Another Close one . . .

Kirkby Lonsdale Colts away at Firwood Waterloo Colts 28th September.
After last week’s ‘nearly but yet too far’ comeback against Bury, the Kirkby Lonsdale colts went on the road to Waterloo. The journey down was pleasant on a coach provided by the Friends of Kirkby Lonsdale RUFC. The lads and parents were all very appreciative of the generous support.
The game started out with both sides probing each others defences, and getting little change. Harrison went close, but was held up; and Derbyshire was wrestled into touch, and Hopton went close twice. However, as the first half went on Waterloo started to push Kirkby Lonsdale back. But rock solid defending from Parry, Skelton-Montgomery, Derbyshire, Muldowney and Black kept them out. However, the pressure was building. 0-0 after 20 minutes.
Waterloo scored first and converted. 7-0. Kirkby rallied and took the fight back, but Waterloo defended well and exploited Kirkby’s eagerness to get back into the game to score another. 14-0.
The half-time score was 14-0 to Waterloo. Kirkby licking their wounds, but knew if the line outs got better, and the attack became deeper and more direct, they could get themselves back into this. Coaches Gore, Turner and Muldowney stirred the lads up.
The second half started, and Waterloo gather the kick-off well, and worked a try into the corner to go 19-0 up. What Halftime chat??!!
However, these lads don’t stay down for long. Kirkby rumbled up the pitch. Tipping and Gore started to get the ball deeper from Armer, and Ridding and Harrison pressed the ruck hard, Muldowney and Black supported the pocket rocket Hooker Skelton-Montgomery who gathered the ball and busted his way through the Waterloo defence. Shaking off two Waterloo tacklers and dotted down near the posts. Tipping converted. 19-7. Was this to be another fight back? It sure was!
Ogden and Willoughby started to hit the rucks with and the big guns of Derbyshire and Clayton started to roll forward. Armer fed full back Southey, who had a dream of a game at fullback to tip onto the rapid Gore. He slid his way past four Waterloo defenders and hit the afterburners to score under the post. Tipping converted. 19-14.
Kirkby started to roll forward, gaining the upper hand. The line out started to function, Armer with Gore, Tipping and Southey pulled the strings. Graham-Cumming, back from his concussion lay-off was like a man possessed around the pitch smashing into tackles and rucks. With Wray, Clayton and Derbyshire pressing, Kirkby forced some penalties. Working their way up the pitch, a double top line out to Black and Parry who fed Stephens on a catch and drive, much to the shock of Waterloo, they missed the long limbed Stephens who scored in the corner. Tipping converted a beauty of a kick. 19-21. Kirkby were on a roll.
However, Waterloo didn’t back down. The ruthless defence of Black, Muldowney and Parry stifled the attack and unleashed the jinking Southey to find his way up the pitch, and then Gore and Tipping fed Armer, who tipped onto the marauding Harrison who blasted through three Waterloo defenders to score. Tipping had his kicking boots on this week. 19-28.
However, with ten minutes to go, Waterloo came back, forcing Kirkby onto the back foot, and again found a gap to score a Try. 24-28. It’s was Kirkby’s turn to go forward with some good scrummaging and drives forward it looked like they would see out the match.
Waterloo, determined from the first minute, started to come back in the last few minutes. For a high tackle from Graham-Cumming he received a yellow card, mainly for a series of Kirkby penalties rather than that specific issue. But the discipline issues didn’t stop there, what looked like a rugby incident at a ruck, Kirkby’s gentleman prop Holdsworth received a red card.
Down to 13 players, Kirkby could’ve rolled over from the Waterloo pressure, but they held out with some lung busting tackles from the 13 players and some great line speed it forced Waterloo to knock-on and the referee to whistle for full time.
Another game of two halves, but a good victory on the road. 28 to 24, with all four tries converted by the sublime Tipping.
Home next week Vs Aldwinians. 12.30 KO. Come along and support the lads.
Player of the Match Christie Parry