1st TEAM Match Report
Saturday 8th October 2005
LEAGUE: MIDLANDS 3 EAST (South)
LEICESTER FOREST 1st XV: 10 V LUTTERWORTH 1st XV: 13
After a stuttering start to the season the local lads from Lutterworth were up against a highly rated side trawled from the former Commonwealth, the air was thick with Kiwi, Canadian, South African and even Barbados twang.
Forest started with the wind and the slope of the pitch and looked especially dangerous in the midfield. They missed an early penalty but after twelve minutes took the lead with a converted try and minutes later added three points from a penalty. Lutterworth began to turn the tide in the final ten or fifteen minutes of the first period. Tim Jeffs slotted a penalty attempt and there was a tangible feeling that that the visitors had weathered the storm and could go on to win.
From the start of the game the Lutterworth front five of Wilford, Johnson, Stevens, Williamson and Evans had once again dominated the set piece and the impressive determination and work rate of the back row was led by number eight, Adam Conway. For the first ten minutes of the second half Forest were pinned down in their twenty two and when they did finally break out a clearance kick by their fly half was caught by Lutterworth flanker, Joe Wilson, who took the ball over for the visitor’s first try. Further Lutterworth pressure was causing havoc in the Forest defence and their inability to control their discipline led the referee to reverse a penalty decision in their favour only some ten metres out. Super sub, Paul Riley, took the ball over in the corner from the tap and go and Jeffs difficult conversion effort hit an upright for the second week running. Forest did come back strongly in the closing minutes but a series of handling errors and great defence especially the cool head of scrum half Andrew Hall and the clearance kicking of Jim Croucher kept them out. A true and gratifying team performance from all eighteen of the Lutterworth squad and a victory greater than the final score line suggested.