AN off colour Kendal's surge up the table was halted as they were edged out at Bradford & Bingley on Saturday.

The visitors stayed in contention against the impressive Yorkshire outfit until the final stages and could have snatched a win had Mark Carruthers' kick through in the dying seconds not bounced into touch, but it was not to be.

Ciaran Ward, Dini Noyo and Jack Lashley came into the squad which had defeated West Hartlepool last week, but they were on the back foot from the sixth minute when flanker Heimuli Taufa evaded some weak tackles to cross for a try.

A Glen Weightman penalty opened Kendal's account, and after B&B's Jamie Martin was yellow carded, the Kendal skipper added another penalty to edge his side ahead.

But the lead lasted just five minutes as the home pack forced their way over and Tom Cummins touched down with Lance Taylor converting.

Weightman cut the lead to 12-9 with a third penalty just before the break, and after Kendal threw on New Zealander Logan Flett for the second period, they levelled when Weightman's long range penalty crept over via the post.

However, the comeback was in vain as the home side grabbed what proved to be the winning try in bizarre circumstances.

From a B&B touch kick, Nick Carlton jumped to try to keep the ball in and it appeared the Kendal defence thought he had been unsuccessful and hesitated, allowing a kick through which led to a simple touchdown.

B&B tried to keep the ball tight as they ran the clock down, and though that Carruthers run gave them a scare, they ran the clock down for the victory.

With no game scheduled this weekend, Kendal have a few days to reflect on the defeat before they return to action when they host leaders York on Saturday, December 7.