After a weekend with no rugby the Lions returned to business at Stourton Park with an emphatic 24-10 victory over 3rd placed Rugby Lions. Given the level and the standard of the opposition this is probably the greatest ever Lions win, with significant performances across the 15 and from the replacements.

An early penalty for the home side, converted by Tom Mitchell, was followed by another as the Lions piled pressure on the away team. At this point it was increasingly clear that the Lions back row, all outstanding, would have a real impact on the game.

An isolated foray by Rugby into the Lions half produced a penalty reply after 15 minutes and then the remainder of the next 20 minutes was nip and tuck, with both sides having some ascendancy. Notable throughout, however, was the discipline and ferocity of the Lions’ tackling, with only one move where that let them down.

It was this pressure that led to the next score after 35 minutes, with another Mitchell penalty making it 9-3 heading towards half-time. Then came what was ultimately the decisive moment of the match, a brilliant team try converted by Alex Jones. A scrum just before half-way led to a series of phases with the Lions keeping the ball alive. The ball went left and a great switch move between Cass Brookes and Jones left Jones with an overlap he didn’t need, a deft dummy and a 15-metre dash over the line gaining the 5 points. The conversion from Mitchell left the home team 16-3 up at half-time.

The second half opened with a break from right to left leaving George Tildesley to power through to the line and over, but the referee decided that he had spilled the ball before grounding it. There was little real incident for the next 15 minutes or so other than pressure from the Lions defence which kept Rugby contained. After 20 minutes an infringement by the away side gave Mitchell the chance of another penalty, which he duly converted for a 19-3 lead.

The result was finally confirmed within the next 10 minutes as the Lions scored their second try. A 60m clearance from Sam Wilson and a stolen lineout catch in the away 22 led to a break from Tom Noote, a pass inside and then outside to Fred Brookes who dived over in the corner. A Rugby Lions try and conversion with 3 or 4 minutes to go changed little and a jubilant home squad were left thoroughly happy with their win and performance.

The whole team performed superbly, with the team effort being especially marked in a well-organised and ferocious defence. However, special mention must be made regarding the front row of the Bowser brothers and Fred Brookes, who overpowered their opponents in scrums and at the breakdown, Cass Brookes, who drove the opposing centres to distraction, but above all the back row, who were outstanding in defence and attack throughout the game. Pennock, Noote and newcomer Sam Montieri never gave Rugby time to mount serious attacks, being first to the ball and slowing up most of the away side’s possession. Tough challenges lie ahead, however. As Head Coach Tibbo said after the game, a great performance from the team but it must be followed up next week away at Stoke.

by JON DEWS, pics by Sian Davies