KESTEVEN BAA BAAS 24
LINCOLN IMPS XV 35
NLD MERIT TABLE EAST 1
BY JOSEPH VERNEY
PHOTO CREDIT: TOBY ROBERTS
Brothers Alex and Luke Brodrick both crossed for tries as Lincoln Imps XV continued their unbeaten league season with a hard-fought 35-24 victory away against a gutsy Kesteven side.
When the two sides met back in October Lincoln claimed a 38-7 victory, but the match at Woodnook was a much tighter affair.
Kesteven took the game to Lincoln from the off and the visitors took time to settle before scoring the first try of the match. Lincoln captain Alex Brodrick picked up the ball from the bottom of a ruck and sniped his way over to score.
Jack Randell successfully slotted over the conversion in what was a great performance for the young fly-half.
A determined Kesteven hit back with some big carries from Number Eight Michael Coghill and flanker Georgio King. The evergreen Martin Parker made inroads into the Lincoln defence and veteran Simon Morgan was getting quick ball at scrum-half.
This allowed Parker to put Ben Betts into space and the centre went over for a smart try under the posts. Parker added the extras.
Kesteven soon took the lead after regathering the ball from the restart. Neil Robson and Max Nicklin started to produce excellent lineout ball and busy hooker Xanti Xipu was causing problems with powerful carries.
Smart hands along the backline then saw Harry Cox draw a defender in before releasing Josh Udon, whose pace saw him dot down in the corner as Kesteven dreamed of a possible upset.
To their credit, this rallied Lincoln and the game became a real end-to-end thriller with both sides buying into some adventurous ball in hand play.
Lincoln then crossed for two quickfire tries to take a 21-12 lead in at the break. Jack Miles went over for a try under the posts after a scorching hard line run saw him go in unopposed to score.
After a great piece of skill from Randell, who tore into the home defence, Luke Brodrick evaded a tackle and ran in for a try. Randell successfully slotted over both conversions.
Lincoln extended their lead when the instrumental Randell took a quick ball from Alex Brodrick to accelerate and weave through the defence to score a try, which he also converted.
Although this reduced the tempo and energy within the game, it didn’t stop Kesteven from scoring their third try midway through the second half. James Draper was now at scrum-half and made a typical sniping run around the ruck to score an unconverted try.
Lincoln put the result beyond doubt when a great piece of skill from Kieran Hawkes saw him show a dummy which sold the defence, and allowed him to glide through the score.
Randell maintained his 100% record on the day with the boot as he slotted over the conversion.
Kesteven refused to give up and dug deep to go over for their fourth try of the match. Parker engineered a smart move deep in Kesteven’s half putting Cox into space, and this time the youngster backed himself and ran over 60 metres for a great try.
Parker added the extras for a battling Kesteven side, but it wasn't enoguh to stop league leaders Lincoln from claiming the win.
POST MATCH COMMENTS
After the match Lincoln Imps XV coach Andy Miles said: “The Imps played extremely well and showed that they have the tenacity to stay in the game, which was a hard toe to toe affair. They were in no doubt that Kesteven were there to upset.”
He added that Randell "controlled the game from the 10 position which allowed both forwards and backs to combine to create the scoring opportunities".
Lincoln captain Alex Brodrick said: “I am really proud of the boys. It was a well constructed win against a well-drilled and capable Kesteven side.
“We bounced back nicely from a disappointing performance the week before and it’s of course nice to build on everything the coaches have been instilling in us for the last four months to remain unbeaten.”
Kesteven’s 2nd XV captain Sean Cummings said: “I couldn't be happier with how the lads performed. Last time we met we struggled with go forward ball, however, this time it was a different story.
“I asked and the lads delivered in spades. This was a go either way game with bodies put on the line and great heart shown by both teams. Congratulations to Lincoln on the win. The Baa Baas march on.”
