Preston Grasshoppers 46-42 Lymm
Preston Grasshoppers and Lymm scored 13 tries in a thrilling display of running rugby at Lightfoot Lane, with the Hoppers coming out on top, winning 46-42.
Strong winds tried to make things challenging for both sides, but that wasn’t enough to stop both teams going for it.
Lymm held the lead right up until the end, but Preston’s eighth try courtesy of Jack Lightowler was enough to get the side over the line.
Lymm made an early start, with Harry Martin pouncing on a loose ball, before breaking through the defence to score the first try of the game.
Hoppers responded almost immediately after a dink through found Lightowler who sent Ciaran O’Donnell through to power over.
Following a Thomas Shard penalty, Tyler Spence brought the sides level with an expert finish into the corner.
Two tries in five minutes came next for Lymm, the first scored by Jack Stride who spun off the back of the maul to tumble over, before Callum Morris powered over for another five points.
Preston brought in half time with arguably the best try of the game. Starting from all the way on their own line, the Hoppers managed to break away, great runs and offloads between the backs brought them all the way up to the 22. Will Hunt then completed an outstanding crossfield kick to Spence who crawled his way over for his second try.
Hoppers flew out of the blocks into the second 40, securing the bonus point through Jake Maher after Holden and Ashdown made the initial break.
Lymm scored two quick penalties, before a bonus point try from James Kimber stretched their lead to 15 points when he found the space under the posts.
With 20 minutes to go, Patrick Jennings was shown a yellow card, and Hoppers made full use of their extra man, with Ed Keohane having all the time in the world to run over.
Lymm increased their lead back to 15, with Nathan Beesely scoring in the corner.
Hoppers looked to be too far behind but Declan Norrington scored two tries in two minutes to bring the Hoppers within one point. The first an opportunistic move, picking up the ball 40metres out and running all the way through. The next was a show of strength, powering over from 5 metres out.
With victory now well within their sights, the ball went coast to coast before a lovely offload found Jack Lightowler (pictured above), who flew over to give Hoppers both the lead and the win.
Victory put the Grasshoppers above Lymm in the league table, and now have just two games left this season, the first an away trip to Rotherham next weekend.
Report by Tom Kelly, pictures by Mike Craig
