Lions get the job done in Malvern
Stourbridge Lions kicked off the new year with a hard-fought win at Malvern in Midlands 1 West.
It was a curate’s egg of a performance from Lions, with some brilliant attacking rugby mixed with some indifferent tackling and a complete lack of focus for the first 15 minutes of the second half which almost proved their undoing.
The game was two minutes old when the Lions scored the opening try. A charge down by the industrious Jag Mahal led to a ruck from which Ben Tibbetts put George Tildesley in down the Lions left.
Malvern were then reduced to 14 players following a spear tackle on Tibbetts.
A second Tildesley try arrived on 20 minutes following a fine team move down the right with Tom Mitchell converting.
But Malvern came back and scored an unconverted try just before half-time.
Lions made a slow start to the second half and the host cut the gap to two with another try.
Tibbetts restored some distance when he crossed to make it 17-10 but Lions eased off again and were punished when a converted try levelled the scores.
Lions rallied, though, with Mitchell jinking his way over on the right before adding the extras.
