Forward-heavy Lions battle hard in Bude defeat

A MUCH-CHANGED Liskeard-Looe side were well beaten at Bude on Saturday despite the forwards having the edge for long spells.

With plenty of backs unavailable, 11 of the starting 15 were forwards, while there was just one replacement named.

Play was confined to the centre of the pitch early on which suited the Lions, before Bude grabbed their first try via Brad Thomas.

Liskeard Looe proved to be determined and with superiority in the pack came close on a number of occasions, only to be denied by conceding soft penalties.

It was not until the 24th minute that Bude were able to extend the lead through Joe Wilson following a six-metre line-out, and they soon grabbed a third as Finley Fry intercepted a pass deep in his own half to run in.

The start of the second half followed a similar pattern. Liskeard-Looe were superior at the scrum and made serious inroads into the opposition half, only to be penalised and lose the ground they had struggled to gain.

It was eight minutes into the half before Bude managed to break through with another converted try from Fry, and they added two in the space of a minute after the hour through Wilson and Will Hockridge.

For the final 10 minutes, Liskeard exerted huge pressure on Bude, but once gain gave away penalties to lose the ground gained with such difficulty. However, their perseverance was rewarded with the final passage of play with a well-deserved try by Adam Dack that was converted by Callum Beaver.

The Lions host Falmouth on Saturday (3pm).

LISKEARD-LOOE: Mike McCarthy; Will Hoskin, Alex Kendall, Oscar Mortimer, Sean Simmons; Callum Beaver, Jay Mason; James Martyn, Kyle Maslen, Jack Wilton; Mike Prowse, Yestin Hutchings; Oliver Dunn, Billy Warner, Adam Dack. Replacement: Mike Mander.

Tries: Dack; Convs: Beaver; Pens: N/A.

Lions’ man-of-the-match: Alex Kendall.