Burton were looking to get back to winning ways following their disappointing last play loss at Kenilworth 2 weeks ago and were pleased to have almost a full squad to choose their team from for this clash with near neighbours Lichfield. They were also looking for revenge for their Staffordshire cup final defeat last season which was the last time they had met in recent seasons.
Lichfield kicked the game off playing with the slight breeze in their favour on a fine, but cold overcast day, thankfully, without any rain which had been almost ever-present in the days leading up to it. Burton made their way back almost to the half-way line from the kick-off but were then stripped of possession allowing Lichfield their first handling movement. The Burton defensive line put great pressure on Lichfield, forcing them to knock-on for the first scrum of the game. Burton were rewarded immediately for their power in the scrum as Chaz Bunting and Lewis Sturgess combined well from its base with Bunting scoring the first try of the game in the right corner after barely 2 minutes. Will Simpson’s attempted conversion against the breeze fell just short so Burton had to settle for a 5-point lead. Burton 5-0 Lichfield.
Burton continued their good start to the game and the large crowd were encouraged with a much-needed return of confidence evident in the team’s play in these early stages, which saw several phases of play take them well up into the Lichfield “22”. Unfortunately, this came to a halt courtesy of the referee’s whistle for offside and they cleared up to the “22” on the Burton left. Lichfield looked to run the ball rather than kick against the increasing breeze and they found the Burton defence very difficult to break through. Burton soon had possession back and with that territory also and the next score looked likely. It came as a result of a high tackle, something the referee was very hot on all afternoon Simpson made no mistake with the penalty attempt from in front of the posts after 11 minutes. Burton 8-0 Lichfield.
Burton were now dominating possession and continued to make good progress towards the try-line with forwards and backs alike getting involved in a great team try with Simpson going over just to the left of the posts for their second try of the game after 15 minutes. He then added the extras and Burton’s lead increased to more than 2 scores. Burton 15-0 Lichfield. Lichfield tried hit back straight away and took advantage of a few missed tackles in the next phase of play after the re-start, but a wild pass went straight out for a Burton throw and the home spectators were able to breathe a sigh of relief.
Burton were now mixing their play up a little as they sensed some fragility in the Lichfield defence and almost had a third try when a clever grubber kick from Bunting stayed in play just short of the try line, but the chasing Henry Knox was not able to gather the ball cleanly with a try looking inevitable. Knox made up for this though very shortly after when he found himself in space wide on the right. As the cover defence cut off his direct line for a try, he found the supporting Alex Nesbitt with a really well-timed pass allowing him to sprint free and score close to the posts after 15 minutes. Simpson added the extras once again and Burton were building a commanding lead. Burton 22-0 Lichfield.
The follow-up to the re-start kick demonstrated Burton’s hunger for their first win in a while as Lichfield were forced into touch on the right just inside their “22”. Burton regained possession and for a change found themselves on the right side of the referee and penalties in their favour. From one of these Simpson was able to get Burton into the Lichfield danger zone. However on this occasion Burton were not able to turn this into points. Lichfield made a brief return to the Burton half before a kick through went dead and resulted in a scrum to Burton just inside their own half.
A sign of defensive pressure leading to opportunity was the theme for Burton’s bonus point try with about 5 minutes of the half remaining. Lichfield were having to force their play with the ball due to their limited possession and this led to a handling error in midfield. Jamie Dutton pounced on the loose ball and sprinted clear to score under the posts. Simpson added the conversion to increase Burton’s lead further. Burton 29-0 Lichfield.
Lichfield showed no signs of wanting to throw in the towel in spite of the commanding lead Burton had built and soon found themselves threatening the Burton try line. However, Burton stopped them in their tracks as they stole a line-out throw against the head and cleared up field. There was just time for one more score before the half drew to a close and it came courtesy of another penalty against the visitors in centre field. In spite of the wind against him Simpson struck a magnificent penalty kick through the posts in the last action of the half. Burton 32-0 Lichfield.
Burton were looking to build on an impressive performance in the first half, but it was Lichfield who began the half better as they worked through several phases of possession and attempted to hit back following their scoreless first half. However, Burton soon got themselves into the Lichfield danger zone courtesy of a wonderful touch kick from Jamie Dutton. Burton’s line-out, surprisingly went astray and gave Lichfield the opportunity to run the ball out of danger. A second line-out was disrupted by Lichfield and Burton’s start to the half was rather sloppy and must have given their rivals more than a little bit of encouragement.
This was compounded by Burton’s Sturgess receiving a harsh yellow card for an alleged high tackle after about 10 minutes. However, their response to this was commendable as they won back possession and embarked on a wonderful piece of handling play, which saw them take the ball from left to right and back again for Bunting to touch down on the left after 13 minutes. Simpson was just off-target with the conversion, so the score moved on to Burton 37-0 Lichfield.
With the game almost certainly won Burton were perhaps guilty of taking their foot off the pedal a little and allowed a plucky Lichfield side to dominate possession. Lichfield were rewarded for their hard work with their first try of the game on the left-wing midway through the second period. They were made to work very hard for this try but Burton’s defence eventually ran out of steam. The difficult conversion was missed but Lichfield were on the scoreboard. Burton 37-5 Lichfield.
It was Burton’s turn to respond immediately this time as Bunting went over for his second try of the game. A relatively easy conversion was just missed but Burton had extended their lead again to 37 points. Burton 42-5 Lichfield. Burton then had to make several changes to personnel due to injuries, most significantly in the front row where both Ben Smith and Matt Tivey took no further part in the game. Burton introduced all three replacements, which, not surprisingly upset their rhythm and Lichfield saw their chance to try and at least gain a try bonus point.
Burton, despite this, were still very difficult for Lichfield to break down and it was just past the half-hour mark in the second half when they added to their score with a converted try in the left corner. Burton 42-12 Lichfield. This was followed shortly after with their third try, which again was converted, and it seemed like they may get their bonus point after all. Burton 42-19 Lichfield. Burton, however, shook themselves out of their lethargy and Will Derry got the final try of the game in the dying seconds. Simpson just missed again with the difficult conversion, but Burton had secured a comprehensive win against their old rivals with the final score standing at Burton 47-19 Lichfield.
Other results in the league means the top of the table is now a little more congested with Dudley Kingwsinford losing at Syston and Kenilworth inflicting a heavy defeat on Derby. Burton are in 5th place on 35 points.