Derby hosted Towcestrians, looking to get back to winning ways, after successive away defeats.
Another windy day greeted the sides, with Towcestrians having the advantage in the first half.
Derby kicked off and were soon on the attack. Josh Tizard lost the ball, over the try line, but after 5 minutes the same player made no mistake. Lewis Hancock converted.
Derby didn’t deal with the Towcestrians kick off, allowing them to hit back with a try of their own after 9 minutes.
Derby then took control, with a Lewis Hancock penalty followed by the 2nd Derby try.
A good move led to Tom Bigland putting Callum Jones away to score under the posts. Lewis Hancock converted and then kicked a penalty to put Derby 20 – 5 ahead.
If Derby thought the game was won at this point, they were in for a rude awakening!
In the 10 minutes before the break, Towcestrians scored 3 tries, to level the score. Derby also lost Sam Tebbs to the sin bin. It could have been worse for Derby, but Towcestrians missed all their conversions!
Half time gave Derby a chance to regroup and decide how to make the most of the wind which was now helping them.
After 49 minutes, Derby regained the lead, when Dave Cowell showed good strength to force his way over the line and Lewis Hancock converted.
10 minutes later, Lewis Hancock kicked his 3rd penalty of the day to increase Derby’s lead.
3 Derby tries in the final 10 minutes put the game to bed.
Firstly, after a spell of Derby pressure, Josh Tizard crossed for his 2nd try of the day, with Lewis Hancock converting.
A Charlie Barker pass then put Rhondell Stabana away to touch down in the corner. The conversion was missed, the only blemish on a fine kicking day for Lewis Hancock, resulting in a personal tally of 19 points.
The final try came from the last play of the day, with Callum Jones crossing for the 2nd time of the day and 6th of the season.
A good 2nd half, which Derby won 29 – 0, saw them move up to 3rd in the league.
Kettering are the visitors to Haslams next week.
Come on Derby !
Report by: R.Bambra
A few pictures from the game, courtesy of Shaun Hardwick:
