Mansfield 21– 26 Hinkley 2nds

After an impressive and decisive win last week in Nuneaton, Mansfield were looking to take that form into the second home game of the season and continue to build momentum in this new league. However, their opponents for this match were Hinkley 2nds who were riding high at the top of the table with 2 bonus point victories under their belts. Hinkley showed why they are currently sitting atop the pile with a fierce and combative display but Mansfield managed to weather a rather rough storm in the second half to stage a late comeback and secure a losing bonus point.

Head coach Nathan Hill was feeling all the emotions after the game: ‘I thought for large periods of the game we were looking good and being competitive but we lost composure a bit in the second half and that cost us.’

For the second home game in a row, the blue-and-whites were slow to start, with early Hinkley pressure seeing the visitors go 14-0 up within 20 minutes, their power and punishing punches through the home defence making them difficult to cope with. However, Mansfield managed to regather themselves and start proving the visitor’s defence with their own forays through the middle. However, it was a deft chip over the defensive line by Taran Elms that saw Sol Stubbs react the quickest, gather the ball and score the first try for the home side. A successful conversion by Elms say Mansfield now in the game at 14-7.

The rest of the first half was largely a back-and-firth affair. Hinkley knew their strength was persistently running the ball and they did this extremely well, sucking in home defenders with wave after wave of attack. Their scrum was in the ascendency and stopped the home team from being able to use it as a platform. However, the blue-and-whites were able to secure their scrum ball and their defence stood strong. While they did have attacking opportunities they were unable to release the pace out wide, instead barrelling into the visitor’s defence and constantly probing for the gap to appear. However, in the remainder of the half, only one more try was added by the visitors, a turnover turned into a good counter attack and a third try. A successful conversion saw the half time score read 21-7, not completely out of reach but a tough ask.

The second half was a largely frustrating affair for the home team. Their defence was outstanding, keeping Hinkley to just one unconverted try in the second half, taking the early score to 26-7. However, they spent large parts of the half getting on the wrong side of the referee and, in return, being put under enormous amounts of repeated pressure. Opportunities to attack were limited and things weren’t made easy by 2 separate yellow cards being issued. The meant the blue-and-whites were unable to build momentum or territory, whenever they did it was soon halted by the shrill sound of the whistle. That said, Hinkley’s solitary second half try came before both yellow cards. That’s a huge statement made by the home team who played with 14 men for 20 of the second half’s 40 minutes. The scrum was somewhat stabilised and matchday sponsors Honest Heath’s Pension Fund and RPH Surfacing’s man of the match Will Limb was tireless in these defensive efforts.

The final 10 minutes of the second half saw Mansfield back to a full complement of players and with renewed vigour. Knowing they could weather the Hinkley storm, it was time for them to pack down and run through phases of their own. With this new confidence, Hinkley struggled to contain the pressure and received a yellow card of their own. The home team took full advantage and threw everything they had at the home defence, causing a barrage of penalties to be conceded as the visitors were forced to scramble. After another penalty, Nathan Hind took the option to take a quick tap and barrelled through the defence to register the home team’s second try. A successful conversion now saw the score read 26-14 with only a few minutes remaining. Mansfield continued the persistent waves of pressure as Hinkley were forced to concede more penalties. This time, Regan Hubbard took a quick tap and splintered the visitor’s defence. A successful conversion saw the final score read 26-21 to the visitors.

Mansfield were a bit slow out of the blocks, largely caused by a powerful and direct Hinkley gameplan. They will be disappointed with the indiscipline of the second half but can take heart from the huge defensive effort they put in and the way the regathered themselves to end the game on a high.