Fylde vs Hull Ionians: match report by Tom Kelly
An Adam Lanigan hat trick helped Fylde to a thumping win over strugglers Hull Ionians in a strong performance at the Woodlands, winning 45-17. The crowd was swollen to almost 1,200 by a large party of U7s-U12s Mini-Juniors and their parents from Mold RFC who were on tour and had played Fylde MJs in the morning.
Fylde managed to run in seven tries to entertain the crowd, with Ionians missing out on a crucial bonus point with just three.
Fylde had already secured the bonus point before half time with two tries from Lanigan as well as Joran Dorrington and Ben Gregory, and finished the job with Ben Turner, Scott Rawlings and another from Lanigan, bringing Fylde’s total to 45.
Hull dominated the opening moments, with Fylde struggling to get their hands on the ball. Sam Hassard had the opportunity to take the lead just seven minutes in, but his penalty drifted wide of the posts.
And they were made to regret not getting points on the board when Fylde scored their first try with a wonderful flowing team move. Toby Harrison made the initial break through the defence from his own 22 into the Fylde half, before a couple of quick offloads from Ben Gould and Gregory ended up in the hands of Lanigan who had room to storm in, to put Fylde seven points up.
Ionians had the majority of the possession for the opening thirty minutes and eventually got the try their play had warranted through centre Will Yates. They had to create their own luck after Fylde had spilled the ball on the halfway line. Yates collected the ball and had the rest of the half to run into, leaving the defenders for dust and bring Hull back within two points.
But Fylde responded back immediately, scoring three tries in the closing 10 minutes. The first was courtesy of Lanigan. Fylde turned the ball over in the middle of the park, and went from one flank to the other, making ground. The ball ended up back on the right flank, and a perfect offload from Oli Parkinson sent Lanigan storming through.
With four minutes to go, Dorrington increased the lead with a pacey run from 40 metres out after two quick offloads sent him through.
Fylde continued to put the pressure on just before half time, consistently pushing from five metres out. They won a penalty just under the posts, and took a quick tap before a long pass found Gregory out on the wing who managed to make his way through, grabbing the bonus point and taking Fylde into the break at 26-5.
Hull Ionians continued to dominate the possession, but failed to make the most of it, struggling to make many metres or find space through a stern Fylde defence.
On the other hand, Fylde made the most of the ball they had, with a brilliant solo try from Turner in the 48th minute. The ball was spilled in the middle of the park and taken by Turner, who broke through. Once he reached his defender, he chipped the ball over, and it bounced back perfectly into his hands to grab Fylde’s fifth try in the corner. Smith’s conversion from the touchline was excellent.
Lanigan then managed to grab his hattrick in the 55th minute. Off the lineout, the ball travelled out to the right side, ending up in Lanigan’s hands, who powered his way through three defenders to grab his third try.
Very little action followed in the next 10 minutes, with Ionians keeping the ball well, but just like a lot of the match, they continued to struggle to make the most of that possession, with Fylde defending well, and covering any open space.
But Hull managed to get the try their play had deserved when George Mewburn grabbed their second of the afternoon. They spent nearly ten minutes in Fylde’s 22, before they eventually managed to get the ball out wide to Mewburn who barged his way over through.
With seven minutes to go, Rawlings crashed his way over the line from close range, marking his 150th appearance for the side with a try.
With less than a minute to go, Hassard grabbed Hull’s third try. They managed to make it five metres out, before Hassard broke through under the posts. A speedy conversion followed to keep the match going.
Ionians won a few penalties, but a lost lineout meant they couldn’t grab that much wanted bonus point to keep their survival hopes going, and Fylde came out victors, winning 45-17.
Fylde’s next match is a trip to Hull, with just three games remaining till the end of the season.
Adam Lanigan was named by the Fylde Coaches as Man of the Match.
Click here for Chris Farrow’s album of action photos.
Teams: Dorrington (Forster 56); Lanigan, CarletonT, Rawlings (Reader 31), Turner (Rawlings 56); Smith (Clayton 68), Gould; Bowker (Brooks 61), Gregory, Raymont (Kincart 68), Parkinson, Garrod, Deeks, Bentley, Harrison.
Hull Ionians: Winch; Wilson, Yates, Britton, Stowe; Hassard, Thompson; Morton, Edwards, Walker, Makin, Gasgoigne, Hudson, SandersonJ, SandersonC.
Replacements: Forth, Heelas, Powell, Mewburn, Kirk.