Students wait to blow away Westoe

Apr 17 2011 by Mark Smith, Sunday Sun

WESTOE’S promotion hopes were dealt a significant blow after Loughborough blew them away in the second half of a full-blooded National Two North encounter.

The result saw the students leapfrog the third-placed Shieldsmen in the race for the promotion play-off spot on offer in second, this despite the hosts having led 15-14 at the interval.

Playing down the slope for the opening 40, Westoe surged into a 7-0 lead through winger Scott Jordan’s try as he latched on to a line-break from fly-half Mark Bedworth, who added the conversion.

Loughborough wing Craig Holland levelled the sides on 10 minutes with a two-on-one in the left corner, and then added a second to take the lead shortly after, courtesy of a favourable bounce on the hard surface from his chip ahead.

A fired-up Westoe were in no mood to roll over, however, and with their scrum in the ascendancy and forward power sucking numbers into the breakdown, sufficient space was created out wide for Jordan to run in his second try in the left corner.

Bedworth’s touchline conversion attempt failed to tie the scores up, but his penalty two minutes later earned his side a one-point lead which they took into half-time.

Loughborough made full use of the slope after the break in a powerful finish to the game, with the visitors taking the lead just two minutes after the break as centre Will Simpson broke through a pair of tackles to score. Winger Callum Wilson poached a 50-metre counter-attack score against the run of play to extend the gap to 13, and Holland completed his hat-trick on the hour mark.

Lock forward Charlie Matthews added a sixth for the students, but the home side showed their pride in the closing stages by camping themselves in the Loughborough 22 during a period of prolonged pressure.

Their persistence was finally rewarded just two minutes from time when hooker Richard Thirkell barreled over for a try from a quick tap penalty, but the four-try bonus point was to elude them as the students held on until the final whistle.