Lichfield RUFC’s visit to Old Halesonians taught them the importance of taking their chances.
The hosts were promoted to National 3 Midlands last season and used their experience well in the opening exchanges. A line out penalty from the cleared kick off saw the Greens pushed deep into their own 22. After the first driving maul was penalised, the resulting five metre line out was disrupted, but the ball fell kindly to the Old Hales hooker who barreled his way over the line. The try was converted.
Lichfield gathered themselves and started to push Hales back. The breakdown was to play an important part all afternoon, and the visitors were quickly penalised in the 22 for holding on.
It was another penalty that pushed the Greens back and gave the home side’s trundling pack a chance. It was duly taken as the first wave was repelled, but a missed tackle saw a forward crash over for Hales’ second try of the game.
With the heat and minimal pre-season, the hosts started to tire as Lichfield pushed and probed their defence all over the pitch. However, slow ball at the breakdown regularly thwarted the Greens’ tempo. As they pushed deep into the Hales half, it was a breakdown infringement which allowed the Greens to get the scoreboard moving, a 20 metre penalty well converted to make the scores 12-3.
The visitors just couldn’t take their chances, and as they found inroads into the home defence, the final pass would be knocked on, or they would infringe allowing their hosts to relieve the pressure.
The high penalty count from the opposition was never quite capitalized on but by half time Hales were just hanging on.
The second period started very much the same way the first had ended. Lichfield, full of running, moved the tiring defence across the park and broke into the 22. What appeared to be an offside tackle in front of the posts looked destined for a penalty and possibly more, but a scrum was awarded instead.
A resulting penalty from an ensuing breakdown allowed Luke Massey to extend his tally to six, as Lichfield closed the deficit to 12-6.
It was the visitors playing all the rugby and it was only good scrambling defence and errors which were allowing Hales to play. The home nine continued to pin the Greens back into the corner, and an unlucky error saw the ball spilled into the arms of the oncoming winger who fed the ball inside for a decisive score on 65 minutes. This was converted and the hosts were 19-6 in front.
Lichfield’s indiscipline continued to cost them, as another breakdown penalty allowed Hales to kick the ball deep into the 22. Playing to their strengths, they drove the line out and the Greens looked to have contained the threat, only for the second wave to result in their bonus point try. This was converted and the game was now out of reach.
It was another breakdown penalty in front of the posts that Hales converted to take their score to 29 for the day, but it was the visitors who would finish the stronger, as a break from new centre Chris Milner saw the ball offloaded to Luke Massey who raced in from 40 metres to score and convert, taking his haul to 13.
The full time whistle blew with the scoreboard showing 29-13 and although Lichfield started their new campaign with a loss, there were positive signs for life in National 3.
This weekend (September 13) Lichfield will welcome another newly promoted team to Cooke Fields in the shape of Peterborough Lions, an unknown quantity but a team who started well with a win over experienced National Three club Hinckley. Kick-off is 3pm at Lichfield, while the 2s travel to Walsall and the 3rds welcome Shrewsbury.
Lichfield: Birt, Gabbitass, Taylor, Thompson, Turner, Burton (capt), Milner, Southern; Wedgwood, L Massey, Wootton, Maxwell-Keys, Milner, Fielding, Rowlands. Subs: Clarke, Cowley, Taplin.
