Kesteven Ladies are victorious after a dramatic ending to their match with Scunthorpe
Kesteven Ladies will head into the festive break on a high after a cracking comeback win in their final match of the year.
The K's were nine points adrift of hosts Scunthorpe in their Women's NC 2 Midlands (North) match on Sunday.
However, they showed true grit in a dogged performance that saw them dig deep to come back with eight minutes remaining to win 36-39.
It was their first outing since they had beaten Scunthorpe 56-12 in the home fixture at Woodnook in the middle of last month and they didn't waste any time in getting back to scoring ways.
After setting a strong platform following a scrum, the ladies were able to make some strong territory gain before a last pass found Aimee Goument who powered over the line to open the scoring.
The home side rallied and came straight back at the visitors to take themselves over the line and the conversion moved them ahead.
The ladies remained calm and settled in to continue with their game plan by making good metres before setting a stable platform which paid off once again for Goument as she beat three defenders to cross the line for a second time.
After some strong defensive phases, a tackle into touch gave Kesteven an opportunity to take more possession which they didn't waste.
Making the most of repeated penalties, the team made their way up the pitch but continued to apply pressure before Kat Mills was able to cross the line for her first try for the team.
Scunthorpe continued to battle on and added an additional score before half-time.
The second half commenced with the home side extending their lead from the off and they were charging in possession again.
However, a great rip from Beth Harland saw her make several metres before releasing Hermione Farmer to cross the line for her first of the game and bringing Kesteven to within two points.
A thwarted lineout gave possession back to the home side but a great midfield tackle resulted in a penalty and K’s were able to attack again with a lovely delayed pass from Megan Alderton releasing Goument to score her hat-trick.
The ladies were once again forced to defend and, although deep in the opposition's 22, it was a much more comfortable place to be.
When the Scunthorpe captain was brought down, a great jackal meant the ball made it out to Jade Sheardown who made sure she crossed the line to add to the points tally and reduce the deficit to two once again.
With screams from the sideline to reset quickly, it was clear there was just enough time to challenge for one final score.
The restart was cleanly gathered by Mills who charged up the pitch before being brought down.
The ladies continued to make ground and challenge and a bobbling ball was gathered by Sheardown who made good metres but a forward pass looked like it would end the ladies' possession.
However, a great effort in the scrum resulted in a free kick from which another charging run from Beth Harland and the resulting offload allowed Goument to cross the line for a final time.
It capped a great team effort with people playing out of position and still giving their all for the good of the side who end the year in third place, five points adrift of table-topping Mansfield with a game in hand.
Goument finished with four tries with Mills, Farmer and Sheardown also on target. Amy Brumhead kicked two conversions.
Kesteven men's first team lost 13-12 at Nottingham Moderns on Saturday. They host Burton 2nds at Woodnook this weekend.
