MARLOW RFC have found the ingredients, now they are hoping they have come together in time to prevent their season becoming a dog's dinner.
Two wins in a row, their first since last October and each by a single point, have changed the look of the South West 2 East table and suddenly Marlow are full of purpose again.
Director of rugby John Taylor said: "It's in our hands. It's always been in our hands, we just needed to start winning.
"It's been nerve-wracking for two weeks on the trot but we knew it was there or thereabouts and was coming together again.
"Guys were coming back from injury, the spirit was excellent and the captaincy, with Fraser Duncan, was excellent. I've never known that in a team that is bottom of the league."
Marlow were bottom when they beat High Wycombe 13-12 a fortnight ago and last week's 12-11 victory over Henley has shot them up four places to ninth.
Taylor said: "Henley said after Saturday's game that it's become a dog-fight. We've created that dog-fight but I'm a pragmatic person, I'm not the sort of person to say we're too big a club to go down. Any club can be relegated. It happens.
"But we've been planning for the 2008/09 season since before Christmas, regardless of what happens at the end of the season.
"For us, whether we're playing in the Southern Counties or South West 1, the preparation does not change; we need to recruit."
A clutch of summer retirements, particularly among the forwards, left Marlow short of wise heads in the pack and when an injury crisis also swept through the club Marlow were suddenly a squad decimated.
Thirteen defeats in 15 games left them bottom, but the ship has been gradually turning since Christmas.
Taking a long-term view, Taylor invited everyone from Marlow's U16s up to first team training while Romanian Ignout Nichikta was recruited from France just in time to replace the injured Nick Avery at scrum half.
Narrow defeats to top-three teams Swanage and Cheltenham hinted at a revival and, after losing badly to Bletchley, it finally kicked off with wins in the Bucks derby and then against Henley, when Leon Gillespie converted four kicks out of four.
Taylor said: "The long-term future of Marlow RFC is very good, the short-term might not be.
"Our last game of the season is against leaders Chippenham. It might be all over by then or it might not matter to Chippenham, so you never know, but it's not the last game of the season that relegates you.
"It might be the Bletchley game a few weeks ago. We've had a lot of could haves this season, but that was a should've."
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