After a helter-skelter 80 minutes at Kibworth RFC, Kent were leading 22-27 with only injury-time remaining. Defending stoically for the final five minutes, Kent were under the cosh with Leicestershire camped close to the Kent try line.

Having brought the scrum down on a number of occasions, the referee lost patience and awarded a penalty try to the home side which was duly converted.

It should have been all over at 29-27 to the Midlands side with no time left on the clock but Kent stole the ball following the unexpected restart and, as the ball went to ground, the referee awarded a penalty against Leicestershire on the halfway line and advised players that time was up following the penalty.

Up stepped Canterbury's Peter King, who calmly kicked for goal. Just when it looked like the kick did not have the necessary length, it clipped the crossbar and dropped over the line to give Kent an amazing win.

And as the final whistle went seven minutes into injury time, King was left gasping for breath having been buried under a pile of 21 celebrating Kent players.

The win was Kent's first Twickenham appearance for 14 years and for just about all the players, their first-ever visit to the hallowed turf as a player.

See next week's News Shopper for details of how Kent got on in the final against Notts, Lincs and Derbyshire.