CHESTERFIELD PANTHERS 31
LINCOLN IMPS XV 14
NLD CUP
BY JOSEPH VERNEY
Lincoln Imps XV secured their place in the Trophy Final of the NLD Cup despite a positive performance ending in a 31-14 defeat at Chesterfield Panthers.
Lincoln began their NLD Cup campaign with a 36-5 home victory against Amber Valley before the match against Ashfield was called off by the opposition.
The match against Chesterfield was their toughest of the competition so far, but Lincoln battled hard throughout and scored through Alex Brodrick’s try, a penalty try and a conversion from Jack Randell.
Lincoln opened the scoring after 22 minutes when Alex Brodrick picked up the ball from the back of a ruck around 40 metres out.
The scrum-half then broke through the gap of two players and turned the full-back inside out with quick feet, before running in for a try under the posts. Randell successfully slotted over the conversion.
Chesterfield crossed for an unconverted try to cut the gap in the score to just two points on the half hour mark.
Lincoln extended their lead six minutes later when Randell ran past the full-back, who appeared to then hit him with a late high tackle. It resulted in a penalty try being given as Lincoln took a 14-5 lead going in at the break.
Lincoln continued to play positively in the second half, but unfortunately giving away penalties too easily proved costly and saw Chesterfield snatch the victory with four tries.
Coach Adam Kelleher said it was a great team performance and his side were unfortunate to lose, while the result meant Lincoln finished second in their group behind Chesterfield.
Lincoln now move into the Trophy Final where they will face Long Eaton over two legs, starting at home on June 26 before the trip to Derbyshire on July 3.
POST MATCH COMMENTS
Lincoln’s try scorer Alex Brodrick said: “I’m really proud to play with the boys and I think the team performance was one of the best we have seen from the lads.
“Despite some decisions going against us we remained positive and worked hard for each other.
“It was a really positive way to end the group stages despite the result and there are lots of positives we can take into next week’s final.
“Crowds are allowed again and it would be good to see people getting down to support the lads at home for their final.”
Captain Luke Brodrick said: “The boys put in a huge shift against a strong Chesterfield side. We stuck to our game plan and for the majority of the game it paid off as we put them under pressure.
“Credit to Chesterfield who took their chances well. Questionable decisions cost us the win in the end, but now we start preparations for next weekend.”
