By Brandon Reeves
Huddersfield were in seventh heaven at Lockwood Park as they rose to the occasion to score an emphatic seven tries to demolish National Two North big boys Hinckley 43-8, winning their seventh game in a row.
Returning Harry Davey played a key role in an excellent team performance as he ran in a brace that helped Field leapfrog Hinckley into second place with a bonus point to boot.
Where many expected a tough afternoon for Huddersfield against one of the league’s frontrunners, the Leicestershire outfit instead got blown away in the bracing West Yorkshire wind.
A ten-minute period of dominance in the first half for Field is where the damage was first inflicted, scoring three tries to put Hinckley to the sword.
It was a period dominated against fourteen men after Hornets full back Joe Wilson deliberately knocked on with Field putting the pressure on down the left-hand side.
Ross Thornton immediately took advantage for Field, scurrying over the first score after the ensuing lineout and maul after Mark Pease kicked the penalty to the corner.
Will Milner kicked his first of four conversions of the afternoon.
The second score was Harry Davey’s first since returning to Huddersfield. Davey was on as a replacement for Elliott Munnelly in midfield, and he capitalised on great work from Lewis Bradley stripping the ball back in the middle of the park.
Harry Whitfield gained metres, found Jack Maplesden who sent Davey away in between two and run in behind and under the posts, giving Milner an easy kick.
After two scores in a couple of minutes, Hinckley’s only answer was a Joe Glover penalty kick from an offside to put them on the board.
Arthur Wilkinson would round off the scoring of the first half to really punish the fourteen men.
Hinckley kicked waywardly into touch from Field’s restart. The powerful forwards drove the maul into the 22 from the lineout, before quickly the ball found its way across the line to Tom Hodson.
Field had a two-on-one as Hodson fed Wilkinson outside him for an easy third score of the season for the winger.
From then on up to the restart Hinckley finally looked like something to think about as they pushed Field back, but the resilience they have shown so readily at defending their try line was in full effect.
Hinckley went into the break sixteen points down and serious questions to answer while Field went in after a storming show, and simply needing a ‘same again’ second half.
Huddersfield had no intention of letting up. Another period of quickfire scores truly put the game beyond any reasonable doubt for the hosts.
The Field pack were absolutely commanding and have proved to be lethal at finishing moves off this season.
Nick Sharpe’s try being another example for this, as the maul drove over the line from close range again.
The hard work for this try was in Tom Hodson and Harry Davey running up the pitch with ball in hand, chasing down a kick and then forcing the Hinckley covering man into touch.
The hornets were chasing shadows at this point, but still didn’t learn their lesson. Another lineout in the corner, this time there were a couple of rucks before the inevitable, but it was Lewis Bradley this time, wriggling in between bodies in typical fashion before touching down.
Will Milner was next up to score. After having a couple of conversion kicks hold up in the wind, the man at centre was found on the 22 before ghosting past a porous backline with a relatively easy line break before converting his own effort.
If that was a nail in the coffin, the next one buried Hinckley.
From Hinckley’s possession inside the Field half, their eagerness to get a score back was short-sighted as Harry Davey on his own 10-metres pounced on a speculative and stray Mitchell Lamb pass.
Davey then had nothing but open field ahead and cantered home for his second try, Milner putting the polish on it.
For the awful day the visitors endured, they can at least say they had the last word three minutes before time.
The first time in the match where their backs connected well, but Ryan Hough got the final score of the game.
Gareth Lewis was pleased with what he saw from his side.
“This was an excellent team performance and I’m delighted for the players.
“We know Hinckley had a few key players missing but you can only beat what’s in front of you.The players have worked hard in recent weeks to improve and this shows their capabilities. We are playing with confidence and enjoying each other’s company, but I believe we can be better, and we’ll need to be over at Hull Ionians next week.”
Next week is another tough clash for Field, they travel to Hull to face Ionians who cemented their top spot with a win at Fylde.
Sedgley in fourth sneaked a win past Peterborough at Park Lane while Chester returned to winning ways hosting Stourbridge to stay fifth.
