Kesteven returned to winning ways when they entertained Amber Valley at Woodnook on Saturday.
Midlands League 3 East North
Kesteven 50
Amber Valley 17
Kesteven chose to play with the wind and were soon on the attack. A fine kick to the corner by Parker set up position for the forwards and Scott Odams was credited with the opening try with three minutes on the clock.
The home side continued to attack using their backs to test the Amber Vally defence and they were able to build a steady lead. James Goodrich had the strength to get over the line for the second try, which Parker converted, before Hudson was quickest to react when a clearance kick was charged down, and he crossed for the third try which Parker also converted.
Then came a magic moment as Will Pert found himself in the clear 20 metres out and he raced over to score. The bonus point was secured after 20 minutes.
Ks continued to dominate and added two more fine tries before the break. First Olly Wood was put clear to run in, making sure he got round behind the posts to make the conversion a formality. Then Keiran Taylor picked a long pass from Goodrich in his own half and his beautifully balanced run turned the full back inside out as he raced clear. The conversion took the score to 38.
Amber Valley, to their credit, kept competing and were rewarded with a try on half time.
The second half was a complete contrast to the first as Kesteven turned to face the wind. They were forced to defend and started to concede penalties which Valley kicked to corner. Twice they used these positions to engineer tries through their forwards. ne was converted to cut the lead to 38-17.
The visitors were going all out for their bonus point try but somehow the Kesteven defence held out. Eventually the seige was lifted as Parker put in a huge clearance kick.
With 10 minutes remaining, Kesteven at last found a second wind and worked a trademark try. The ball was won on the left and when it came through the centres,James Cowley found himself out on the wing. He needed no second invitation to run in the try from 30 metres
From the restart, Cowley caught the ball cleanly and made a terrific run up the touchline. With only the full back to beat he looked for support and the chance was los. However, in the final minute Jake Hughes got the ball on half way. He wriggled out of three tackles and ran clear to score. Parker’s conversion was good.
Kesteven: Whittaker, Taylor, Hudson, Goodrich, Hughes, Parker, Wood, Odams, Brown, Purvis, Pert, Cowley, Flear, Turner, Woolerton. Reps: Harland, Carew, Webster.