IF, perish the thought, Rovers failed to secure a seven-year lease for the Victoria Ground, then perhaps they should turn the pitch into a king-size boxing ring.

Because at ringside on Saturday, Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis were put to shame against the centre circle scrap after 53 minutes of Saturday's game.

The punch-up was sparked by Andy's Biddle's fairly innocuous tackle on Cirencester's Andy Grange, who retaliated as others poured in to join the fracas.

Although three or four others could have walked for raising their fists in the melee, it was Biddle and Grange who received their marching orders.

Rovers were down to nine-men when captain Quentin Townsend, who had his shirt pulled off his back in the skirmish, left the field for his second bookable offence with quarter of an hour remaining.

Right result

But a point was about the right result, on the balance of play, although it looked like three when Rovers took the lead after eight minutes.

Mark Benbow's inswinging corner caused panic in the penalty area and although Richard Burgess seemed to nick the final touch, Benbow claimed the goal to hand them a rare lead.

Cirencester should have equalised three minutes later but Steve Ulfig was in the right place at the right time to deny Giles Harris's goal-bound effort.

Nore Gabbidon had to be in top form in Rovers' goal with superb point-blank saves from Jim Carter and Dave Gee, whilst Kevin Sawyer saved acrobatically from Michael Crawford's 25-yard volley that should have extended Bromsgrove's lead.

The home side were left to rue that chance when Cirencester equalised in first half injury time; Harris scoring from the penalty spot after Gabbidon was adjudged, perhaps harshly, to have brought down Steve Bennett.

The second half had gone by almost unnoticed until the centre circle scrap, and once Townsend had been sent off on 74 minutes for a late challenge on Steve Bennett, Rovers had to hang on for a point with nine men.

To their credit, they took the game to Cirencester and Burgess should have snatched the points for Bromsgrove when he escaped the offside trap from Crawford's through ball, but wasted the opportunity.

Rovers: Gabbidon, J Beard, Ulfig, Townsend, S Frost, Biddle, Benbow, Burgess, Bedward (sub M Beard 82 mins), Crawford, D Wright (sub M Wight 30 mins).

Rovers man of the match: Nore Gabbidon. Attendance: 383.

Report by CHRIS VAUGHAN