Stamford Rugby Club will entertain Oakham Rugby Club in derby duel

Stamford head into Saturday's eagerly-anticipated derby duel with Oakham on the back of a winning return to action at the weekend.

The purple, black and whites secured a 16-24 away win at Peterborough Lions in their Counties 1 Midlands East (South) clash.

After a week that saw torrential rain turn many pitches to a mud bath, Lions' playing surface was certainly playable but it was never going to be a fast, open game.

It was the home side that adapted to the conditions earliest and this was rewarded with a converted penalty while Stamford struggled for any decent possession.

They battled hard against a determined Lions side and, when they moved the ball wide, it was Ben Chisholm who made the breakthrough which was carried on by Dan Heard and finished off with a flamboyant dive under the post from scrum half Charlie Penrose-Toms.

Stand-in kicker Jack Jones added the conversion to make the score 3-7.

Lions tried to come straight back but were met with a good Stamford defence to keep them out.

The home side kept the pressure on and, from a scrum, released a midfield runner who went over the line.

Stamford were surprised when the referee awarded the try as there had been clear obstruction in front of the runner to clear a path for him but the score stood and made it 8-7 at this point.

Town's response was again positive and they worked their way downfield and, when awarded a penalty, Jones kicked into the corner.

The line-out drill went as planned and it was skipper Jones who was driven over for a try to make the score 8 -12.

It was Stamford who finished the half the stronger of the two sides and were beginning to put some good moves together in the difficult conditions.

Stamford came out of the blocks immediately in the second half.

Heard opened up the home home defence with a strong run and created a space outside that just allowed Alex Timson to dive over in the corner to increase the lead to 8-17.

The home side upped their game and eventually kicked another penalty but it was Stamford who always looked the better side with a good structure in both attack and defence.

They put together a good driving maul which resulted in a penalty and again they kicked into the corner where Chisholm yet again won the line out and drove on but Lions took the maul down.

Stamford took a quick tap and Jones crashed over for a try which he also converted to make it 11-24. This was the fourth try so the bonus point was secured.

The hosts again came back and Town conceded two quick penalties, the second saw Gaz Ramsden get a yellow card and this was followed by a Lions try from the resulting penalty which cut the lead to 16-24.

Stamford now had the game under control and were looking after their possession, moving the ball into open spaces and stretching the home defence.

Timson ran the ball open and, when he passed, he was taken out by a late body check which saw the Lions player yellow carded and they had to play the remainder of the game with 14 players while Stamford saw out the match in control.

Coach Matt Albinson praised the team for their effort and commitment and it was new young half backs Penrose-Toms and Morley who stood up well in their first game together.

Attention now turns to Empingham Road on Saturday where a large crowd is expected for the visit of Oakham. Kick-off is at 2.15pm.

Stamford were 15-24 winners in the first meeting of the season between the two sides at the Showground in September.

They are currently in third spot in the table while Oakham lay 10th after a 22-25 defeat against Spalding on Saturday in a match where the visitors scored a winning try in the dying minutes of the contest.