Match Preview

TYNEDALE v LYMM
Saturday 20th January 2024 (KO 2pm)

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MATCH PROGRAMME
CLICK HERE to download/view today's Tynedale v Lymm Match Programme

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This Saturday we welcome the players, officials and supporters of Lymm who travel up the M6 from their Cheshire base to Tynedale Park for only the 3rd time in the history of the clubs.

LYMM - LAST SEASON (2022-2023)
Lymm gained promotion into National League 2 (North) after finishing top of Regional One North-West last season in a close-run thing with Blackburn. Both teams finished level on match points but Lymm won the top spot on a better points difference.
Lymm’s record was:-
Played 22
Won 19
Lost 3
For 1089
Against 373
Diff 716
Try Bonus Pts 19
Losing Bonust Points 1
Total Pts 96
Blackburn recorded the same number of wins and draws but lost out on a point difference of 644, scoring 1067 with 363 against – very tight!

JOHN PLAYER SPECIAL CUP- 1985
Tynedale and Lymm first met each other at Tynedale Park on 28th September 1985 in the first round of the John Player Special Cup.

Tynedale won that match 22-0. One of our current vice-presidents, Gary Taylor, kicked four penalties and Mickey Lee and Fred Dickinson scored tries. However, Tynedale lost 42-6 at Wakefield in the next round of the Cup.
Interestingly, only one of the 17-man squad, Mark Richard, was not a product of Tynedale’s youth rugby and/or local schools.

N.B. Tynedale had last played in this competition in September 1975, ten years before, when they lost 16-15 away at Sale in a preliminary round tie. Chris Dixon had played at prop for Tynedale that day and he appeared again in 1985, a decade later, for the match against Lymm.

CLICK HERE TO download/view Match Programme

LEAGUE NORTH 1 – 1992
The second match between the two clubs took place on 10th October 1992. The Cheshire club had been newly promoted to North 1. Only three Tynedale players from the 1985 squad appeared again, John Rutherford, Mickey Lee and Billy Robson.

The teams that day were:-
TYNEDALE
Gary Fleming; John Rutherford, John Fletcher, Reuben Mulholland, Craig Johnston; Chris Leslie, Simon Clayton-Hibbott; Richard Parker (Capt.), Edward Parker, Martin White; Campbell Hewitson, Andrew Oglethorpe; Mickey Lee, Graham Yates, Stephen Turnbull.
Subs: Mark Cooper and Billy Robson.
LYMM
R. Ellis; G. Bird, J. Millerchip, K. Anderson, A. Holloway; A. Egan, M. Pritchard; J. Ferguson, J. Cartwright, M. Callery (Capt.); I. Bullough, D. Waddingham; M. Hesketh, R. Meechum, B. Paul.
Subs: S. Lumb and P. Millward.

Of the Tyne team that day, Chris Leslie, Richard Parker and Martin White now have sons in the first-team squad; Stephen Turnbull is Colts Manager, Craig Johnston is Fixtures Secretary whilst Graham Yates is a Vice-President of the club.

When Tynedale played Lymm in 1992 the home side had had a faultless and high-scoring start to the season, having beaten Watsonians (away) 49-7, Heriots (home) 46-5, Hartlepool Rovers (home) 39-16 in the Pilkington Cup, Northern (home) 45-5 and Vale of Lune (away) 38-15.

Click Here to download/view Match Programme.

Tynedale beat Lymm 31-3 that 1992 day too, but were not to play the Cheshire side again until this season, when Lymm won in Cheshire on 23rd September 2023.

THIS SEASON - LYMM 33 TYNEDALE 26
Three tries in 5 minutes costs Tyne.
Lymm recorded their first win of the season with a hard-earned victory over winless Tynedale who took home two losing bonus points after a late fightback.

Kick off for the first half went to Tynedale, playing towards the clubhouse. Then after eight minutes of play came the first of two injuries to Lymm backs. First, right wing Joe Senior was forced to leave with what looked like a hamstring issue, and within another seven minutes, fullback Cormac Nolan also had to leave the pitch, again with a leg injury.

The initial quarter of the match was as expected, with both teams enjoying periods of possession, both in their half and in their opponent’s. However, some good defence and occasional poor handling denied any try-scoring opportunities.

After a quiet opening 20 minutes, three tries in five minutes opened up the game for the hosts., With constant possession, and with handling improved, breakthroughs started to come. First a break and a 20 metre torpedo pass from prop Matty Hand to left wing Paddy Jennings gave him the space to score wide out, and a further try from Jack Reynolds put Lymm 19-0 ahead.

However, Tynedale gave themselves a lifeline on the stroke of the half-time whistle with a try from hooker Jacob Oliver.

Lymm extended their advantage shortly after the interval through a Thomas Shard penalty before Harry Martin crossed to make it 27-7. This spurred the visitors into life, with hooker Oliver crossing for his second try of the match.
The hosts extended their lead again through a Shard penalty before prop Michael Rewcastle scored for the visitors.

The unlikely comeback looked on when Tynedale hooker Oliver crossed for his hat-trick try and his sides fourth with just five minutes remaining, but Josh Leslie's conversion missed.

The home side had the final say when Shard slotted a penalty in the 79th minute sealing Lymm's first ever victory in National League 2 North.

THIS SEASON
Lymm have had a promising first half of the season but like most teams in our league their results have been unpredictable and they currently sit in 9th position, 2 places below Tynedale on 7 fewer points but having played a game more.

Lymm league results to date:-
Lymm 21 Wharfedale 22
Lymm 41 Huddersfield 48
Rotherham Titans 33 Lymm 10
Lymm 33 Tynedale 26
Fylde 14 Lymm 15
Lymm 26 Sheffield 41
Otley 45 Lymm 34
Lymm 31 Hull Ionians 30
Hull 34 Lymm 27
Lymm 21 Leeds Tykes 43
Sheffield Tigers 47 Lymm 35
Lymm 46 Preston Grasshoppers 22
Billingham 25 Lymm 25
Huddersfield 24 Lymm 33
Lymm 22 Rotherham 36

LYMM WEBSITE
https://www.lymmrugby.co.uk/

MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Nathan Howarth
AR1: James Gray
AR2: Liam Taylor

BALL BOYS/GIRLS
Tynedale Under 11’s

WEATHER FORECAST
Probable rain, moderate south-westerly breeze, 6 degrees

SELECTED SQUAD