Ormskirk 2nd XV 13 Lymm 3rd XV 0
It looked bleak as the Ormskirk second team went into their latest game, with a heavy defeat the week before and a tough encounter against an in-form Lymm. With this in mind Ormskirk had been training hard during the week and preparing themselves for an arduous, ‘must win’ game. With a number of injuries and players unavailable the home side selected a team with both experience and blistering pace but only one replacement. It was a cold and wet December Saturday as these two teams lined up for kick off. From the first minute of the game the Ormskirk team took the game to Lymm with hard physical rugby. The first points of the game came after ten minutes of the ‘gingerbread men’ piling the pressure on their opponents through vigorous scrimmaging, hard tackling and rapid paced attacking rugby. The cracks soon began to appear in Lymm’s defence and they handed ‘kirk’ a penalty in front of the posts, allowing Spence to put three points on the board for the home side.
With an early lead Ormskirk went about overwhelming their worthy opponents, the back row combination of Dawson, Bramwell and Webster causing the away side enormous problems, whilst supporting the backs in their attempts to cross the line. In the forwards the line-outs were at times excellent but the blustery conditions proved a challenge for the hookers on both team, whilst the scrums proved a much more of a one sided affair. The ‘front five’ which contained a extra prop in the form of big Val Gatley, the up and coming star of Ormskirk rugby club, playing out of position in the second row with Dean. Morgan and Gatley soon had the number of their opposite prop and were winning ball against the head and wheeling the scrum to their advantage.
The intrepid backs continued to play lightningly fast attacking rugby, but their efforts seemed to be fruitless until a moment of brilliance saw winger Wroe out paced all that stood between him and glory; forcing his way over the line with an outstretched arm to score ‘Kirk’s’ first try. The Ormskirk defence kept their foe at bay and stopped them scoring any points, and meant that ‘Kirk’s’ other winger wasn’t left out of the scoring. Green again showed a clean pair of heels to the pedestrian fullback and managed to finish in style to bag Ormskirk’s second.
With fifteen minutes remaining the skies blackened and the heavens opened but Ormskirk kept their heads and finished the game with a clean sheet. A good win for a team that has had only limited success in the league this season against an opposition who must now be asking themselves how they lost a game they anticipated to be an easy win. However, those who know, know that there is no such thing as an ‘easy win’ with an away trip to ‘Fortress Green Lane!’
