LINCOLN LADIES 34
SCUNTHORPE LADIES 27
LINCOLNSHIRE RFU SENIOR CUP SEMI-FINAL
BY JOSEPH VERNEY
PHOTO CREDIT: KATIE NESBITT
Jenna Bierton scored a last-gasp try as a resilient Lincoln edged past a battling Scunthorpe 34-27 to reach the Lincolnshire RFU Senior Cup Northern Final.
It was one of four tries for the Lincoln centre and Second Row Jodie Hill and vice captain Emily Nelson also crossed for five-pointers, with the latter adding two conversions. Prop Lara Warman was voted as Lincoln’s man-of-the-match by her fellow players, and Bierton was named as the host’s best player by Scunthorpe.
Cassie Milestone grabbed a brace of tries for Scunthorpe, while captain Becky Clark, Ewa Jasek and Sophie Bullass each scored one. Milestone, who was named as Scunthorpe’s back of the match, also added one conversion. Holly Newman was voted as their forward of the match, while Lincoln named Harriet Burniston as Scunthorpe’s best player.
Lincoln opened the scoring after Hill got the ball from the back of a ruck and stormed through two players to go over for a try in the left-hand corner.
Scunthorpe hit back to level the score when Milestone went on a weaving run in the middle of the park and split the defence to go clear for a try.
Lincoln regained the lead when the forwards secure the ball from a lineout. After a couple of forward pods captain Abi Lee passed the ball out to Clare Brooker-Brown, who drew in two defenders and offloaded to Bierton. Bierton was tackled, but still managed to reach out to score her first try of the match.
It what was proving to be a great battle the score then swung back in Scunthorpe’s favour after an offload from captain Clark set up Jasek to go over for a try. Milestone added the conversion to edge Scunthorpe in front by two points.
The scoreline switched a further two times before the end of the first half. Lee fizzed a ball out wide to Bierton, who beat a couple of defenders to score an unconverted try out wide.
However, it was Scunthorpe who took a narrow 17-15 lead in at the break when captain Clark scored a try off a miss pass move from Milestone.
A pass from Jade Morgan from the back of a ruck set up vice captain Emily Nelson to dive over the line for a try to edge Lincoln back in front 20-17, before Scunthorpe started took the lead with two well-worked tries.
Milestone evaded several tackles before powering through to the line for her second try of the match. Scorer then turned provider and drew in a Lincoln player before passing for Bullass on a support line to go over for a try to give Scunthorpe a 27-20 lead.
With just 10 minutes remaining Lincoln turned the game on its head to snatch a dramatic cup victory in a game which also saw Lauren Jones make her comeback for the team.
After a lot of hard work by the Lincoln forwards, the ball was passed through the hands of the backs with Lee and Brooker-Brown putting Bierton through a gap to score under the posts to complete her hat-trick. Nelson added the extras to level the score at 27-27.
Lincoln secured their place in the Northern Final after being awarded a scrum which was the final play of the game. After a few dominant forward phases moved Lincoln up to within five metres, they spread the defence and Bierton handed off a defender to go over to the right of the posts for her fourth try of the match.
Nelson once again added the extras to complete a dramatic victory for Lincoln, who will play Gainsborough in the Northern Final.
The winner of that tie will play either Boston or Stamford in the main final. Boston will take a 36-10 lead into the second leg of their semi-final tie, which will be played on April 14.
POST MATCH COMMENTS
After the match Lincoln vice captain Emily Nelson said: Today’s game saw us come up against a very strong Scunthorpe side that started the game very strong with a desire to get the win against us.
“The game was a very tight one which swung both ways on the scoresheet. We showed fantastic resilience to keep picking ourselves back up and play our game to the best we could to keep the score very close.
“The final few minutes were incredibly tense, with us showing true grit and determination to come away with a fantastic win with another amazing team performance.”
Lincoln Head Coach George Reid said: “Scunthorpe came with thoughts of claiming a significant scalp. There were times when it looked like an upset was on the cards.
“A real seesaw of a game that Lincoln were unable to take control of. Scunthorpe were relentless and continually pushed Lincoln and with 10 minutes remaining they took a 27-20 lead.
“This is where Lincoln really showed their mettle and threw everything at the Scunthorpe defence. Some excellent turnovers by Jade (Morgan), Lucy (Ellis), and Rose (Buchanan) saw Lincoln score near to the posts which Emily duly converted.
“With the game tied Lincoln upped the ante and went for it. In their desire to keep Lincoln out, Scunthorpe gave away several important penalties which gave Lincoln the position they needed to set up Jenna to score the winning try which was converted by Emily.
“The determination, desire and resilience shown by the Lincoln players in the final 10 minutes was exactly what the coaching team of myself and Mike had been asking for all game.
“A lot to work on, but the camaraderie and spirit of these women is fantastic and they will continue to give their everything until the end.”
Scunthorpe captain Becky Clark said: “I couldn’t be more proud of the lasses today. We played with pride and heart and proved we can compete at a higher level.”
