Leicester Lion Cubs v Oxford Chargers

Report

LEICESTER secured top spot in the NDL table ahead of the play-offs with a 50-38 win over Grand Final rivals Oxford.

The two sides were already secure in the top two places after Mildenhall lost at Edinburgh on Friday, and it was the Lion Cubs who took the victory in their regular fixture as well as the aggregate point by a single point.

Skipper Joe Thompson scored 14 for the home side with Ashton Boughen and Max Perry adding 12 and 10 respectively, whilst Luke Killeen picked up 12+1 for the Chargers as their winning run came to an end.

Leicester boss Dave Howard said: “The match started off pretty even, but then we had four races that went 19-4 in our favour, and that gave us the advantage.

“We needed a 4-2 from Heat 15 to get the aggregate point and we got it, and it was good for us to get the result against Oxford who are a strong side and the team we’ll be racing against in the Final.

“It was important to keep the positive momentum going, along with our home record, so it was a positive meeting with everybody happy. I like keep that positive nature in the team so that we have everybody thinking positively as well, so it was a great performance by the team overall.”

NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE
LEICESTER 50: Joe Thompson 14, Ashton Boughen 12, Max Perry 10, Max James 6+2, Tom Spencer 4+2, Max Clegg 3+1, Vinnie Foord 1+1.
OXFORD 38: Luke Killeen 12+1, Jason Garrad 9+1, Jordan Jenkins 8, Henry Atkins 6+1, Ryan Kinsley 2, Jody Scott 1, Jacob Clouting 0.
Leicester win the aggregate point

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Photo credit: STEVE DIXON