Three further deaths reported in Lincolnshire hospitals

Tries from Grant Cowe, Harry Marks and Owen Mitchinson saw Lincoln’s 1st XV push Leicester Forest all the way in their Midlands Intermediate Cup tie, but their comeback came too late in a narrow 21-17 defeat.

The hosts never really got going in the first half and found themselves 21-0 down at half-time and with a mountain to climb.

Instead of letting their heads drop, Lincoln refused to give up and clawed their way back to within four points of the visitors.

Cowe broke the defensive line and managed to roll to score a try with three defenders in tow, with Louie Cooke adding the conversion.

A bounce to the short side then caught the Leicester Forest defence short on numbers and Harry Marks crossed for a try in the corner.

Lincoln ended the game in the ascendency and had it gone on longer they maybe could’ve snatched a result, but unfortunately the comeback came too little too late.

The hosts reduced the gap in the score further in the final minute of the match. A quickly taken tap penalty after a well-worked break saw Owen Mitchinson, who had a superb game at Number Eight, dot the ball down for a great score.

Lincoln will return to action with their first league game of the season at home against arch rival Market Rasen & Louth on Saturday, September 25.

Adam Phillips and Andy Pierce scored the tries as Lincoln’s 3rd XV battled bravely throughout in a 52-10 defeat away against Bourne.

After the match, captain Adam Kelleher gave special mentions to man-of-the-match Phillips, and Pierce who put in a “cracking farewell performance” in his last game for the club.

Other Results

In the Midlands Premier, Ben Hyde and Rory Rendell-Tyrell crossed for a try apiece as fourth-placed Scunthorpe made it two wins in three games with a 15-8 victory at Doncaster Phoenix.

Scunthorpe’s 2nd XV – the Stags – were also victorious as they beat Selby in a friendly.

Tries from captain George Grant, Lloyd Buck, Tom Stephens and Mike Starling, who also added three conversions, were not enough to stop Market Rasen & Louth from falling to a 46-26 defeat away against Stamford.

Spalding progressed through to the next round of the Midlands Senior Vase after a 20-5 home victory against Boston.

New captain Luke Turner and Gav Sharman scored the tries for Spalding, with Conall Mason adding two conversions and two penalties. Boston’s only try came from Josh Cook.

Grimsby’s 1st XV were not in action at the weekend, but their second team recorded an emphatic 117-15 victory in a pre-season friendly against Dronfield’s 2nd XV.

John Mansfield and Matt Stringer each crossed for four tries, while Baden Kerr grabbed two.

Luke Chaplin, Dough Clough, Chris Moore, Kieran Dinnes, Miles Anderson, Mike Porter and Stu Saunders all scored one try apiece. Jess Matthews successfully converted 16 of the 17 tries.

In Midlands Four East (North), North Hykeham’s home game against Cleethorpes was postponed.

The league and cup double header between Skegness and Sleaford was also postponed.

Sleaford’s 2nd XV were still in action though and claimed a 61-19 victory against Boston thanks to a hat-trick of tries from Sean Bishop.

Ian Bishop crossed for two tries, while Kieron Trollope, Andy Ford and Tom Mason scored a try apiece. Ali Hurley scored his first try for the club, while Dan Mackie and Sean Bishop kicked over five and three conversions respectively.

George Sharp, Kaylan Hannay and Sam Forrest scored Boston’s tries, with Bruno Antunes adding two conversions.

Two tries from Will Pirali helped Stamford College Old Boys to a 24-5 win against Ayletone Athletic in a pre-season friendly.

Oli Sherwin and Haydn Johns each crossed for one try and Carl Brierley-Lewis added two conversions.

Gainsborough start first Ladies team

Gainsborough’s first ever ladies rugby team are looking to welcome new players.

The team had their first ever training session in September last year and are now looking forward to getting some matches under their belts as full contact rugby has been allowed to return again.

Everyone is welcome no matter what their age or ability, with training at Roses Sports Field on Warren Road in Gainsborough at 12.30pm on a Sunday and at 6pm on Wednesdays.

The club also host a free boot camp fitness session at 6pm on a Thursday for any new players wanting to give it a try.

Two men have been charged after a police officer and a woman were seriously injured on Friday night in the village of Welton near Lincoln.

It happened at around 8pm when Lincolnshire Police were called to the Black Bull pub after a drunken man allegedly assaulted a woman, injuring her face.

The suspect and another man left the pub and caused disorder at the Welton Social Club shortly afterwards, police said.

When officers arrived, a struggle reportedly ensued and a male police officer was assaulted, causing serious head injuries.

He was taken to hospital, where he remains for treatment.

The two men aged 24 and 32 were eventually arrested and on Saturday night Lincolnshire Police named and charged them.

Daniel Plackett, 32, of Scothern Lane in Dunholme, has been charged with three offences:

• Assault Occasioning Actual Bodily Harm (AOABH)
• Assault on Emergency Worker
• Resisting Arrest

Steven Rogers, 24, also of Scothern Lane in Dunholme, has been charged with one count of Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH).

They both remain in police custody to appear before Lincoln Magistrates’ Court on Monday, September 20.

Superintendent Lee Pache said: “There are many words I could use to describe this incident and the people who have assaulted our officer and the female member of public, but not one of them could adequately describe my anger, disgust, and shock at what has taken place.

“Today we have a member of the public who will be in considerable discomfort and will undoubtedly be shaken up, to her we say we are doing all we can to make sure those responsible are held to account. And we have a police officer who is lying in a hospital bed, seriously injured.

“This incident has sent shock waves through our force because we’re a tight-knit one and the friends and colleagues of our officer are not only worried about him but are saddened and go out to work today with heavy hearts. Every day they put themselves in danger, usually in defence of complete strangers, and should never have to pay this price as a result.

“We are working hard to establish exactly what has happened and to anyone we might not have spoken to, or is anyone has any footage of either incident, we’d be grateful to hear from you.”

Visit Lincoln will undergo a rebrand to incorporate the whole of Greater Lincolnshire, expanding the organisation’s geographical footprint.

Visit Lincoln’s new name will be Destination Lincolnshire and will be business focused, to build an engaged tourism, hospitality, leisure and retail community across Greater Lincolnshire.

The award-winning destination management organisation formed in 2012 and has supported a visitor economy growth of 30% to the city of Lincoln since it formed.

The transition to Destination Lincolnshire will be led by businesses, with representation from local authorities involved in the Towns Fund initiative as well as other schemes in Lincolnshire.

There will still be a commitment to Lincoln, as a continued investment in Visit Lincoln allows it to remain an internationally recognised brand.

All marketing activity including the website and social media will remain as Visit Lincoln, along with consumer facing brands such as Taste Lincolnshire and Cycle Lincolnshire.

The organisation’s evolution has been backed by councils across Lincolnshire, and has also developed a partnership with the University of Lincoln’s tourism research observatory which champions research and a data-led approach in the tourism sector.

Speaking about Destination Lincolnshire, Kate Ellis, strategic director for major developments at City of Lincoln Council, said: “Over the last 10 years Visit Lincoln has played a critical role in transforming the city’s tourism offer and international profile.

“Given the impact of COVID we need a much more collaborative approach to rebuilding the visitor economy led by the private sector. By working together we’ll be championing the recovery of the sector much more effectively then if we do it alone.”

Charlotte Goy, chief executive at Visit Lincoln, explains: “Destination Lincolnshire will focus on building an engaged and resilient visitor economy across Greater Lincolnshire.

“Tourism, incorporating retail, leisure and hospitality has been most affected by the pandemic; and Destination Lincolnshire brings forward a new structure which is business led and across a wider geographical footprint.

“Our growth is supported by businesses and operator within the sector who want to see a joined-up approach, and together we’ll champion new packages, digital innovation and collaborations that have not been possible before.

“Destination Lincolnshire will also deliver against the Government’s key visitor economy priorities which include sustainability, skills, inclusive tourism and the levelling up agenda which include the multi-million-pound Town Deals across Lincolnshire.

“We’re at the beginning of this journey, and we will be asking people to help us shape Destination Lincolnshire into an organisation that can support all levels of the visitor economy, from sole traders right the way through to the local enterprise partnership.”