Conditions for the game were almost ideal but for a very strong wind, which was blowing unusually across the pitch away from the main stand at Battlestead Croft. There was just one change to the starting line-up from last week as Andy Martin came in for Tristan DeJager on the right wing. Kenilworth kicked-off the game and almost immediately regained possession before Alex Nesbitt intercepted impressively but could not out strip the covering defence and the move broke down as a result of a knock-on. It looked like Burton would be in for a torrid afternoon in the scrum as Kenilworth pushed the Burton pack back with alarming ease in the first set piece. Fortunately this was not the case as Burton competed pretty well after this worrying start.
What was a little more concerning was that Kenilworth soon began to get past the gain line with strong carries which saw them progress well into the Burton “22”. Burton were penalised just 2 minutes into the game in front of the posts and Kenilworth opted to kick for goal, which was successful to give them the lead. Burton 0-3 Kenilworth. The early exchanges were a little scrappy as both teams struggled with the strong wind although Kenilworth were soon back in the Burton “22” thanks to a good break from the base of the scrum. Kenilworth scored the first try of the game after 7 minutes following a line-out on the left and a successful conversion then took Kenilworth into double figures. Burton 0-10 Kenilworth.
Burton’s first prolonged period of possession saw them get into the Kenilworth half and a good break by Nesbitt was halted just short of the 5-metre line on the left. As Burton continued to press they were penalised for side entry in the maul and Kenilworth were able to clear up to their own 10-metre line. In spite of this Burton continued to enjoy more than their fair share of possession but the Kenilworth defence held firm. With the pressure building on Kenilworth Burton had their tails up and a promising move came to an end with some foul play which the referee penalised but surprisingly did not show a yellow card. Burton were then frustrated by the wind which was probably the reason the line-out throw was not straight so Kenilworth opted for the scrum.
A clearance kick was collected by Chaz Bunting but he was deemed to have a foot in touch when trying to beat the Kenilworth defence. With neither side able to build a series of phases in possession the game settled into a period of stalemate over the next few minutes. Burton however broke this stalemate with a classy bit of handling that was finished off by Bunting scoring under the posts after 30 minutes. Will Simpson added the extras and Burton were back in the game. Not for the first time this season Burton then seemed to get on the wrong side of decisions which gave Kenilworth good field position too easily although it was, sometimes, difficult to fathom out why some of those decisions came about. Nevertheless Burton found themselves deep in their own “22”. The danger soon passed as another good interception allowed them to clear the ball up the field out of danger.
Kenilworth, however, were not about to let Burton off that easily as they managed to put several phases of play together which resulted in their third try just 3 minutes before half time. In the build up to that try Nesbitt received a harsh yellow card for not rolling away even though he was clearly trying to do so. A successful conversion meant the Kenilworth lead increased to 10 points again. Burton 7-17 Kenilworth. Although Burton pressed extremely hard for a second try, they were unable to create an overlap with just 14 players on the pitch. Despite this they were camped on the Kenilworth line and looked like they would get it when somehow the ball found its way to the Kenilworth side of a ruck and the visitors cleared the danger leaving the home supporters wondering just how Burton had their opportunity taken from them. They were still non the wiser after the half-time break had given them the opportunity to mull this over.
A knock-on straight from the kick-off in the second half gave Burton the platform to strike very early which is probably what the coaching team had asked for during the break. Burton won their own scrum and again handled the ball well out to the right wing where Andy Martin was just forced into touch before he could touch down. Burton found the visitors’ defence exceedingly difficult to penetrate but were able to force them to concede several penalties, again surprisingly for which there was still no yellow card shown. Eventually Burton had to settle for 3 points rather than a possible 7 when Simpson successfully converted after almost 7 minutes. Burton 10-17 Kenilworth.
It took some time for the game to really start to get going again as both teams struggled in the windy conditions or make any telling breaks through their respective defences. Burton were then reduced to 14 players again when this time it was James Davies who received a harsh yellow card for a high tackle much to the dismay of all the home supporters. With the second half at its mid-point, Burton were further reduced to 13 when Jack Neal was shown a red card for foul play. Things then went from bad to worse as Kenilworth scored their bonus point try soon after and a successful conversion increased their lead to 14 points. Burton 10-24 Kenilworth.
Burton found it very difficult to stay in the game but defended with great spirit and grit as Kenilworth began to dominate possession against a tiring and depleted Burton team. To their great credit Burton did just that until Kenilworth were fortunate to be awarded their bonus point try with just 8 minutes of the game left to play. A move from right to left saw them score in the left corner although some of the Burton players were convinced the try scorer had stepped into touch as he rounded the last covering defender. The conversion was missed but Kenilworth had their try bonus point in the bag. Burton 10-29 Kenilworth.
The result was probably odds-on an away win for Kenilworth but Burton picked themselves up and showed immense courage and fight as they went in search for what seemed to be an unlikely try bonus point themselves. Kenilworth were still proving to be as difficult to break down as they had been all game but Burton mustered a brilliant try with 2 minutes to play as Nesbitt finished-off a move which involved the majority of the team taking them from mid-way in their own half to score in the left corner. The difficult conversion was unsuccessful, but the deficit had been reduced. Burton 15-29 Kenilworth.
With time running out a bonus point was getting less and less likely, but Burton dug deep and forced themselves back into the Kenilworth “22” where they were rewarded for their efforts a third try of the game scored by James Davies. Unfortunately the conversion again proved too difficult in the wind, so Burton had just fallen short of a deserved losing bonus point which due to other results sees them drop to 7th in the league with the difficult trip to Bridgnorth next week. Final score Burton 20-29 Kenilworth. Man of the match was awarded deservedly and fittingly to Ed Henry who was making his 100th appearance