In a round of surprises, Kiama inflicted Avondale's first loss in 2015 with a 36-29 victory on Saturday.

A magic first half ended with the underdogs leading 33-3 before they withstood a huge comeback from the ladder leaders to claim the points.

"It was a great win," Kiama coach Darryl Thomas said.

"We were up 33-3 at half-time and probably bombed two tries to be honest. It could have been 40. We just came out and I am not sure what happened. The boys had a good week. You could see it coming.

"The last time we beat them was 2008 or 2009, so it is definitely the biggest win of our season."

Avondale entered the clash unbeaten through nine rounds but had yet to face Kiama after their round-two match was washed out.

Kiama blew their rivals off the park in the first half but had to contend with a rampant Avondale in the second stanza.

They had compiled a big enough lead with their 40-minute blitz to close the gap at the top of the ladder.

"We played to our game plan. We kicked well for territory, we chased and did all the one per centers really well," Thomas said.

"Our kick-chase was good and we put a lot of pressure on them.

"We didn't really want half-time because it stopped our momentum a bit.

"We had the penalty count against us in the second half, so we just didn't have any ball."

Avondale coach James Patrick applauded his rivals' performance.

"They responded after half-time but obviously Kiama have done enough in the first half to win the game. They played really well and it was hard to match their enthusiasm," he said.

"We are travelling pretty well but it is a good wake-up call for our boys. It is timely. It is one of those games where you sit and watch and think you have got beaten by a better team.

"It brings the boys back down to earth. It could be a good thing or a bad thing.

"It is just a matter of how we recover from it."

The result sees the ladder tighten up as the finals picture begins to take shape.

University closed the gap to four points on Avondale with a 38-6 win over Vikings.

Campbelltown stumbled against Bowral in a 29-27 loss, while Camden hammered Tech-Waratahs 53-15 and Shamrocks surprised Shoalhaven 31-29.

LADDER

Avondale 47; University 43; Kiama 39; Campbelltown 36; Shoalhaven 22; Vikings 21; Camden 17; Shamrocks 16; Bowral 15; Tech-Waratahs 4.