Match report. 2/9/23

On a sunny day at Westleigh Park, Leicester Lions introduced themselves to National 1 with a very spirited display against a quality Sale side.

After a somewhat nervy start, it was the home side who got on the board first after 17 minutes through a sublime move. First Jake Sterland sent his opposite number crashing to the ground on the left wing and the Lions quickly moved the ball to the other wing where man of the match Malelili Satala made a line break. His inside pass was knocked back by a Sale hand and James Stubbs was quickest to react, pouncing on the loose ball to touch down. Dan Lewis added the extras and then a penalty 10 minutes later to take the Lions in to a 10-0 lead.

The rest of the half was a fairly even contest and Sale did get on the scoreboard on the half hour mark following a break from former Sale Sharks wing Nev Edwards was finished off in the corner by another former Sharks and Leicester Tigers player, fullback Tom Brady. Both sides had further opportunities but the the score remained 10-5 to the Lions at half time.

An eventful second half began with the first of four Sale yellow cards, the first for wing Dan Leake for a technical foul. This was quickly followed by another yellow, this time for foul play by the impressive Sale captain Andrew Hughes. Lewis took advantage and extended the Lions’ lead to 16-5 with the two penalty kicks.

The visitors rallied well during this period though and once back to 14 men scored a converted try through Curtis Langdon following an effective catch and drive. Sale saw another man, Dan Birchall, go to the sin bin shortly after the score though for another technical foul. Again Sale managed this period very well and sustained pressure was converted in to a score following a nice line from fly half Mark Dixon. He also converted to take the visitors in to a 16-19 lead.

Just as Sale returned to 15 men they lost another man, Joseph Kelly, to the bin for foul play on 75 minutes. The Lions turned down the opportunity to level the scores, and instead boldly opted to kick to the corner. The decision proved a good one as the impressive back rower Simon Koroiyadi powered over from close range. Lewis again converted to leave the score at 23-19 with time almost up.

With only seconds remaining, and the Lions in possession, they were penalised deep in their own territory for sealing off which handed Sale one last chance. They kicked to the corner and got the ball over the try line but, in a defensive set that characterised the Lions' determined and physical performance, it was held up and the final whistle was blown to the rapture of the sizeable home crowd.

Leicester Lions Director of Rugby Gareth Collins commented after the game ‘We’ve worked so hard over the last 4 years to get to this level, we were really just focused on making a good account of ourselves. To get a result against such top opposition is a dream start. Today was a bit of a cup final for us as we recognised that it was a momentous occasion for the club. It certainly will give us confidence that we can compete at this level but we know how hard it will be to perform at that level every week. That is the challenge though and we're up for that challenge for sure.’

Teams:
Leicester Lions (1-15) Williams ©, Taylor, Dawson. Godefroy, Ward, Koroiyadi, Murdoch, Cairns, Stubbs, Lewis, Satala, Bouchier, Hamilton, Sterland, Daniels. Reps: Rudkin, Thompson, Coulson, Johnson, Davies.
Sale (1-15) Carlile, Brown, Stout, Barron, Gray, Parkinson, Hughes ©, Priestly-Nangle, Street, Dixon, Leake, Robins, Mulchrone, Edwards, Brady. Reps: Langdon, Birchall, Makin, Kelly, Bradley.

Scorers:
Leicester Lions: Tries – Stubbs (17), Koroiyadi (76). Cons – Lewis (18, 77). Pens – Lewis (27, 51, 56)
Sale: Tries – Brady (32), Langdon (58), Dixon (73). Cons – Bradley (59, 74)