Report by Simon Plumb
A thrilling fightback saw Lymm win the day as they beat Ilkley 26-25 after trailing 13-25 with just 15 minutes left on the clock.
On a warm, dry, cloudless day, and on a perfect surface, Lymm, with a slight breeze in their faces, faced Ilkley, placed one position above them at 8th in the league. It is likely this match will determine who would finish there at the conclusion of the season.
Both teams had won their previous matches so a close fought encounter was expected and so it proved. Ilkley got off to a spanking start racking up a converted try and penalty to lead 0-10 after 11 minutes. Dropping a pass in their own 22 put Lymm under self-inflicted pressure which the visitors took full advantage of from the resulting attacking scrum, to score near the posts.
This inability to not keep hold of the ball, especially with such frugal possession, was a habit Lymm could not break until the last ten minutes of the game, and permitted Ilkley to build up a good lead. Despite a penalty reply from full back Cormac Nolan on 20 minutes, taking the score to 3-10, Ilkley came straight back via the illusive and speedy full back who took a well timed pass on a great line, to score near the posts, extending the lead to 3-17 after 25 minutes.
Needing to claw themselves back into the game, Lymm, while putting some astonishing phases together, tried to force it too often with ‘killer’ passes that mostly did not go to hand and simply killed Lymm’s momentum. While in a great position 5m out, and with Ilkley having a man in the bin for a high tackle, Lymm had an attacking scrum but were penalised for boring in. The sizeable crowd, made up of many past players attending their annual reunion, were getting increasingly frustrated. A further three opportunities, in prime positions, were butchered until a penalty was awarded which Nolan converted, 6-17 after 37mins.
Lymm looked lively with ball-in-hand but were not finishing the chances. To rub salt, Ilkley converted a penalty to take a 6-20 lead into half time. Did Lymm have enough in the tank to make a significant comeback? At the start of the second half Lymm continued to drop passes in great positions, complemented by strong, aggressive defence from the gritty visitors.
And then Lymm, with Tom Shard coming on at scrum half and Rhys Jones moving from the wing to fly half, started putting phases together until captain and hooker Adam Bray burst over the whitewash 4m out, near the posts, 13-20 and game on. Then came an incident which, in past games, may have been the final nail in the coffin.
Looking for an equalising score, Lymm were fluid and dangerous down the right flank. Winger Will Titherington was about to catch the pass when the defending centre barged him into touch with what appeared to be an illegal, no arms tackle. The Ilkley winger then picked up the loose ball and sprinted 70m to score in the left corner, taking the score to 13-25 with 15 minutes to go.
Rugby league spectators in Wigan are famous for the ‘Wigan Walk’ if their team was under-performing before the end of the game. At this point some of the old guard at Beechwood decided to conduct the own ‘Lymm Limp’, as they made their way back to the clubhouse in the belief that all was lost. Oh ye of little faith!
This perceived injustice, rather than breaking the spirit of the home side simply galvanised it. Wave after wave of attacking phases eventually resulted in a successful rolling maul, with Jake Ashall at the bottom of the pile to score (we think), wide out. The score was now 18-25 but Lymm were back in with a sniff.
A high tackle in the visitors 22, with two scores still required to win, gave Nolan another penalty chance with 5mins to go, which he took – 21-25 and Ilkley were visibly tiring after such a big defensive shift.
With just minutes left on the clock Lymm went for the jugular. Patience reigned as Lymm clattered into Ilkley time and again, slowly edging nearer to the try line with a succession of breathtaking passing movements. Then, with Ilkley stretched, the ball was passed to centre Richard McEvoy who broke through to score from 20m out, for a final winning scoreline of 26-25. It was a wonderful win from a very unlikely position 15 minutes earlier.
Coach Adam Fletcher was his usual pragmatic self. ‘We were too inaccurate but they ran out of steam and we worked harder as the game unfolded. I think we earned the win today and I am proud of the boys for the fight back. Bray and Ashall share the MOM award.’
Skipper Adam Bray was more poetic. ‘We robbed the bank today but it’s about time a game like that went in our favour. We were poor for 60 minutes but put the phases together in the last 20, to get over the line. They tired and we were better overall.’
Team: 1. Dan Horton 2. Adam Bray (C), 3. Mike Auden 4. Joe Watson 5. Will Baldwin 6. Jake Ashall, 7.Matty Connolly, 8. Oli Higginson, 9. Andy Davies 10. Will Titherington 11. Rhys Jones 12. Richard McEvoy 13. Lucas Titherington 14. Joe Denham 15. Cormac Nolan. Reserves: 16. Tom Shard, 17 Ali Sutherland, 18) Jordan Widdrington.
Lymm’s next game is on Saturday 1st April home to Stockport, KO 3.0pm.
