Kesteven RFC 17
Spalding RFC 15
Spalding RFC wasted a big chance to register their first win of the Midlands Three East (North) season as hosts Kesteven scored a late try to edge Saturday’s derby 17-15.
The scores were level at half time, but a disappointing second half display allowed the home team to steal a victory with a converted try – even though they were one man down at the time as a result of a yellow card.
As usual, there were absentees from last week’s emphatic win against Buxton, with Harry Brown, Tim Waltham, Kev Hudson and Jason Steels unavailable.
But, with Luke Turner playing prop along with the returning Jacob Greaves, Mark Haighton adding his lineout expertise at lock alongside George Berry and Harry Cole flanking, expectations for a good performance were high.
With all the home advantages in the first half, Kesteven looked to press Town back from the off.
Spalding’s response was solid, with good defensive tackles stopping Kesteven gaining any momentum. But a neat kick over the top saw the home team’s left wing gather the ball and score under the posts for a converted try.
Kesteven were exerting pressure in the scrums and, with the front row popping up, the resulting penalty was kicked for a lead of ten points after fifteen minutes.
Spalding then stunned the home team with their willingness to run the ball from deep and Haighton was on hand to finish off the move for a very good try, which was not converted. Although under some pressure at times, The Elephants were playing controlled rugby – led by the experienced Harry Sharman in the pack.
Retaining possession and with their defensive lines solid, Kesteven were now struggling to create any clear scoring opportunities.
With half time approaching, Town hauled themselves level by working the ball out to Gav Sharman to score with another unconverted try.
Instead of dominating the second half, Spalding lost their pattern of play – failing to kick for territory with wind and slope advantage.
They were unable to pin Kesteven back deep in their 22 and errors were also creeping into their game, with knock-ons losing possession and key lineouts lost.
However, with Spalding using their forwards repeatedly on the Kesteven try line to edge their way over, Harry Sharman used his experience and strength to find a way through for a further unconverted try and a five-point lead.
Captain Dan Adams was trying to lead his team from the front with several strong runs through the middle.
And, with a high tackle coming in, the Elephants looked primed for victory when Kesteven lost a player for ten minutes with a yellow card late on.
With a one-man advantage Spalding should have made it count to seal victory, but poor tactical decisions and a lack of experience saw them waste the opportunity.
In fact, Kesteven – on one of their few outings into Spalding territory during the second half – managed to grab the winning score despite their numerical disadvantage.
Using their backs, they broke upfield. At the tackle area, their scrum-half spotted a lack of defence at the side of the ruck and ran under the posts to score. The conversion sealed victory by two points.
An unhappy Spalding left the field after the final whistle knowing that a potential five-point bonus win had been thrown away with their second half performance.
They will hope for better when they host rivals Sleaford in NLD Cup at the Memorial Field on Saturday (3pm).
Town: Jacob Greaves, John Barrett, Luke Turner, George Berry, Mark Haighton, Ash Ankar, Harry Cole, Harry Sharman, Will Shields, Willis Ingleby, Ben Shields, Dan Adams, George Brown, Gav Sharman, Conall Mason. Subs: Richard Cooke, George Douglas and Richard Grew.
