Lichfield RUFC sealed their seventh successive league victory after making the long trip to Whitchurch.
The home side made a quick start, exerting real pressure on the visiting line in the opening few minutes. But the Greens were switched on from the outset and managed to build up an early 8-0 lead, courtesy of a try and penalty for left wing Josh Massey.
In greasy conditions, the contest was littered with handling errors in the first half. The real positive was the impressive drift defence which kept Whitchurch scoreless for over half an hour – and when they finally got themselves on the board, it came via a fortuitous try in the right hand corner.
Lichfield responded quickly, winning another penalty for the reliable Josh Massey to calmly convert. This brought a fiercely competitive first period to a close with the visitors 11-5 up.
The first half had been quite a cagey affair, but the second proved quite the opposite.
With the elements now in their favour, Lichfield were quickly on the front foot. Will Cotterhill was a constant threat from the base of the scrum and Dave Abel at the forefront of a focused defensive showing.
Two early second half tries effectively secured the victory. First, Tom Adams smashed through the centres to score under the posts, before Greg Massey pounced on a loose ball to score wide on the left. Josh Massey added a conversion and the Greens were sitting pretty with a 5-23 lead.
With ten minutes to go, the only unresolved issue for the Greens was the fourth try bonus point. And fittingly, it was the forwards who got in on the act. Number eight Callum Turner was on hand to round off a dominant scrum performance and wrap up the all important score with seven minutes to go.
There was still time for another fine Greg Massey score, as Lichfield began to showcase the more flamboyant aspects of their backline play book. Josh Massey knocked over both conversions to complete an impressive 17 point haul.
Unfortunately, this positive performance was soured somewhat by an 80th minute Whitchurch score, which came after Joe Thompson had been sent to the sin bin.
Next up for Lichfield is a crucial derby match away at Burton.
Lichfield: Machin, Gabbitass, Bassett (c), Thompson, Squire, Doubleday, Abel, Turner; Clark, L Massey, J Massey, Winter, Adams, D Rowlands, G Massey. Subs: McDonough, Maxwell-Keys and W Cotterhill.
