First Half
Arkansas State and Lindenwood met in a windy and chaotic matchup on Saturday. Lindenwood loves to put the ball to boot and keep the pressure on their opposition. They stayed true to form and there was a good amount of kicking to start off the match. Both teams conceded possession on a few early handling errors. Anyone who's been under a high ball on a windy day knows just how difficult it can be to field those kicks.
The Red Wolves struck first after earning a lineout just outside their attacking 22. Ark State ran a forward pod in the midfield off the flyhalf. Ark State continued with another phase to the same side, attacking the edge with their backs. The Lions failed to fold properly, leaving Ark State with a 5 on 3. The ball went high to the center who corralled it and popped it to the hard charging fullback, James Beauclerk. Beauclerk sliced through a disjointed Lindenwood defense and won the race to the corner. Arkansas State led 5-0 after missing the conversion.
The Lions threw a few dodgy cut out passes, really not a recommended technique on a windy day. The ball hung in the air far too long and made it easy on the Arkansas State defense. Around the 20th minute of the match, Lindenwood had the ball in the attacking 22 for a few minutes. They had multiple opportunities to score including two advantages. In the end they came away with no points after being penalized at the lineout.
Arkansas State did really well throughout this match to slow the ball down in the tackle area. This allowed them more time to set their defensive line and put pressure on Lindenwood. Near the 30th minute, the Lions finally find a gap in the Ark State defense and Declan Ries made a nice break. Ries had his fullback and winger on either side but unwisely elects to chip over the Red Wolves fullback. Ark State managed to catch the chip on the full and call a mark, completely negating the hard work of Reis. Even if Reis couldn't offload the ball, he had two teammates with him who could've easily secured the ruck. This was frankly impatient attacking from the Lions and great hustle by the Red Wolves.
In spite of their folly, Lindenwood still ended up with an attacking lineout in Ark State's half following the free kick. But what happens at the lineout? The throw is no good and Lions give away another shot at points. In the 36th minute, the Lions had another attacking set piece. Reis again broke the line but on the subsequent phase, Lindenwood knocked on the ball. Immediately after the Lions turnover, the Red Wolves knocked on the ball as well. This Arkansas State knock on was followed by a third knock on in the same of just a few minutes. Really messy play on a bad weather day for both sides.
Arkansas State managed to kick the knocked on ball through and steal the ball less than ten meters from the tryline. But the referee saw something she didn't like and this time the Red Wolves miss out on a key attack opportunity. Both sides finished out the half with more mistakes. Lindenwood turned over the ball off a maul just 30 meters out. On the last play of the half, Arkansas State knocked on a relatively easy pass.
Second Half
Mistakes continued to plague both teams to start the second half. The first 10-15 minutes of the half were quite uneventful. Lindenwood was the first to have a meaningful attacking opportunity. After two Ark State penalties Lindenwood set up for a lineout inside the 22. The Lions worked through the forwards for seven phases before whipping it out to the backs.
Lindenwood had three backs on their feet in attack and Ark State had three disjointed defenders scrambling to defend. The third defender was matched up on the second attacker. Really not great spacing from the Red Wolves. But, the Lions play defense for them. The first receiver catches the ball and throws a skip pass to Nick Hardrict. If the Lions had executed simple hands, and Reis had fixed the last defender, Hardrict would've walked in for a try. Instead they throw an unnecessary skip ball and Hardrict catches the ball flat footed. He tries a 50/50 offload pass and Reis knocks on the ball and Lindenwood's prime attacking opportunity goes down the drain.
I'm not really sure why Lindenwood chose the windiest game of the year to try out some skip passes, but they did and they paid the price for it. Following the goal line drop out, the Lions get another crack at it and again knock it on. Arkansas State had very good job chasing the kick as a unified line and finding their defensive shape in just one phase.
Lindenwood had one more attacking opportunity after an Ark State penalty but again the Red Wolves defense stepped up to the plate. The Red Wolves had impressive line speed and great integrity in their defensive line. They made it very tough on the Lindenwood attack.
In the middle of the second half Lindenwood received a yellow card for a high tackle, leaving them a man short. However, the Lions were unphased and finally scored their first try of the match just a few minutes later. A kick exchange left Arkansas State backed up in their own 22. Lindenwood stole the ball at the lineout and a pass from the scrum half to their lock put him into space. He lumbered all the way down to the two meter line. From there the Lions were able to pick and go their way across the tryline. After the conversion, the Lions led 7-5.
Arkansas State answered back with a try of their own. The Red Wolves worked 8 phases and finally scored in the corner on the 9th. The sequence started with a clean break by reserve flanker Romain Geniez. Ark State managed to stay composed, just inches from the try line. They found the opposite edge and heaps of space putting Ned Madden in for the try. After another missed kick Arkansas State led 10-7.
Five or ten minutes later, Lindenwood gets another great attacking opportunity. The replacement #21 elects to kick a high ball, which was not contestable, into the in goal area. Outside him he had four attackers on their feet against just two defenders. That decision making from the Lions really had me scratching my head.
Ark State puts the pressure back on Lindenwood and earns a penalty after some silly play from the Lions. The Red Wolves make them pay by slotting the penalty kick to extend their lead 13-7. The Lions need a converted try to win it. Ark State gets another shot at the posts to take a multiple score lead, but the ball dings off the upright.
Lindenwood gets one last crack at it after recovering the missed penalty kick. They play through seven or eight phases and make some ground but are still 60 plus meters from the tryline. In the end, the skip pass screws over Lindenwood one final time. An attempted skip pass is clearly forward and the Arkansas State Red Wolves win it by a score of 13-7.
Recap
This was a huge win for Arkansas State and a serious blemish on Lindenwood's resume. Arkansas State boasted on of the highest scoring attacks of the fall and really has put together some electric performances their year. I think they were pretty even with the Lions, but the ball managed to bounce their way more often than not. They made big plays when they needed it. I would say the Red Wolves defense was the bright spot in this match.
For the Lions, like I said, a big loss. They looked completely out of sorts on attack. Defensively, really not a bad performance. To hold a team to just 13 points should be enough but their attack really couldn't string together anything impressive. The Lions made some poor decisions in critical moments. Their untimely skip passes nullified the Nick Hardrict, perhaps their most dynamic ball carrier.
Congratulations to the Red Wolves again and best of luck to both teams moving forward.
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