Leicester Lions 29 Bishop's Stortford 1st XV 36

A pinpoint opening dropout from Lions flyhalf, Dan Lewis, dropping on the ten metre line allowed his forwards to win the ball and quick hands and a clever bouncing kick into Stortford's 22 allowed the home scrumhalf to regather and dash under the posts for a 7-0 lead within the opening minute. This shock start provided early warning of the threat posed throughout the game by the home side's lively backs, including a couple of outstanding Academy players from Tigers and Saints on dual- registrations. Stortford were undaunted, though and drove back upfield, forcing successive penalties, resulting in a 5 metre lineout, from which a strongly driven maul saw Will Rogers over for a try, well-converted by Matt Riddington after 6 minutes. Both sides were keen to maintain a fast pace, but were equally accident-prone, preventing a further score, until the 20th minute, when Alex Rayment was the beneficiary of another well-driven lineout maul with a try, again converted by Riddington. The home side flew back onto the attack and, with the young Tigers' 12, Charlie Myall always to the fore, it took some stout Stortford defence, with notable red zone turnovers by Ollie Jones and Chris Bolton to prevent a score. With just over half an hour gone, it was the visitors that were next on the scoreboard, with Riddington took full advantage of a stretched home defence to put in a pinpoint crossfield chip kick into the arms of Rogers for the No 8's second try. Lions launched themselves back onto the attack and it took some more colossal Stortford defence on their line for phase after phase to hold the opposition out. Eventually, though, with first half time running out, it was Myall, who broke a tackle to plunge over for an unconverted try.

The visitors started the second period strongly and came very close to another try after 4 minutes, when Dan Powell could not hold onto the ball in a cover tackle, after he had recovered his own kick ahead inside the home 22, following great interplay with James Ayrton. The third Stortford try soon came, though, with Rayment again touching down from a powerful driving maul from lineout 8 metres out and Riddington again converting. Entering into the fourth quarter, the visitors extended their lead to 21 points with a good try to Josh Stannard, taking advantage of a favourable bounce of his own chip kick, after good interpassing with Powell. Connor Lloyd converted. Stortford's defence, hitherto, generally very strong suddenly faltered, though, after Lions won yet another restart kick to drive deep into Stortford's half, where an enormous gap was left down the side of a ruck for the home 9 to dart through and find Ollie Chessum in close support for a try under the posts. With the hosts' threequarters looking increasingly threatening, Stortford still managed to steady the ship and Lloyd stretched the lead again to 17 points with a testing penalty goal from some 40 metres out with some 10 minutes left. Undaunted, Lions swarmed back onto the attack and, although the visitors managed to hold out two attacking lineouts, the home side scored a good, bonus point try - again through Myall! - from a set move off a tapped 5 metre penalty, seeing the centre cutting a great line to take a short inside pass for a try out wide. Lewis converted well, as he did a penalty goal in injury time to seal his side's second bonus point, after a couple of poor Stortford tactical choices, compounded by some loose tackling, invited the opposition onto them. A patchy Stortford performance then, but a crucial 5 points hard-won on the road.