Chester travelled to Scunthorpe on Saturday and, as expected, returned with a bonus point victory. Days like these are often viewed as a no-win situation. 3 weeks after crossing for 17 tries in the home fixture, a large win against a side relegated prior to Christmas would be greeted with a shrug of the shoulders and anything less would be considered a poor result. As it turned out, 10 tries and seven successful kicks from the in-form Dan Pemberton were enough for a satisfactory smile from coach Jan Van Deventer.
The on and off field challenges for Scunthorpe have been well documented and everyone wishes them and their followers a happier time next season. Don't forget that in the autumn they were a very competitive side, losing out by a point away at Huddersfield and pushing Hinckley and Sheffield Tigers close. On other days.....
Despite fielding a very young and inexperienced side, Scunthorpe opened the scoring on Saturday. A fine finish from exciting young prospect Josh Lugsden, following a line break from fly-half Tom Foster. The shock roused the visitors and, shaking off the lethargy of the coach journey, normal service was resumed and three tries in the opening quarter from Tom Gregory, Shay Owen and Kyle Joseph gave Chester the expected breathing space. Following a penalty landed by Scunthorpe back-row Jack Lifsey (are he and Shay the only two back row goalkickers in the League?), Chester extended their lead through tries from scrum-half Charlie Craven and the influential Mark Dixon. Poor lineout execution allowed Scunthorpe to finish the first half with a score from lock Josh Sarsfield leaving the score at 13-31.
Chester began the second period a man down with No8 Shay Owen cooling his heels in the sin bin, but didn't allow that to detract them from the task of extending their lead. Good support play from Oliver Hughes allowed him to dot down on 47 minutes before Scunthorpe showed a glimpse of what the future could hold as quick accurate ball movement gave space for Lugsden to score his second try of the match.
That flash of quality was about as good as it gets for the home side as the rest of the second half turned into a bit of a procession as Chester dominated possession and field position. Tries were added from Max Himbury, a second for Tom Gregory, prop Alex Reed and replacement hooker Scott Robson. 7 tries from the forward pack would indicate where the game was won, and on a heavy pitch that is not much of a surprise. Dan Pemberton finished with a 70% successful kicking performance, another positive from an enjoyable trip.
Next week Chester are slated to host Huddersfield at Hare Lane. Kick off 3pm. Please keep an eye on the news to see whether or not fixtures will be going ahead.
Photo credit Bill and Maria, Scunthorpe.