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Lions made a Worcester team
brimming with internationals fight all the way in a spirited performance
that left the home side looking very ordinary at times.
A superb defensive performance limited Worcester to just 3 tries
and denied them the bonus point that they desperately need to maintain
their promotion push.
Lions welcomed back Sam Tovo
(again!!), and gave evergreen Eddie Saunders another run on the wing.
Chris “Cliff” Richards started at fullback after an impressive
game for the Nighthawks. Back
row Tim Stannard started at lock on place of the suspended Tim Collier.
Lions were penalised in the
first minute by Tim “Rodders” Miller, and fly half Tony Yapp stroked
over the simple kick from 22 metres.
Wuss drove in hard again from
the kick off, but a good catch and clear by “Cliff” Richards relieved
the pressure. Back came Wuss, but fierce tackling by Lions forced the knock
on and the first scrum. As in
previous weeks, the Lions’ scrum looked far from solid and was soon
going backwards resulting in the scrappy ball being knocked on at the base
of the scrum.
When Wus attacked again, Sam
Tovo was deemed offside and earned a stern rebuke from Rodders.
Tony Yapp repeated his earlier penalty performance to put Lions 6
– 0 down after 5 minutes without them really seeing any possession at
all.
Wuss were using the wind to
good effect, and a long kick downfield saw Lions touch down for a 22
metres drop out. Wuss moved
the ball wide as they stole the line out, but more good defensive work saw
the ball dropped and hacked on by Lions to get their first incursion into
Wuss’ territory.
Lions now enjoyed a good spell
of possession with some good driving and recycling by the forwards.
When the ball was moved wide, an attempted crash ball was dropped
and Wuss were quickly on the attack once again.
Another high kick by Wuss was
confidently handled by “Cliff” Richards, but he was felled by a high
tackle as he attempted to run the ball out of defence.
Richard Davies put the penalty to touch, but a good attacking
opportunity was lost with a crooked throw at the line out.
The Wuss’ attack again looked
dangerous, but a kick through was competently dealt with by a determined
defence. However Lions were finding it difficult to make headway
against an equally committed Wuss’ defence, and were soon on the rack
again as they were penalised at the ruck.
This time Wuss chose to kick to the corner.
The line out take was good and the drive ominous until a Wuss
forward ran into his own man to give the Lions a scrum.
However, once again the
Lions’ pack found themselves going backwards at a great rate of knots as
Wuss secured the put in. A
pushover try looked imminent, but the Lions’ forwards were in no mood to
concede ground and Wuss knocked on as they tried to attack around the
fringes. This time the
Lions’ scrum held relatively firm, allowing Steve Smith to pick up and
make valuable ground. More
good work by the forwards in the loose saw Lions drive to half way.
Lions were doing well in the
lines, disrupting the Wuss throw, and another steal saw Sam Tovo hammering
through the middle. His lay
back as he was tackled was perfect, but unfortunately Lions were slow to
get to the breakdown allowing Wuss to easily take the ball and kick long
downfield.
A penalty against Wuss saw
Richard Davies clear to half way, but the respite was short lived as Wuss
moved the ball wide in an attempt to break through a resolute Lions’
defence. This ploy was foiled
by Lions in just the same way as the forward drives down the centre had
been, and the Wuss’ faithful were starting to get rattled.
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Glum faces in the crowd |
Fergie Gladstone, who again
impressed with his tireless efforts in the loose, was forced to leave the
field to be replaced by “Pig” Brittin.
He soon felt the power of the Wuss scrum as the Lions were forced
back on their own put in for Wuss to again secure possession.
The ball was again pushed wide, but when wing Winston Stanley
received with space to work, he seemed to be in awe of Eddie Saunders as
he slowed and was wrapped up by the cover.
Back came Wuss, but Lions’
defence held firm with some big hits coming in from Pig to knock the
attack back. Wuss were penalised twice in quick succession as their
frustration began to show. Good
kicks by Richard Davies and excellent line out work by Chris Jones and Tim
Stannard saw Lions in a promising attacking position in the Wuss’ 22.
Unfortunately the ball was lost again in the loose, and again a
long Wuss kick put them back on the attack.
Lions were determined not to
concede a score just before half time, and fierce tackling, lead superbly
by Sam Tovo, absorbed everything Wuss could throw at them.
Unfortunately, the unlucky Sam was again hurt in the tackle and had
to leave the field. This is only the third game that Sam has started this
season, and it is the third game that he has had to leave the field
injured before half time.
With half time imminent, Lions
did not immediately bring on a replacement for Sam, so James Ogilvey-Bull
joined the scrum in a bid to hold out another Wuss attack.
Again the Lions’ scrum looked vulnerable, but the mighty Steve
Smith again picked up at the base and drove away.
With Sam Tovo looking the worse for wear, Paul Thompson took the
field as his replacement. It transpired that Sam suffered a painful knock
to a very delicate part of his anatomy.
After the physio reached a count of 3 when examining the affected
area, it was decided to keep Sam off when he demanded a recount.
Thommo was soon in the thick of
things in repulsing more attacking waves from Wuss.
When Lions’ were penalised, Wuss opted to kick for goal with time
running down, but this time Tony Yapp pulled his effort wide.
Rodders immediately blew for half time to leave Lions still well in
contention against one of the league’s front runners.
Half time
Worcester
6
Lions
0
Tony Yapp started the second
half teeing the ball up on what can only be described as a small traffic
cone. Needless to say he got
tremendous height on his kick to allow his forwards ample time to be
underneath it as it returned from orbit.
The second half started very much as the first with Wuss on the
attack and Lions’ penalised for being on the wrong side of the ruck.
Up stepped Tony Yapp to strike the simple penalty from 30 metres.
When Wuss were themselves
penalised from the kick off, Cliff Richards’ attempted 45 metre kick at
goal drifted agonisingly wide of the upright.
James Ogilvie-Bull was the next
to be hurt in stemming a Wuss attack, and had to leave the field to be
replaced by Ian Hyde, sporting what looked like a hairy caterpillar
beneath his nose. Still, it
was better than the hat he sported at Welsh…….but only just!!
Heaven help us if he wears both together.
Wuss were soon back on the
attack and at last they managed to breach the Lions defence with a good
break by the impressive Duncan Roke that allowed Winston Stanley to cut
inside from the wing to score by the posts.
Tony Yapp added the conversion.
Lions were stung into action,
and a good scrum (at last) allowed the forwards to drive in.
Tristan Prosser-Shaw, leading by example, made inroads into the
Wuss defence, but again Lions were slow to support and the penalty was
conceded for not releasing. Good
work at the line out by Lions saw Wuss penalised and a relieving kick from
Richard Davies.
Now it was Lions’ turn to
exert some pressure, and when Wuss were penalised in midfield, Cliff
Richards teed up another long kick at goal from almost the same position
as his first attempt. Unfortunately the result was the same as his well struck kick
sailed by the upright.
Wuss were quickly back on the
attack, but again Lions’ defence held firm as Wuss were penalised for
going over the top at the ruck. A
long Richard Davies kick saw Lions’ secure good line out ball and drive
for the Wuss line. When Wuss
were penalised in stifling the attack, Cliff Richards 35 metres kick again
drifted just the wrong side of the post to leave Lions undeservedly
without any points on the board.
A long kick by Wuss out of
defence was safely gathered by Cliff Richards, but his long return from
just outside his own 22 metres line was caught by the wind to bounce
inches out on the full. With
the ball being brought back for a Wuss’ scrum, Lions were again on the
defensive, but again they rose to the challenge.
Big hits were the order of the day as Wuss found themselves going
backwards.
When Lions were penalised, a
good kick to the corner saw Wuss secure good line out ball.
A quick release by the forwards saw a long pass in midfield taken
at top speed by centre Duncan Roke for him to power over under the posts.
Craig Chalmers, who had replaced Tony Yapp at fly half, added the
simple conversion.
Tim Stannard took a knock as
play resumed, and the lock was replaced by prop Phil Greenbury.
Lions now came looking for a score and it was not long in coming.
A sweeping move along the backs saw Phil Reed in space.
He went round the cover and grubber kicked past the full back to
dive triumphantly on the ball as it crossed the line.
It was no more than Lions deserved, but unfortunately Cliff
Richards’ conversion attempt from wide out again drifted wide.
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| The chip |
The
chase |
The try |
Lions were now starting to look
more enterprising, and a high kick by Richard Davies was well taken by the
Wuss defence, but Eddie Saunders was up like a steam train to knock the
man down and force the penalty. This
time Lions opted for the kick to touch, but a knock on at the line out
denied a scoring opportunity.
Still Lions applied pressure,
and when they were awarded a free kick at a scrum, Tom Walsh took a quick
tap, but was recalled by referee Rodders Miller as he had words with the
Wuss’ defence. When the tap
was retaken, Rodders promptly got in the way of the Lions’ attack and a
knock on ensued………what a plonker!!
Then came a moment that
conjured up memories of yesteryear. Another
good break by Duncan Roke saw wing Winston Stanley in the clear.
A try looked inevitable, but Eddie Saunders had other ideas, as he
rolled back the years, pinned back his ears, went up the gears, and
overhauled his opposite number to pull off a superb try saving tackle.
Will this man’s talent never wane??
Again Lions drove in, but when
the ball was moved wide, a handling error allowed Wuss to hack through.
Good support play eventually saw replacement Joe Ross cross for the
try. With Craig Chalmers
again adding the conversion, Lions could justifiably feel hard done by as
Rodders blew for full time.
Final result:
Worcester
30
Lions
5
Lions can take a lot of heart
from this defeat. The defence
was rock solid, and although starved of possession for long periods, there
were good signs in attack. The
main area of worry remains the scrum.
Until we can get this sorted, we must learn to make use of the
quick heel and channel one back to the number 8 before the opposition can
get the drive on. However,
let us not dwell on the negatives, but look to the future.
With Jacques Steyne and Rob Field approaching match fitness after
lengthy layoffs, the selection problem switches from who to put in to who
to leave out. The next 2
games at home to Otley and away to Bracknell give us the opportunity to
turn things round and start to pull away from the relegation zone.
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Bully on the charge |
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