Liskeard-Looe 46 v Withycombe 7

Lions score 2 try hat-tricks

Last Saturday The Lions welcomed basement club Withycombe (from Exmouth) for the twenty-first round of matches in the Cornwall-Devon league and the game saw the return of club captain Yestin Hutchings and also Nick Parker both from injury.
In the tenth minute, from a scrum, Liskeard number eight, Adam Tyndale-Powell, picked up at the base driving the ball forward before it was switched to the left to prop Mike Mander, who also drove forward before setting up a ruck, from where it was released to the backs to outside centre Oliver Aggiss to run through for an unconverted try. Five minutes later, Lions fly half Tom Dinniss put a high hanging kick into the visitors twenty-two, where it wasn’t dealt with and was the “Withy” defence was forced to dot down for a five metre scrum, from where the ball was released to the backs and wing Jordan Smith raced through to crash over for a try that Dinniss converted to make it 12-0; unfortunately in the thirty-fourth minute Liskeard were reduced to fourteen when Smith was yellow carded. This didn’t, however stop Liskeard because in the thirty-ninth minute Lions flanker picked off an overcooked “With” lineout ball and released the backs with inside centre Sam Chapman giving Aggiss a clear run in to go in under the posts for his second try and this was converted by Dinniss. In stoppage time Liskeard were awarded a penalty that Dinniss also slotted to take the half-time score to 22-0; a good half of rugby with Liskeard beginning to take the visitors to the cleaners.
Shortly after the restart the visitors scored a converted try of their own that perhaps should have been cancelled out as the referee failed to spot an infringement. In the fifty-sixth minute a Withycombe player was sent to the bin. On the hour mark with the referee playing advantage for a foul, just outside the Withycombe twenty-two, Dinniss put in a clever cross field kick for Smith to chase down, but even though it looked as if he had scored the referee disallowed it and went back to the infringement area, where the ball was then put to touch inside the twenty-two. Following the lineout a driving maul developed, with several backs joining in to give extra weight, crossing the try-line where scrum half James Noel-Johnson dotted down for the fifth Liskeard try; unfortunately the conversion was missed. Not long after this a second visiting player went to the bin and from the ensuing penalty a passing move was started and Smith was sent through for his second try breaking through a tackle in the process, the conversion was pushed wide. In the sixty-fourth minute good work by the Liskeard pack was backed up by excellent passing from the backs with Smith coming through on a superb angle to go over for his hat-trick try this time Dinniss was successful with the conversion. The final scoring to the game came about when Liskeard were pressing the Withycombe try-line and a “Withy” clearance kick was gathered by replacement wing Treve Murley stated a passing move that was finished off with Aggiss going over for his hat-trick and another Dinniss conversion to make the final score 46-7.