Lymm RFC v Harrogate RFC – Saturday 5th October 2024

Author: John Case

Presidents Welcome

It gives me enormous pleasure to welcome you to Beechwood for our 5th league fixture (and our 2nd home game) of the season. I would also like to extend a very warm welcome to our visitors (and old friends) today, Harrogate RUFC.

It has been a few years since we have played Harrogate so for those unfamiliar with their history, in National 2 North, only Otley RUFC (1865) and Preston Grasshoppers RFC (1869) were founded before Harrogate, who were formed in 1871 (the same year as the Rugby Football Union) and they played their first match on 16 December that year, going on to lose just once in their first five years. In 1896 Harrogate moved from their 1st ground (Dragon Fields) to Claro Road, which was to remain their home for a remarkable 119 years until they moved to their very impressive current location, the Apollo Capital Stadium at Rudding Lane.

Harrogate have a long and proud history in national and county rugby football – Jeff Young (Wales), Peter Squires (England), Peter Larter (England), and Simon Easterby (Ireland) all wore the famous yellow, red and black shirts of Harrogate, as well as Lions red.

In addition to their numerous league awards, Harrogate have also won the Yorkshire Cup on 12 occasions – 1905, 1907, 1949, 1965, 1981, 1991, 1992, 2002, 2003, 2015, 2016, 2017. Their last three wins were against Wharfedale by 16-12 (2015), Sheffield Tigers by 38-3 (2016) and Sheffield Tigers again in 2017 when, curiously, Harrogate won by walkover as Sheffield Tigers could not agree a date to play the final, citing player welfare.

According to the RFU website (which following its ‘upgrade’ this summer, is less reliable than Wikipedia as a source of information!) Lymm and Harrogate have played each other 7 times since 2012 (North Premier and National League 3 North) with our opponents today winning 5 of those contests. But that was then and this is now – Lymm have won their first 4 games this season (picking up the maximum number of points available on the way) and currently sit 2nd in the League; Harrogate are in 12th place, having lost their first 4 games.

Our last home fixture was against Fylde and, in the interests of impartiality, rather than quote from our own match report, here’s what National League Rugby had to say about that game in their report – “Lethal Lymm beginning to turn heads – It was a far more comfortable afternoon in National Two North for Lymm as another relentless display from Adam Fletcher and Andy Davies’ troops saw them swat Fylde aside 49-14 at Crouchley Lane. A third win on the spin for the North-West outfit – who finished 10th in 2023/24 – leaves them as the early frontrunners and after last week’s scintillating display away at Chester, there was more attacking ambition from Lymm mixed in with the ability to keep the scoreboard ticking over … Leeds Tykes and Wharfedale are the other two sides in the division who have picked up 15 points from 15 “

Last weekend’s fixture was definitely more of a squeaky bum affair, beating Sheffield Tigers by the width of a post at Dore Moor, a place where Lymm have never won before. Lymm looked in charge at 15-28 ahead with just six minutes remaining and the try bonus secured but a late surge from the hosts saw Tigers’ centre Louis Townsend force his way over the line, 10 metres from the touch to make the score 27-28 with the last kick of the game to come. The resulting conversion attempt appeared to be going over but struck the post and bounced out of play. A relieved Director of Rugby, Adam Fletcher said after the game: “So pleased we came through our toughest test thus far. Dore Moor is a tough place to go and Tigers are a very experienced outfit at this level with some outstanding players. I have only ever been on the end of defeats there so bringing home the 5 points was excellent”

Finally, it would be remiss of me not to mention that Lymm Eagles have also started with 4 wins from 4 and sit top of their table and our 2nd XV have won 2 out of their opening 3 fixtures. What a great start to the season!

Today, our 2^nd XV host Rossendale in a game rescheduled from last week due to the death of Liam Canning, a Rossendale player for the past 4 years who passed away on 25^th September. Our thoughts go to the family, friends, players, and supporters at Rossendale. Everyone at Lymm offers their condolences.

Varun Maharaj, President

Mark Williams, Lymm RFC’s new Forwards Coach, shares some insights

Mark Williams is the newly appointed forwards coach at Lymm, and we asked him a few questions to introduce him to the membership and to get to know him a bit better.

Mark is currently the Head Coach of Liverpool John Moores University and the Forwards Coach for North of England U18s. He has a wealth of playing experience in the National Leagues.

Q: Please give a brief summary of your playing career before becoming a coach.

I only started to play Rugby at the age of 16, when my School team were short for a fixture one afternoon and I had a few mates who played the game. Shortly after that I joined New Brighton RUFC and went through the colts system.

The bulk of my career I spent at Caldy RUFC back when they were between National 1 & 2. I retired due to a knee injury aged 26 and took up coaching to fill the void.

Q: Are you enjoying your experience at Lymm RFC and, if so, what attracted you to join here?

I’m really pleased to be appointed as Forwards Coach for Lymm. After a strong first season in National 2 North, I’m looking forward to being able to do my bit in helping the squad take the next step and progress up the league.

I’ve been impressed by the club’s culture and desire to operate as professionally as possible for a side at Level 4. I’m excited to help the players get the most out of their rugby experience.

Q: The senior First/Second team squad has probably had the most successful start to the season ever, with four wins out of four. What did you see, with fresh eyes, when you joined the coaching team in the summer?

When I joined Lymm, what struck me was the skill level of the players at the club. The boys here are both very tight knit, but also welcoming to those who come to join the club and play. In terms of the coaching staff, we are all relatively young but have quite a lot of experience in the game both as players and coaches, with different, and complementary strengths. The players are far more talented than I think they get credit for.

Q: Where in particular has the Lymm squad improved in the time you’ve been here?

Perhaps I have my rose-tinted glasses on, but the set piece is much improved from last season. We now have a platform to launch what is often a lethal attack game at the opposition on a Saturday.

A number of new boys who have joined, mostly younger lads stepping up a few levels to test themselves, has improved the competition for places and therefore the standard of training.

Q: Without giving too much away, what have been, and are, the areas you are working on?

I don’t think it will come as a surprise to anyone that I have been working largely on the set piece, as well coaching increasing levels of detail on the breakdown. I take pride in being a complete maul pig, which is an area of the game that needed improvement and the forwards have bought into spectacularly.

The detail and coaching that Andy Davies provides on attack and Tom Bray on defence, gives me a free hit to coach largely where I am most comfortable.

Q: From a brief conversation we’ve had you described quite a forensic approach to studying other teams. Please explain the fundamentals to your approach in this area.

The coaching team I have joined are excellent at both preview & review detail from week to week, which includes a huge amount of player input also. Fundamentally, we don’t want to move too far away from the ‘Lymm way’, but we take a lot of time in reviewing opposition to look for the best way to exploit them.

I feel that there is a time and place to play certain brands of rugby, whether it be ‘chucking it around’, or sending it ‘into the corner’. I know which one of the aforementioned gets me out of bed in the morning.

Q: The team is often confronted with larger, heavyweight packs in this league, and the rolling maul is always a threat. How does a team like Lymm counter that?

Almost every week we are and this is likely to be the case for a while. Since I have been coaching the forwards, we have been drilling Maul (attack & defence) at least once, often twice a week at sessions, with regular video review and detail that I frankly don’t think other teams go into. The maul, for me, is one of the most under-coached areas of the game, but there is a huge amount of detail around it for those who want to coach it.

Coming up against physically larger teams is always going to be a challenge in what is ultimately a ‘pushing contest’, but we are confident that we know how to deal with opposition threats there. The tireless work that the forwards have put into maul detail is a large part of the reason we are sitting at the top of the tree after Round 4, despite not being a ‘heavyweight pack’, like so many others are at this level.

Q: Fitness seems key but does size matter also?

It’s a bit of a double edged sword. We are often seen as a physically smaller side man-for-man, but rarely are we credited for being a physically fitter side. Our brand of rugby lives and dies on effort levels and fitness, and it appears to be working for us so far.

Q: In your experience at this level, how far could Lymm go this season and what should be the target?

After an excellent promotion, backed up by a credible 10th place finish in our first season in National 2 North, we have talked as a group about pushing towards a Top 6 finish. There is still a long way to go, with many challenges along the way to come, but I see no reason why we can’t challenge the top cluster of teams in this league.

Q: What makes the difference between a top side and a mediocre one in this league?

So many things. The first one for me is commitment. We’ve been fortunate to have our entire first team down regularly, as well as our very talented second team lads down to train both with and against the first team. Competition for places is high, and having two sides running against each other makes a huge difference in preparation for games. The 2nd XV have had an excellent start also which must be credited.

Finally – Fletch (DoR), Andy Davies (Head Coach) and Tom Bray (Defence Coach) make this role feel much easier than it’s ‘supposed to be’, having a coaching team who are organised and detail driven, overseeing a committed and driven squad of players, will ultimately breed success for Lymm RUFC.

Thanks very much Mark, that has been a fascinating insight. It now just remains for me to ask the members to buy you a pint when they see you at the bar.