LEDBURY RFC Colts created a piece of history for the rugby club as they lifted the coveted Stan Whitfield Cup following their North Midlands Cup final win over rivals Luctonians.
The win was made even sweeter given Ledbury lost to the same opponents in the final last year but it was a different story this time as Ledbury edged a thrilling final by a single point in the 23-22 victory.
It had been a poor start from Ledbury, who were cheered on by a healthy traveling contingent at Droitwich RFC, as they conceded a try within the opening five minutes when the Lucs driving maul produced the first score of the final.
But it was a swift response from Ledbury as a quick tap-and-go from a scrum-free kick deep in Lucs territory eventually enabled Cody Richardson-Wall to muscle his way over, a try converted by man of the match Iolo Bubb.
Bubb kicked a penalty to put Ledbury into a 10-7 lead but they surrendered that advantage almost immediately as Lucs regained the restart and spread the ball to the right for a try in the corner.
It was an end-to-end encounter and the lead once again swung back in Ledbury's favour when centre Josh Bishop crashed over for a try. Ben Deards kicked the conversion and at half-time, it was a 17-12 lead for Ledbury.
The second-half was much the same to the first, both sides going at it in what was an evenly contested final between the two top teams in the North Midlands League One.
Luctonians were the first to register on the board after the restart as another effective driving maul from a lineout presented the base for a try that levelled the scores at 17-17.
But the mightily impressive Bubb continued his perfect day from the tee to twice convert penalties to extend the lead to 23-17 approaching the final stages.
The tension and drama was building and when Lucs again utilised the driving maul to their advantage to score another try, the conversion could have put them ahead, but it was missed.
At 23-22 a drop goal or penalty would have won it for Lucs and they got exactly what they wanted with the time in the red as the referee penalised Ledbury for a high-tackle.
The pressure could not have been greater and fortunately for Ledbury, the kick fell short from 30-metres out and Bubb was able to touch the ball down to seal the win and spark jubilant scenes.
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