LICHFIELD overcame a tough opponent as they saw off a brave Ilkeston side at Cooke Fields.
It was the visitors who struck first when left wing Chris Goodhall was left enough room to scoot through from 15 metres out for an unconverted try.
The home side hit back when Freddie Wilson crossed the try line five minutes later. Kai Lucas-Dumolo added the first of five conversions.
Shortly afterwards, a set move from a scrum saw Kieran Higgins’ run in for a 14-5 lead.
But Ilkeston refused to be deterred and came boncing back when Jake Lamb finished after good work by Liam Gavin. Veteran scrum half Joel Haigh added the extras and then a penalty to give his side a 15-14 lead at the break.
Lichfield started the second period in better fashion as Matt Key finished off a period of pressure before Lucas-Dumolo also benefited from a blind-side move to score.
Two further tries came in the next 15 minutes with Chad Southam scoring under the posts before Lucas-Dumolo scored his second.
Aided by a yellow card, they scored two tries of their own through Joe Doughty and Aaron Garvey, Ilkeston cut the lead to 11 points.
But Lichfield finished on top as Paul Maxwell-Keys squeezed over for the final converted try as Lichfield moved up to 19 league points and went level with leaders Dronfield.
