Stourbridge Lions fell to a worrying 41-17 defeat at home against an average Hereford side to remain in the bottom three coming up to Christmas. The nature of their defeat was concerning with 3 of the 7 Hereford tries coming from poor mistakes by the Lions with ball in hand.
It looked so different in the majority of the first half, with the Lions putting pressure on the away team both in the tight phases and in open play. Though Hereford scored the first two tries within the first 20 minutes for a 12-0 lead, the Lions hit back with a Simon Montieri try after a quick tap penalty and a couple of phases near the line. A Freddie Morgan penalty gave the scoreline a healthier look and soon afterwards another try, by Morgan brought the Lions back level. The rest of the half was nip and tuck but a lapse by the Lions led to a forwards’ try by Hereford right on half-time.

It seemed that it was going to be game on in the second half, but Hereford put an end to this very quickly, with a try almost from the kick-off, followed by a 5th try and conversion soon after for a 29-12 lead; this seemingly end the game as a contest. The Lions huffed and puffed but found no way through a stubborn defence. Instead they coughed up possession far too easily, one of which at least led to further tries, one converted, to leave Hereford 29 points head at 41-17. The match was gone but the Lions at least contrived the final score, a series of moves from half-way ending with a relatively simple try by Tildesley for the consolation.

The score in the end perhaps flattered Hereford somewhat but they took deadly advantage of the many mistakes made by the Lions, especially in the second half. This is what is worrying for the home side, a series of errors, sometimes not under pressure. They were in the game for around 40 minutes but a lack of focus and consistency, as well as perhaps a little confidence, gave them little chance of coming back.

by Jon Dews, pics by Ceri Davies