For some, the winning feeling made a welcome return in Round Four while excellent individual and team displays bring curtain down on opening month of the season. (Photo Credit: David Winn)

Welcome to the winners’ lounge

Can Leicester Lions, Rosslyn Park and Hull please make their way to the winners’ lounge?

After a difficult opening month of the season, the trio are now up and running with both the Lions (National One) and Hull (National Two North) enjoying home success in Round Four. However, neither victory was entirely comfortable.

Leicester Lions recovered from 23-12 down to lead 29-23 against Sedgley Park thanks to tries from Ethan Godefroy, Arthur Allen and Jack Edwards. With eight minutes remaining, Sedge threw the kitchen sink at their hosts but Gareth Collins’ troops defended resolutely to see out their first triumph of the term.

As for Hull, they welcomed a previously unbeaten Billingham to Chanterlands Avenue but blew the visitors away in the opening 40, scoring five tries via Fynlay Hobson, Harry Dawkins, Peter Hudson-Kowalewicz, Jose Uriburu Gray and Alex Heard to lead 40-7.

But if the first half felt convincing, the second period seemed like the opposite. Billingham stirred to score three tries but ultimately the damage was irreparable as the Yorkshire outfit opened their account with a 40-26 win.

In terms of Rosslyn Park, they visited Darlington Mowden Park with both National One clubs searching for their first success of the season. After a tight first half, the away side lit the fuse on their campaign by running in five tries with Theo Manihera, Steffan James, Jasper Cameron (2) and Josh Bragman all going over to earn Rosslyn Park a 46-13 victory.

Hat-trick heroes

A quintet of hat-tricks. There were tries galore across National One and National Two in Round Four but for five players in particular, they deservedly grabbed the headlines.

Three of the hat-trick heroes came in National Two North with Sheffield’s Will Smith scoring his trio in a 38-7 away win at Tynedale while Tyler Spence and Jordan Dorrington led Fylde and Preston Grasshoppers to their respective victories.

Hoppers backed up last week’s win over Sheffield Tigers with a 38-31 victory away at Harrogate – with Spence completing his hat-trick in a 20-minute spell – whilst Dorrington’s efforts saw Fylde surge to a 47-24 home success over Chester.

Meanwhile, two of the most potent finishers at level four shone for Dorking and Tonbridge Juddians. After scoring 31 tries last term, Toby McRae recorded his first trio of this season in Dorking’s 47-27 win over Bury St Edmunds whilst TJs’ Curtis Barnes continues to look unstoppable. Against his former club Worthing, the 30-year-old scored his third hat-trick in four games as Tonbridge Juddians moved to the top of National Two East with a 38-5 victory.

Fine margins but Lymm survive Tigers comeback

With Lymm travelling to Sheffield Tigers in Round Four, the National Two North form guide suggested an away win. Adam Fletcher and Andy Davies’ men headed to Dore Moor with three wins from three to their name whilst their hosts were yet to taste victory.

But as is the general case in National League Rugby, nothing is ever a foregone conclusion. Lymm would have been well aware of this after 50 minutes with the Tigers leading 15-11 following scores from Ben Manderfield and Jamie Broadley but the early frontrunners then sparked into life.

Three quickfire tries from Harry Martin, Sam Wadsworth and James Pitcher gave Lymm a 13-point lead but with five minutes remaining, their 100 per cent record looked under serious threat.

Louis Townsend’s try set up a grandstand finish in Yorkshire but after James Norman had touched down in the corner following a superb run from Broadley, full-back Will Baker saw his conversion rattle the upright. It meant Lymm survived and – along with Leeds Tykes in National Two North – they will enter October with a full haul of 20 points.

Hornets buzzing with first victory after remarkable recovery 

Heading into Round Four in National Two West, both Hornets and Hinckley were targeting their first wins of the campaign. The pair met at The Nest and after 29 minutes, it looked like the visitors would be heading back to the Midlands with a maiden victory in their back pocket.

 

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Mitch Lamb, Tatenda Mukarati, Matt Guilfoyle and Callum Dacey all crossed as Chris Campbell’s side led 28-0 but Hinckley’s frustrating start to the campaign was set to continue.

Hornets flicked a switch and scored 64 points without reply to completely blow their visitors away, with full-back Charlie Carter racking up 24 points thanks to two tries and seven conversions.

In total, the hosts crossed the whitewash on 10 occasions and capitalised on three Hinckley yellow cards to secure their 64-42 victory. Value for money over in Weston-super-Mare

Record-breaking Robbie helps Rams stay out in front

One of the standout fixtures in Round Four in National One was early league leaders Rams RFC travelling to newly-promoted Dings Crusaders. The latter had begun life in the third tier with two wins from their first three games and hadn’t lost at Shaftesbury Park for over a year whilst Rams were the only side in the division to pick up 15 points from a possible 15.

So, all the ingredients were there for a cracking encounter in Bristol and so it proved with 11 tries scored and Rams earning themselves a 44-36 victory.

The 28-24 half-time scoreline (in Rams’ favour) highlighted how absorbing this battle was with Dan Swain, Zach Clow, Tom Vooght and Robbie Stapley all touching down for the visitors.

Dings’ points had come via the the boot of Tom Knight and tries from on-loan Bristol Bears duo Harry Rowson (2) and Kofi Cripps, but it would be the aforementioned Stapley who would take centre stage.

A penalty from Round Three’s Player of the Week Fraser Honey was followed by a close-range score from Stapley, which turned out to be his 102nd try for Rams and a new club record.

With Jimmy Halliwell and Axel Kalling-Smith trading scores, a try from former Taunton man Brian Ncube left the game at 41-36 to Rams but another penalty from Honey clinched a fourth successive victory for Seb Reynolds’ men.

Round Four Results

National One: Esher 17-52 Richmond, Darlington Mowden Park 13-46 Rosslyn Park, Bishops Stortford 20-39 Plymouth Albion, Leicester Lions 29-23 Sedgley Park, Dings Crusaders 36-44 Rams, Sale FC 21-17 Rotherham Titans, Birmingham Moseley 35-13 Blackheath.

National Two North: Fylde 47-24 Chester, Harrogate 31-38 Preston Grasshoppers, Hull 40-26 Billingham, Leeds Tykes 37-25 Hull Ionians, Otley 44-31 Wharfedale, Sheffield Tigers 27-28 Lymm, Tynedale 7-38 Sheffield.

National Two East: Colchester 19-38 Old Albanian, Dorking 47-27 Bury St Edmunds, Guernsey 41-23 Canterbury, Havant 23-26 Westcombe Park, Oxford Harlequins 19-19 Henley, Sevenoaks 5-26 Barnes, Worthing 5-38 Tonbridge Juddians.

National Two West: Clifton 36-40 Cinderford, Devonport Services 21-39 Luctonians, Hornets 64-42 Hinckley, Loughborough Students 49-31 Camborne, Macclesfield 34-34 Old Redcliffians, Redruth 45-30 Exeter University, Taunton 27-20 Bournville.

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