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Late surge lands the points
MIDLANDS ONE EAST
MANSFIELD 20 DUNSTABLIANS 14This was a cliff hanger between two determined sides who gave no quarter throughout and battled for every ball and metre of turf. Never a dirty game but the intensity drew four yellow cards evenly allocated and Sunday morning bumps and bruises. The most worrying, an ankle injury to Danny Spencer was not a serious as first thought but was still giving cause for concern as Mansfield’s injury list starts to grow.
Early scores seem to be the norm this season and Saturday saw the visitors claim a try on two minutes. After Robinson cleared the ball to half way there seemed little danger, far less when Hooper and Pritchard deflected the Dunstablians throw in. However the visitors claimed the loose ball on the ground and set up a series of drives before going wide right and in at the corner.
Within two minutes after Russ Coleman, Donaldson and Johnson had reclaimed the restart Williams had the chance to pull back the deficit but agonisingly saw it cannon back off the upright. Better fortune was to follow.
As the sides exchanged long balls close contact play was becoming more tempestuous and on ten minutes McGregor and the opposition hooker walked off to the sin bin. In more constructive vein the Shaw brothers linked and Holmes made vital metres before Russ Coleman moved Mansfield to within 10 metres. A penalty allowed Hooper to orchestrate a drive from the line out and Adam Shaw was nearly clear before the third yellow card came for killing the ball. Williams stroked the ball through the middle and brought Mansfield within a score of the lead.
Once again a captains role by Holmes, the Keith Shankland Man of the Match, allowed Williams a run into space and Symcox to pressurise down the centre. Pritchard and Robinson showed their experience and guile but once in the opposition 22 a fumble allowed a counter and a scramble to prevent a second try for the visitors.
Adam Shaw and McGregor took Mansfield back into the opponents half and a diagonal kick from Symcox parked Mansfield on the visitors’ line. Johnson went close and Holmes and Pritchard were held up across it. Another drive and Mansfield kept the ball alive through Grant, McGregor and Holmes was on the move again. Spinning the ball wide Lee Shaw made the loop run and from Symcox found Russ Coleman who had the space and pace to run in a try.
Williams conversion looked to be taking the same route as his previous kick but somehow it hit the face of the left post and then found its way over the cross bar via the right hand one. As the half ended Dunstablians were starting to show what was to come but tackling from Lee Shaw and Johnson plus cover from Wills and Robinson kept them at bay. Wills and Adam Shaw even engineered space for Hooper and Pritchard to give the crowd the spectacle of a second row passing movement down the wing.
It took just three minutes of the second half for Mansfield to stretch the lead to 13-5. Hooper and Symcox chased down the restart before Grant and Holmes made a break which Robinson and Donaldson converted into territory, only stopped at the expense of a penalty. Lee Shaw taking over kicking duties obliged confounding the opinion of the visitor’s winger.
That should have signalled more points for the Blue and Whites but instead Dunstablians stepped up a gear and Mansfield had a torrid twenty minutes to cope with. Penalties on 48 and 52 minutes had the game back to within two points. Simmons looked to stem the tide linking with Grant to go within ten metres of the line but having muffed their lines from a scrum move Simmons was racing back seventy five metres to catch an opposition breakaway with a try saving tackle and ball recovery. A try at that stage would almost certainly have seen the game going Dunstablians way. The lead was to change hands however and on 56 minutes a yellow card for Grant had Mansfield a man down and behind at 14-13.
Changes brought Spencer into the fray but he had only time for a few high impact runs before an awkward landing saw him in agony with an ankle injury. Ian Coleman came to add his presence and two key tackles and his namesake Russ gave Hough a first run back after injury.
As the clock ran down Mansfield stepped up and dominated. A cross field kick saw Wills collect, chip and a chasing tackle nearly bring a try. The forwards took control and solid scrumaging set up a series of drives to the line. Twice Pritchard appeared to have scored, twice the referee could not see to adjudge. Then the back row went once more, Johnson was quick to join and crashed through to regain the lead. A cool Lee Shaw added the extras and Mansfield were six points in front. Two more minutes for the Mansfield crowd to suffer but blanket cover defence a couple of hacks up field and time for Lee Shaw to attempt another penalty before the final whistle and a win to leapfrog the visitors in the table.
‘I have to say I thought we had thrown it away with silly penalties but give credit we battled well and the forwards in the final quarter excelled,’ a grinning Steve Shaw commented leaving the field.’ Play like that and we are a match for anyone.’
Saturday sees the Blue and Whites on the road at Ilkeston. A hard won victory at Eakring Road 17-15 and the old rivalry between the clubs is bound to set up a ding dong battle for the points. Thanks to the bad weather Mansfield have another away game to follow at Stewart and Lloyds. The game at Eakring Road against Syston is now scheduled for February 27th. but thoughts are now on the trip into Derbyshire and two more league points to continue moving up the table.