Wath Brow Hornets 28 Leigh Miners Rangers 20
Leigh Miners poor record on the road continues while Wath Brow Hornets 100% home record is still intact after a late try sealed a 28-20 victory on a warm afternoon in Cumbria. The opening stages of the match were scrappy with both teams not controlling the ball well enough and turning it over too cheaply. It was the home side who settled first when they scored down the left to give the score 6-0. With Brow on the front foot after the try they continued to go forward strongly and the pressure told as they scored a second try to increase the score to 12-0. Miners hit back when centre Ross Bradley broke from half way from a scrum to score out wide, Jonny Youds converting to bring the score to 12-6. Youds got Miners to within four points of their host right on half time with a penalty goal under the posts to give the score 12-8 at the interval.
Wath Brow started the half landing a early penalty goal, but from that the next fifteen minutes was all Miners who played their best rugby of the match putting the home side on the back foot scoring two tries to put them in front for the first time, the first from standoff Martin Lewis who went through a gap to score, Youds converting to bring the scores level at 14-14. That was followed by a try from winger Sean Pendlebury after some good quick hands down the left Pendlebury finished off in the corner, Youds adding the extras from the touchline to give the score 20-14 in favour of Miners. After going behind for the first time Wath Brow responded with their third try of the game, Brow’s loose forward barging over from close range to bring the scores level at 20-20 to set up an exciting end to the game. Brow edged themselves back in front with a penalty goal and with both teams getting stuck into each other tempers boiled over with a little scuffle. The game was wrapped up with a few minutes remaining when Brow’s loose forward again crashed over, the kick being converted to give Wath Brow a 28-20 victory and move them up to seventh in the table while Miners drop down to fifth.
Next week Miners are at home to table topping Wigan St Pats.
MINERS TEAM = J. Youds, S. Pendlebury , M. Gray, R. Bradley, J. Carroll M. Lewis, S. O’Brien, D. Jackson, T. Farrimond, D. Kay, A. Thomason, S. Marsh, D. Jones, SUBS = J. Muir, D. Rowlands, D. Appleby, L. Coleman
