Oxford Eagles Under 18s’ attempt to secure their fourth victory of the season against Southend fell just short in Essex on Sunday.

Having secured three National Conference wins against their Essex opponents, Eagles had high hopes of another victory.

However, after a poor start, the visitors succumbed 80-70.

A combination of poor passes, sluggish movement and too many fouls resulted in Eagles going 11-2 down after three minutes.

The introduction of a big forward saw Southend end the first period 30-15 ahead.

The second quarter saw Southend increase their work rate, and stretch their lead to 50-31 by half-time.

The second half started well for Eagles, with skipper Colin Doig finding his range, and Lukas Aleksandravicius moving the scoreboard along well.

At one stage they closed the gap to six points, but Southend rallied to take a 13-point lead into the final quarter.

Eagles took the final period by one point, but Southend held on to win.

Eagles scorers: Aleksandravicius 25, C Doig 17, Sugden 14, Bird 6, Hyde 6, Daley 2.