Luisetti Seeds Ellesmere Division 1 - Final
The defending champions set up victory with a first-half blitz at Darfield, led by a superb goal-kicking display from centre Dayle Eathorne. The win also erased memories of Lincoln’s last Ellesmere final defeat, against Waihora at the same ground in 2008. Lincoln captain Matt Lowe said after the match the loss three years ago had played on his mind on the way to the ground. “We had a bit of a slow bus trip up here, which was putting the pressure on,” he said. However, the bad memories were soon eased when Lincoln opened up an early 10 point lead, following an Eathorne penalty and a try to wing Daniel Murray from a Mark Stanbury break. Eathorne and Darfield first five-eighth Scott Mitchell traded penalties, before the home side had their best scoring chance rubbed out by a forward pass. Prop Scott McIlroy busted several tackles, but his inside pass to put wing Johnny Fisher clear was called back. Lincoln landed the decisive blow when just before half time, they scored through fullback Dane Petheram from a well worked blindside scrum move. Trailing 23-3 at the break, Darfield needed to start the second half well. Despite having their fair share of possession, the home side’s set piece fell apart and crucial kicks were missed as Lincoln’s defence suffocated the attacking efforts.
Matt said it was a “typical” Lincoln final. “We just got the lead in the first half and held on to it. That’s pretty much our strength,” he said. “If we can bust teams in the first 40, it certainly makes it easier in the second. Finals are all about opportunities and we took ours.” The reaction of the players at the final whistle was more “relief than jubilation” after a tough season, Matt said. He said the team had struggled to lift mentally after an emphatic 41-8 win against Methven in the combined competition final in June. “There’s not much between first and 15th in the combined competition, and every game’s a hard game. “We’ve struggled a wee bit since that combined final to get a bit of form, because that was one of the best game’s we’ve played all year.” Locationhttp://www.crfu.co.nz/main/index.cfm/1,195,0,0,html Copyright © CRFU 2012 |
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Lincoln have added a three-peat of Ellesmere Division One titles to their combined competition success with a 23-8 win against Darfield on Saturday.
Darfield did score the try of the final, albeit a consolation, when a Mitchell break deep inside his own half was finished by speedy winger Nick Fisher.Site by Orbital Ltd