Mansfield 10–28 Southwell

Report by Phil Foster

This past week was the official beginning of spring, the season of renewal, growth and, perhaps more importantly, the arrival of some slightly warmer weather. It’s the beginning of the season where the coldness and despair of January fades into the rear view mirror, the black hole that opens up after Christmas and feels like its pull is infinite is finally closing. Golden threads of warmth weave themselves through the previously darkened land; light once again spills across the fields and bathes us in its rejuvenating rays.

So, of course, this past Saturday it absolutely monstered it down! Just 10 minutes into the match between local rivals Mansfield and Southwell, the rain arrived and refused to leave, effectively halting what could have been an open, flowing game and turning into a battle of attrition that saw Southwell ultimately emerge victorious.

The first 10 minutes saw Southwell start well, registering their first try after just a couple of minutes. A successful conversion saw the visitors take a 10-0 lead. And then, the heavens opened!

Relentless torrents battered the turf rendering some areas of the pitch a slip and slide. This effectively changed the layout of the entire game as both teams now had to find a way to play the conditions as the rain refused to let up. Mansfield defended well and probed into their opponent’s territory but couldn’t come away with any points. A succession of penalties saw them able to get field position and chip away at the scoreboard, Taran Elms slotting a penalty to make the score 7-3 to the visitors. Both teams would play the conditions as best as they could but ultimately, nature emerged victorious as the rain prevented any more scores being added, the half finishing at 7-3.

Mansfield started the brighter in the second half with a wonderful cross field kick being nimbly picked out of the air by Nathan Hind who then pirouetted round a would-be defender to nudge the blue-and-whites into the lead. A successful conversion by Elms saw the lead extend and the home team up 10-7.

Unfortunately, that would be the end of the home scores. Southwell played the conditions better in the second half and scored three converted tries without reply. Mansfield’s defence was strong for much of the game and they had some exciting breaks through the middle of the park but in the end, they were unable to convert the opportunities and were unable to keep the visitors from extending their lead. For his efforts at directing play and for having a hand in all 10 of Mansfield’s points, Taran Elms picked up the player of the match award from matchday sponsors Sue Skillington and AIPS Insurance.

At the end of a fierce, if somewhat soggy, contest, the visitors clinched victory, 28-10. Mansfield didn’t help their own cause by receiving a yellow card in each half, making an already difficult game even harder. However, they defended well for large portions and harried the visitors into making mistakes. The conditions didn’t help at all but the blue-and-whites will be disappointed they didn’t use them to their advantage when they could. Mansfield return to Eakring Road in a couple of weeks hoping to end their season on a positive note with a home win.