ON a dry, windy Autumnal day Lymm were not sure quite what to expect from newly promoted Huddersfield YMCA but being pushed back in the scrum in the early stages gave the visitors a foretaste of what was to come.
It all looked so good after 11 minutes following a converted try from hooker Ross White, following a great break by back row Jake Ashall, duly converted by full back Cormac Nolan. Then the Lymm backs showed their prowess following a number of patient driving mauls and a great run from Nolan with inter-passing between Knowles and Nolan resulting in a well taken, but uncoverted, try by fly half Joe Knowles after 26 minutes, 0-12.
Lymm’s shakey front row was stabilised by replacement prop Jordan Widdrington but when he went off with a recurring knee problem normal service resumed and the Lymm pack went backwards in the scrum, more or less all afternoon from this moment.
The home side were beginning to show real enterprise in their running and broke through the defensive line on a number of occasions. If not for the odd fumble and a brace of forward passes they would have taken the lead earlier than they did. Nevertheless, after shoving Lymm off the ball, against the head, the young men in the YMCA backs created a lovely opening for the centre to burst through and score under the posts, 7-12.
Lymm then stretched the home side and looked dangerous, combining good forward surges with clever back play but the next, crucial score did not come. An attacking line out gave the home side the territory they needed to sustain an attack as the half came to a close, and they scored following a neat offload, under the posts as the whistle went. 14-12.
Huddersfield started the second half as they had finished the first, despite facing quite a strong wind, and being in the heart of rugby league territory was beginning to show, as their handling improved significantly with offloads coming thick and fast. Line outs however, were more of a lottery with Lymm winning all their own and stealing a few.
But two tries later, at 24-12, Lymm were looking down the barrel and could not find the requisite reply. Too many were falling off tackles as the Yorkshiremen increasingly got the bit between their teeth. However, an attacking line out from Lymm gave right wing Andy Rowley a chance to chip through and touch down with a very neat piece of skill, which Nolan converted, 24-19.
The game, still in the balance at this time, turned in an instant. With Lymm on the attack and looking dangerous, the home side launched a counter attack, giving them a crucial try and a ten point lead, 29-19. Again, poor tackling was evident and the game was effectively lost.
With their tails up, and running lines perfected, Huddersfield charged through the defensive line time and again. Last ditch tackles kept the score respectable but Lymm’s heads seemed to have dropped. An attacking scrum towards the end, resulted in a penalty try awarded to the home side, underpinning their superiority in the set-piece throughout the match, giving a final score of 36-19.
The set piece platform has become a concern and the snarl and bite of Lymm’s defence, so often a winning trait in this team, has deserted them for the time being.
Coach Adam Fletcher, with work to do after four consecutive losses, summed up the game. ‘They are a good side and we missed too many individual tackles.’ Captain Sion Williams was even more succinct. ‘We underestimated them!’
Team: Williamson, Nolan, Dugdale, T. Bray, Rowley, Knowles, Baker, McGuinness, White, Ashton, Yates, Williams, Mullarkey, Ashall, A. Bray. Replacements; Widdrington, Harper, Wells.
