National League Division Two: Lydney 20, Kendal 16
THERE was an air of relief among Lydney supporters on Saturday as the team gained a foothold on the league ladder with two vital points against Kendal.
But it was only just. Backs coach Peter Kingston thought the Severnsiders had sat back on their 17-3 half-time lead.
"At the break I warned them that 17 points was nothing. To our credit we defended well but we had to soak up a lot of pressure. We really needed to score very early in the second-half to cement our advantage," he said.
Kendal arrived with all the optimism of a newly promoted team. They had made the long journey down on Friday and brought an enthusiastic following.
Lydney scored two cracking first-half tries, a sweeping move ending in centre Ali Halford touching down beneath the posts. Flanker Dwayne Cadwalleder scored the next from a well engineered set piece move, and the Severnsiders looked home and dry.
But this is no league to relax in ... back came Kendall nibbling at Lydney's advantage to make for an intriguing but uncomfortable second-half.
Lydney travel to London to take on Esher this Saturday. Team manager Gordon Sargent said there had been no injuries and he anticipated Richard Turner, Charlie Vine and Alex Bennett to be added to the squad.
"We were encouraged by a number of things against Kendal and we will want to build on them against Esher. There is not a single easy game in this league and Esher will be another big test," he said.