Lichfield RUFC were made to work hard for their 22-17 win at basement side Northwich.
If the visitors were expecting a comfortable day out, they were quickly reminded of the difficulties of away games in this league.
Northwich were on top from the outset and kept the Greens penned deep in their 22 with clever use of the wind and slope.
The Blacks took the lead inside ten minutes as their left winger took advantage of a lack of defensive cover to gather his own chip kick to score. A simple penalty chance quickly followed the successful conversion, spelling trouble for Lichfield at 0-10.
The visitors needed a response before half time and set about taking control of the game. The forward pack were finally getting some real go forward, after struggling in the direct aftermath of Charlie Milner’s early injury. A series of promising opportunities were thwarted, but at least the tide was turning.
In the 31st minute, Lichfield got the pick-up they needed before the interval. A well executed move including Luke Massey and Stephen Gabbitass gave Dan Rowlands the space to finish out wide. The quality of the finish was matched by Josh Massey’s touchline conversion, which narrowed the hosts’ half time lead to just three.
The second half was a completely different game, as the visitors came out of the traps quicker and ran harder into the heart of the home defence. Northwich were now visibly worried by the threat of the away side’s outside backs and the power of their tight forwards.
The Greens just needed the tries to reflect their dominance and they duly came courteous of Chris Upton and Tom Adams. Both tries came after sustained spells of pressure on the home line brought the inevitable result. The two conversions were narrowly missed, but Lichfield were comfortable with a 17-10 lead.
The escape mission was nearing its completion, as the visitors pressed hard for the fourth and bonus point try. After failing in similar positions at Burton and Walsall, the Greens were not to be denied this time, as captain Dave Bassett crossed out wide to rubberstamp the five points with eight minutes to go.
Unfortunately, Northwich were able to cap a brave defensive performance with a final play penalty try.
Next up for the Lichfield is a huge top of the table clash at home with Old Halesonians on November 17.
Lichfield: Machin, Gabbitass, Bassett (c), Upton, Squire, Milner, Abel, Thompson; Clark, L Massey, J Massey, Maxwell-Keys, Adams, D Rowlands, G Massey. Subs: McDonough, Doubleday and Winter.
