Improving Mansfield storm to vital point
KETTERING 22 MANSFIELD 22
This game was on everyone’s coupon as a home banker. Kettering, placed third, was odds on favourites to follow up their 42-13 victory at Eakring Road last month. Throw into the equation sloppy tackling, after Mansfield chipped ahead in their opening foray, and a seven point deficit after ninety seconds and the outcome was obvious.
Fast forward eighty minutes and the relief and exuberance from at a last minute try and conversion to level the scores was written all over the Kettering faces as they grabbed a draw. Despondence in the visitors’ dressing room before the realisation that this was a point won at one of the toughest venues in the league, even though it felt like one lost.
After such a calamitous start the Blue and Whites had to dig deep to steady themselves against a rampant Kettering. Tackles from Beaumont, Jones and Holmes stemmed the tide and only the luck of the bounce prevented Grubb capitalising on a grubber kick.
Jones found a touch on the ten yard line and after Kirk’s throw picked out Lindsay whose quick ball off the top sent Holmes clear. Beaumont was on hand again and Kirk peeled away for Shaw to release Wills and Grubb. The skipper was then providing a quick heel to give the mobile Mansfield back row the impetus to turn scrum possession into a feed for Jones and Taylor to test the heart of the home defence.
More tenacious harrying spoilt Kettering’s line out ball before Drury turned ball over and had Pritchard with him to move play twenty metres. Shaw tidied a line out knock down and Hadley and Kirk drove forward before Mansfield’s bad habits were punished again.
A missed tackle in the home 22 was soon turned into a move sweeping the length of the field. Storey and Waggstaff managed to hold up the attack on the try line but with a 5 metre scrum the pressure was far from lifted. It looked better as they forced another fifteen metres for their own scrum but when Mansfield looked to clear to touch they failed to find it and a feeling of déjà vu. Ball run back, missed tackles and 12-0 on twenty two minutes.
The bonus of a knock on from the restart saw Spencer and Holmes again linking off the back of a very solid scrum. The mini drives as Mansfield pack linked in twos and threes was matched by aggressive defence before Holmes streaked clear. He looked to find the faster moving Grubb only to see the pass intercepted with the line beckoning.
Storey rescued Mansfield and Shaw tried an inventive line out move to himself before Holmes and Pritchard supported him and Mansfield drove twenty metres. Definite signs of confidence spreading through the side were confirmed as Waggstaff and Wills linked and Hadley, Drury and Lindsay made their way deep into Kettering territory.
With ball lost it looked as though the chance had gone and the K’s went to run the ball from deep. For once fortune was with the Blue and Whites and Wills read the move, stretched for the interception and raced clear to the posts. Waggstaff added the two points and the complexion of the game had changed.
Despite allowing another free run through their defence Mansfield had enough bodies to defend the line before driving back over their 22. A chip over the defence was collected by Grubb who fed Waggstaff for a 45 metre kick to within five metres on the home line. Kettering struggled again under pressure conceding a scrum and Spencer and Beaumont worked their way blindside. Grubb, tight to the touchline, pirouetted out of three tacklers grasps before popping the ball into the path of Shaw and the young scrum half made the hard yards to level the scores.
Time just for another Kettering attack and Beaumont was unlucky to be singled out for a yellow card after a penalty award under the posts that ensured a home advantage 15-12 at the break. Despite being a man down it was Mansfield who imposed themselves at the start of the second half. Runs from Spencer and Jones kept Kettering pinned back, Lindsay and Pritchard were providing a conveyor belt of line ball. Hadley twice linked with Spencer and Arnold, on for Grubb, made explosive diagonal runs through the home defence.
Storey probed with his angled chips and Coleman had immediate impact after replacing Hadley in the set scrum and loose as Mansfield turned the screw. Another great effort from the pack to turned a scrum to a rolling maul and then a slick passing move down the backs to Storey for a try and the lead after fifteen minutes of incessant pressure.
A brief foray from the home side before that pressure was back and on seventy minutes a drive across the line saw Spencer emerge triumphant. 22-15 and the most unlikely of victories was suddenly on the cards. Kirk, Pritchard and Jones all tried to keep the play in the home half but old failings ruined the dream. A careless penalty, missed kick to touch, and over elaboration under the posts with plenty of time to clear and Kettering were mounting a final siege. Three times they were stopped but finally a clever jinking run prised open the Blue and White line and the simplest of conversions had Mansfield sinking to their knees with victory snatched away.
But Mansfield realised the glass was half full and not half empty as scores round the league came in and they had moved to within a point of three clubs. The climb out of the relegation zone is very much in improving, battling Mansfield’s own hands. The side has a weekend off before entertaining mother club Southwell on December 30th and returning to league action on January 6th against Ilkeston. Both those games are at Eakring Road where this Saturday Mansfield Seconds entertain Derby, kick off 2.15.
Mansfield II v Kettering II - Away
Like the first team this game was a must win for the seconds too. There was an air of machoism about this game where neither side backed down but the condition of the pitch put end to what could have been the game of the season. It ended at 19-14 to Kettering at the break after Mansfield was awarded a penalty try for repeated pulling down of the maul. There was nothing in it and everything to go for but pitch deterioration saw the referee blow up early. A rematch is on the cards for 2007.
Mansfield III v Sheffield Tigers III – Away
For the second week in a row Mansfield 3rd team played a game of 2 halves, losing away against a very strong Sheffield Tigers team 29-19. More than holding their own in the first 40 minutes and turning round 12-10 up at the break the second half was a different story. First up tackling again disappeared and the strong attack minded Sheffield backs were able to drift through for trys. When the youngsters finally got their heads together they produced another try, but it was too little too late. A great first half performance but a well below par second 40 minutes gave Mansfield much to think about. Scores for Mansfield came from A. Payne (try), S. Bonser (try), 2 conversions for Darren Marshall and a great try for Man of the Match Shaun Morgan.
Mansfield IV v Newark IV – Away
Playing local side Newark is always a bruising encounter, with Mansfield 4ths travelling to the Kelham ground on a mission to set the record straight. They did this in the best way by beating Newark at their own ground 58-5. From the whistle the Mansfield forwards got to work scoring within 5 mins with strong running from Haynes. This opened the flood gates with Newark having no reply. 2 more tries in the first half from Cartwright in the tight and a try from Briggs out wide showed that Mansfield had a strangehold on the game dictating all play. Mansfield won just about every ball in the scrums including Newarks ball with the frontline of Maddocks, Robinson and Davies getting topside.
Half time saw Newark make a front row replacement for a an unrecognised prop which tactically meant uncompetitive scrummages, the area that Mansfield excelled. A quick team talk saw Mansfield change tactics, bringing on Sykes to improve the mobility of the pack and bolster the line outs. This was to be very fruitful for Mansfield who showed that they weren’t a one trick pony by dominating in the forward play, they shifted their concentration to keeping the ball moving and scoring through the backs on several occasions bringing trys for Jenkins, Heath and Smith. Further trys for forwards Maddocks (x2), Haynes and Sykes finished off Newark with 10 mins to go when their captain asked the referee to blow up before more damage was done. Allsop converted 4. This was a massive team performance with great linking play between players. Next game will be in 2007.
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