Coach frustrated as Mansfield misfire in surprise defeat

The Derbyshire visitors began the day in the bottom three of the National League, Midlands 3 East (North) division, but collected only their sixth win of the season.

Robinson said: “I thought we played well in parts, and with ball in hand, we look like a good team. But we just couldn’t get any momentum going.”

On a day when Mansfield received a stunning and specially framed poppy-adorned shirt from the Royal British Legion for the club’s support of recent poppy appeals, it was the ideal time to rebuild a winning platform after the previous game’s derby defeat at the hands of Ashfield.

But the game couldn’t have started much worse for them as Bakewell bagged a try in the first two minutes, and went on to enjoy the lion’s share of possession and territory through the opening half.

They lacked the killer edge, though, and Mansfield worked hard, particularly an industrious forward pack, led by man-of-the-match Richard Lindsey, to prevent any more scoring before the interval.

In the second period, Bakewell extended their lead with a penalty and although Mansfield gave themselves hope with a try from Zane Chiapetta, their scrum lost its dominance, their lineout misfired and their final pass lacked finesse.

The visitors sealed their win with a converted try.