CRAIG White and Dan Connolly must have read Saturday’s results in disbelief.

The coaching duo, who were handed the reins following the departures of director of rugby Crispin Cormack and head coach Paul Dunne, presided over what many considered to be Bournemouth’s best display of the season, only to discover that all of their relegation rivals had also won.

Of the five victories for teams entrenched in battle to avoid joining no-hopers Weston-super-Mare and Chard in the drop zone, Lions’ tenacious 29-15 triumph over third-placed Brixham was the pick of the bunch.

A tale of the unexpected? Most certainly, but by the end of the day their five-point boon became a key ingredient as club tries to concoct a survival elixir.

Their cushion over the dreaded third-bottom spot remains the same – a mere three points – but Lions should take heart from a five-match unbeaten run on home soil and the manner in which they extended their morale-boosting sequence.

Phases of immense Brixham pressure, a strong second-half headwind, three yellow cards and a series of refereeing decisions that bewildered a baying home crowd could not contrive against bristling Bournemouth.

Having taken a ninth-minute lead through Matt Warwick’s opportunism, the hosts led throughout at the blustery Chapel Gate.

Both teams sought to find their feet before taking risks in a cagey opening but Warwick pounced on an errant pass and burst from his just inside own half to register the opening try.

Lewis Dennett then set the tone for a fruitful afternoon by defying the elements to add the extras.

Bournemouth were immediately put on the back foot and spent the next seven minutes desperately defending their own try-line, surviving the concession of several knock-ons before Dennett eventually thumped to safety.

Brixham then built another spell of sustained pressure but in the end relented in their lengthy pursuit of a try when Andy Sandercock planted between the sticks the first kicked penalty of the afternoon.

Earlier in the campaign, that would have been the signal for Lions to roll over but if anything, the small setback only served to galvanise White and Connolly’s troops.

An impressive passage of play in a tight pocket at the heart of Brixham’s 22 allowed Jack Hennings to jink his way through for try number two. Dennett again made no mistake and established an 11-point lead for his side.

With the wind in their sails, the rejuvenated hosts went for the throat and having spread play down the left, full-back Grant Hancox touched down in the far corner.

Dennett was unable to make it three out of three with the boot, albeit from the least favourable of angles.

As the interval approached, Brixham steadily regrouped and began to stretch the play with Scott Chislett sin-binned for the hosts.

Despite the numerical disadvantage, it might have got better for Bournemouth when Warwick broke away but his driving run was halted by a last-ditch tackle and the score remained 19-3 at the break.

Lions briefly found themselves down to 13 men when Joe Rees was yellow-carded for an alleged stamp on Jonny Brown as man-in-the-middle Carl Bennett set about casting himself as pantomime villain.

The home crowd cried foul as several decisions went in Brixham’s favour in the build-up to Joe Lovell’s 51st-minute try.

Sandercock made it 19-10.

Bennett then denied Bournemouth a clear run at the line when awarding a knock-on and moments later chalked off a try having ruled that the ball had been held up during a driving maul.

Undeterred, replacement hooker Alan Benham came to the rescue by forcing home Lions’ fourth to secure the bonus point.

Dennett, whose kicking in open play was just as impressive as his set piece delivery, duly converted.

A Dennett penalty further extended the gap and other than a late effort from Martin Worhtington immediately after Bournemouth’s Alex Sutherland had been harshly sin-binned, Brixham looked a spent force.

Wins for Barnstaple, Old Patesians, Old Redcliffians and Oxford Harlequins might have pinched the cherry from the cake but the solid platform built at Chapel Gate since November should fill Lions hearts with hope rather than fear.

Lions: Hancox, Sutherland, Higgins, Chislett, Gwyther, Dennett, Hardcastle, Terry, Manning, Firetto (Benham, 51), Warwick (Smith, 63), Scott, Hennings, Smith (Yeats, 61), Rees. Unused replacement: Sanchez.