Grimsby 3rds 27 Horncastle 24
Grimsby took to the field eager to avenge a narrow defeat to their visitors in a physical encounter two weeks earlier. The squad was bolstered by the return of Hood, Scaife and Studd, bringing their own particular flair to complement the seasoned Hopkins, Connett and Dodgson in this Lincs Merit League fixture. The opposition started strongly, putting the home team under early pressure with penetrating drives from their powerful locks.
Grimsby defended well but when the second of two yellow cards was flashed for taking exception to undisciplined footwork, Dodgson was sent for a rest and Horncastle took advantage to put a penalty and a converted try onto the scorecard. Grimsby responded with a series of slick moves that culminated in prop Turner finding the try line beckoning with the defending winger not relishing his task. A penalty shortly after levelled the scores and Turner crossed the line again shortly before half-time to give Grimsby a five-point lead at the break.
The youth of the visitors started to show in the early stages of the second half and a converted try put them back in front. It became obvious that they did not want to become embroiled in a forward battle and were looking to move the ball wide. If nothing else, tactical substitutions by Grimsby raised the average age and weight of the pack considerably and, within seconds, a prolonged rolling maul sapped the strength from the visitors and the line was crossed to regain the lead for the Blues. From the restart, the Grimsby forwards dominated with blind-side flanker Hood being so quick about the park that many would swear they hardly saw him move. Holt confused most players by going open and throwing a long looping pass to Scaife. His clever cross-field kick was gathered neatly by Hood, who stepped inside the defending winger, shimmied past the full back and touched down to take the Blues to a 25-17 lead. Not to be denied, Horncastle pulled a try back but with the kick being scooped wide a three point victory was claimed by the home team. The only casualty of the day was Hood's boots and he must now decide if he will get enough use out of a new pair to justify the cost. Overall, the mix of maturing and seasoned players paid dividends for the Thirds.