Caldy are denied in penalty drama

Mar 3 2008 by Our Correspondent, Liverpool Daily Post

CALDY came close to taming the high-riding Lions in National Three North League at Paton Field.

The visitors grabbed a share of the spoils with two late penalties, one of them with the last kick of the game.

The Lions were always dangerous in possession and while Caldy matched them for much of the time they lacked the killer touch.

Neil Dowridge excelled at hooker for Caldy to take the man of the match award

Leicester secured an early try and conversion, but Caldy responded with a 60 yards dash by Ben Wylie from turn over ball and Simon Mason added the extras.

The fly-half then chipped through for Gavin Roberts to go in at the corner and the conversion made it 14-7.

It got better for Caldy when Dowridge clinched a third home try, but it was game on again when the Lions gained their second converted try ahead of the break.

A Mason penalty took it to 22-14 before the Lions broke through the Caldy defence for a third time.

It still looked good for the home outfit when Mason added a drop goal but John Bowden, the leading points scorer in the division, made no mistake with the two late kicks for the Midlanders as Caldy paid dearly for their indiscretions.

But the Wirral outfit proved they can hold their own with the best in the division and will now look to enhance their position in the closing weeks of the season.