Anselmians 22 – 11 Lymm

1st Team Match Report | Wednesday April 13 2022

Cheshire Cup semi-final meets dead end

The talk before this match was that the ambitious, Wirral based Anselmians had had a great season winning promotion for next season to level six, one level below Lymm, and would be a difficult opponent in this Cheshire Cup semi-final – a competition Lymm has only won once in 1989.

The evening match, played mid-week on the neutral ground of Birkenhead Park proved a difficult venue for Lymm, not least because it took two and a half hours to fight through traffic jams on the M56 at Runcorn. Some players arriving half an hour before kick-off did not help Lymm’s preparation but from the start Anselmians looked more than a handful for the Beechwood side.

After a delayed kick-off, and a bright start but with early pressure from Anselmians’ rolling mauls, Lymm went on the offensive with their wide, passing game but Anselmians were up to the defensive task, and in fact took the lead after 24 mins with a converted try. 7-0. This was followed by a penalty and a 10-0 lead on 34 mins. A yellow card offence gave Lymm’s full back Cormac Nolan a penalty which he converted, taking the half time score to 10-3.

HT – 10-3

A penalty to Lymm early in the second half by Nolan, edged Lymm closer at 10-6, but then second row replacement Matty Connelly received a yellow card and, despite absorbing a great deal of forward pressure, Lymm succumbed to a second forward try – 17-6.

Lymm broke out and put a series of phases and passing sequences together for back row Ed Morris to go over wide out. The missed conversion made it 17-11 and game on.

But Anselmians were oozing confidence at this stage and the predominant and noisy supporting spectators could smell blood. Having beaten Macclesfield in the previous round this giant-killer was not going to lie down. Another rolling maul try, with a few minutes left, put the game beyond Lymm and at 22-11, Anselmians were worthy winners.

FT 22- 11

Director of Rugby Adam Fletcher commented, ‘It was a really disappointing night, but no real complaints,  Anselmians were well organised and deserved their win.

‘However, we are looking forward to the Easter weekend off, then finishing the season hopefully  with a win at Kirkby Lonsdale next Saturday, and consolidating our fifth place position in the league.’

Team: 1. Gav Woods (C), 2. Rob Makin, 3. Matty Hand, 4. James Yates, 5. Sean Boyce, 6. Ed Morris, 7. Harry Martin, 8. Gav Down, 9. Ben Simpson, 10. Tom Shard, 11. Sam Wadsworth, 12. Scott Redfern, 13. Steve Pilkington, 14. Nathan Beesley, 15. Cormac Nolan. Bench: 16, Nick Ashton, 17. Ben Polec, 18. James Pitcher, 19, Matty Connelly, 20. Dalton Frith, 21. Alfie Simpson, 22. Rory Ridell.

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