Firwood Waterloo 14 Lymm 22 Report by Dave Fernyhough
A young and determined Lymm secured their first ever win at Waterloo amid the murk and mire.
Waterloo had started the day in third place so a real challenge awaited Lymm, especially with a home side smarting from a heavy defeat the week before.
With wet weather and the wind behind them Lymm started by far the brighter of the two. The pack secured front foot ball behind which the back line played quite adventurously given the conditions.
This soon allowed Lymm a scoring chance with the ball whipped away from a scrum in Loo’s 22, but with winger Cormac Nolan free on the wing the final pass slipped forward.
Lymm continued to build on this threat however and kept a nervy home side trapped deep in their own half.
The next Lymm threat came when the ball reached their midfield from a line out just inside the Lymm half. Outside centre Rick Halford made a strong break forward finishing it with a chip through for himself and Nolan to chase. The Loo full back scrambled well to take the ball into touch, but Lymm had good position to build their pressure on Waterloos line.
This was soon rewarded with a fine try. A Richard McEvoy break had resulted in a Lymm scrum 15 metres out on their right side. Ollie Higginson sprinted forward from number 8 and fed his support runners. Three quick passes later and Joe Knowles was able to force his way over in the corner.
Lymm took a well deserved lead, (0-5).
From the kick off Waterloo struggled to hold the ball and Lymm were again on the attack. From the scrum it was Halford again charging forward who took the ball 30 metres into the opposition half. This attack was thwarted by a poor pass but a penalty had occurred in the build up and Lymm were to retain possession. Seconds later Halford had the ball in hand again with a nice inside ball from scrum half Tom Baker allowing him to stretch over to score near the posts. A McEvoy conversion took Lymm’s lead to (0-12).
Lymm were putting as much focus on defence as attack and Loo were having a torrid time trying to reach the visitors half. For Lymm though the chances kept coming. With their set piece going well and the scrum looking particularly stable, a score nearly resulted from a line out and maul but a knock on over the line undid that effort.
Another score came soon enough though with McEvoy scoring a penalty in front of the posts.
Loo briefly found their attacking boots but knock-ons prevented them building any momentum.
Lymm responded with a third try built on some excellent ball movement. Space was created on Lymm’s left for Nolan to try and exploit. Good defence by the Waterloo backs held him up short of the line but the ball was squirrelled out to young centre Callum Harris who dived in for a try by the corner flag. Again McEvoy converted, and the score stood at a surprising 0-22 lead for the visitors.
This was how Lymm ended a very assured first half, and unless Loo found another gear a real surprise looked likely.
From the kick off Loo looked a different outfit. They had used the interval well with coach Van Deventer clearly motivating his troops, Fletcher had spent the break eating chips. The Merseysiders were far more direct and offered more challenge, especially at the break down. They were soon rewarded with a penalty which allowed them their first real attacking platform in Lymm’s half. The Lymm defence held strong and following a steal cleared their lines.
Loo attacked again but Lymm’s dominance in the scrum would be crucial in upsetting their offence.
Ollie Higginson, Jack Harper and Adam Bray were a thorn in Loo’s side as they crashed into tackle after tackle. Meanwhile the young replacement at scrum half for Loo had brought a new pace to the Merseysiders attacks.
A poor clearing kick exposed Lymm on their right and Loo nearly got their first score, but were undone once more by committed Lymm defending.
A clever kick over the ruck was to be the catalyst when Loo did eventually get points on the board. The kick found an unguarded patch of Lymm territory which their winger got to first to score a fine converted try. (7-22).
The remainder of the half was a gritty affair in the February gloom. The mud made it hard to tell the two teams apart, and the damp clearly affected handling as knock on followed knock on.
Loo had steadied their ship and were a greater threat than in the first half. Lymm by contrast seemed caught between securing their lead and chasing a possible try bonus point. Consequently much of their play seemed forced, with some dubious decision making slipping into their attack. Defensively however Lymm were more resolute and lead by Higginson kept the improved home side at bay.
One final score saw Loo add to their tally, on the back of one of Lymm’s few proper attacks of the second half. Good straight lines and swift passing allowed Adam Bray to power forward to within 15 metres of the Waterloo line. His short pass found a fellow forward clad in dark green and mud. Unfortunately this was the green and mud of Waterloo’s loose head prop. A short burst by the prop set up the pacier winger who raced ahead to take the score to (14-22).
The final whistle saw Lymm relieved but deserving winners. Whilst the second half lacked composure and direction at times in attack, much should be taken by Adam Fletcher’s side from a dominant and classy first half. Possibly more important is the impact of the defensive commitment shown by all throughout the game.
A sanguine Coach Fletcher responded to a request for a post match comment with a Van Gaal like “there’s no point because you will just make it up anyway you maniac”.
This win takes Lymm to 5th place, within 2 points of third position with a game in hand. Next week they are at home to 4th placed Sheffield.
Team: 1) Dan Horton, 2) Ross White, 3) Jordan Widdrington, 4) Will Baldwin, 5) Aaron Rasheed, 6) Adam Bray (C) 7) Jack Harper, 8) Ollie Higginson, 9) Tom Baker, 10) Tom Bray, 11) Richard McEvoy, 12) Callum Harris, 13) Richard Halford, 14) Cormac Nolan, 15) Joe Knowles, 16) Chis Owens, 17) Mike Auden, 18) Zak Lythgoe.
