Buzzards show character in key win
Win moves them up one place in the table.
Leighton Buzzard 30
Mansfield 23
With last week's disappointing loss still fresh in their minds the Buzzards took the field at Wrights Meadow on Saturday knowing that a win was vital to prevent this slump in form becoming a downward spiral that would lead inevitably into a relegation battle.
Mansfield were also at the wrong end of the league table and, like Leighton, not prepared to give an inch in a game that kept the large crowd enthralled until the final whistle.
Mansfield looked the more settled team with the Buzzards line-up changed beyond recognition by a catalogue of injuries. The tackle and breakdown areas were contested with huge physicality by both teams each looking to impose themselves on the other.
First blood went to Mansfield with a penalty quickly followed by a well-taken try out wide.
Leighton, playing with an untried back line and into a very strong wind, were forced to crash the ball up the 10 channel time and again.
Mansfield became complacent and moved their defence in closer, thinking Leighton were a one-trick pony. Tom Gibbs, however, coming back from injury and stepping into the fly half shirt spotted the gap and went in under the posts for a well-taken try that he duly converted.
Using the wind to good effect Mansfield came back very strongly setting up camp in the Leighton 22. Mansfield won a line-out and the ensuing driving play from the away side's pack put their No.8 in a position from which he crashed over the Leighton line.
At half-time Leighton turned around 10-13 down and with the strong wind at their backs and Tom Gibbs redoubtable boot looked firm favourites to win the game.
Mansfield, however, driven on by their excellent No.8, took the game to the home side. Continually picking up from the base of the ruck the Mansfield side tore into the home side and from a string of second phase plays it looked like their No.8 had done it again crashing over the Leighton line. The referee, however, judged that the ball was held up and the large home crowd breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Leighton survived the onslaught and the siege was lifted through a long relieving kicked from Gibbs.
The Buzzards then sensing it was now or never upped the tempo and began their own onslaught on the visitors' line. Mansfield defended manfully, however, they eventually ran out of men and skipper Branwhite fed the mercurial Nick Turney who showed some quite mesmeric footwork to go over in the corner through the very narrowest of gaps.
Back came Mansfield with a converted try again giving them the lead. The Buzzards, however, were showing the type of attitude and steel that was so lacking the previous week as all 15 men ripped into their opposition numbers. Sheer doggedness and never-say-die attitude ably assisted by Gibbs' boot saw wave after wave of Leighton attacks smashing into the Mansfield defence.
The visitors started to crack and some desperate play from them led to two yellow cards as they tried to illegally slow down Leighton ball.
Eventually the Buzzards pressure led to two more tries for Geoff Branwhite who had manfully led the team by example all afternoon with his massive tackle count and ball carries. Gibbs converted one of Branwhite's tries and took another three points from a penalty giving Leighton a 30-23 winning margin at the final whistle.
Buzzards' win moved them one place up the table and they are looking to add to this success when they travel to Market Bosworth next week.
Team: Chris Warner, Ollie Jenkins, Nick Turney, Gavin Taylor, Carl Perry, Alessandro Parias, Frank Hawkins, Ed Payne, Sam Janes, Tom Gibbs, James Burrough, Geoff Branwhite, James Gurney, Euan Irwin, Mark Lingard, Russell Cohen, Dan Baroux
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Leighton Buzzard
Wednesday 23 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 11 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: North east
