EXMOUTH coach Nick Southern blamed his side's inexperience for their unhappy knack of throwing away matches when seemingly in control.

The Cockles went down 23-12 at home to Coney Hill on Saturday after looking odds on for victory at 12-8 up with just five minutes to go — the fourth time the Imperial Ground club had let a lead slip in the dying stages this season.

"We just didn't play sensible rugby. We had the advantage and then we just handed it to them," said Southern.

"I can't fault our performance because it was excellent up to the last few minutes. It's incredibly frustrating that we didn't get anything.

"It's the fourth time we've done it and I think it's down to the inexperience we've got in the team. The lads can sometimes be a little naive."

Richard Cadywould had been Exmouth's main man, kicking four penalties while Coney had scored a try through James Cole and a Rory Baker penalty.

But the visitors wrested control late on with Baker adding another penalty, Cole dotting down again and Danny Davis adding a further try to rub salt into the wounds.