defeat of the East Premier Division season on Saturday.
The local lads were trounced 60-10 by old rivals Bedford Tigers as they saw their lead at the top of the standings cut to one point.
Roosters only trailed 12-10 at the break after tries from Mickey Drake and Barney West, but fell to pieces in the second period.
Coach Paul Ashbridge said: “Everyone was a bit too confident for their own good and hopefully this will serve as a reality check.
“Sometimes a pasting like this can turn out to be a good thing and hopefully that’s the case.”
Roosters have the chance to bounce back by winning silverware this Saturday when they face North Herts Crusaders in the East Plate final at Hemel Hempstead (2pm).
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