Kirkby Lonsdale U14s 12 – 50 Rossendale U14s

The start of the game didn’t go exactly to plan, and what the Kirkby Lonsdale boys lacked in size and physicality, they made up for in effort and bravery. Within a few minutes, they put Dale under pressure by using the wind and the slope to kick behind the visitors’ defensive line, and with the resulting confusion, managed to dab the ball down for the first try. From this set-back, it could have taken a turn for the worse. Happily for Dale, the experience gained from LSH the previous week seemed to shine through, and the lads set about the task of taking control of the game. The Rossendale forwards stole a ball from a Kirkby Lonsdale lineout, drove forward a few metres, then quickly passed the ball out to the Rossendale Fly Half, James Willetts, who made a darting run into the KL territory, before offloading to Mark Rutherford-Shaw to make further inroads. Unfortunately, the ball was turned over at the ruck and the home side looked to break away, until a great piece of blitz defence from Isaac Mason saw a penalty awarded to Dale for holding on. The penalty was taken quickly by Rhys Tighe, who offloaded to the supporting Jake Ruding, then the final pass went out to James Willetts to run through and score in the corner. Dale kept the pressure on, with Jordan Fortune receiving the restart, driving his way through the KL defence, after which they conceded a penalty for joining the ruck from an illegal position. Jordan Fortune took the penalty in hand, again driving into the defensive line, and after a couple of phases of recycled ball from the Dale forwards, a short pass from Tom Unsworth to James Willetts who scored under the posts, and subsequently added the extras. Kirkby Lonsdale kept on the pressure though, and used the kicking tactics to again get behind the Rossendale line and go through for a converted try. The first half ended shortly afterwards, at Kirkby Lonsdale 12-12 Rossendale.

It was in the second half, that extra size and strength of the Dale pack really started to show, especially when coupled with the advantage of the slope and wind behind them. The first try was scored by Isaac Cornwall, after a few neat phases of play, finished with a strong drive over the line. The second try of the half was made after Rhys Tighe picked up from the number 8 position in the scrum, and drove through several defenders, then sprint 40m to score. Shortly afterwards, with a KL lineout on the edge of their 22, Isaac Cornwall leapt higher than the intended target, stole the ball and ran through to score his second try. The next try came from a Kirkby Lonsdale scrum, when the now dominant Dale pack won the ball against the head, quickly delivered by the scrum half, Alex Kilshaw, to James Willetts who weaved through the defenders to score. The home side did not lie down though; from the long restart, they chased hard and applied the pressure to keep Dale pinned back in their own 22. Dale defended hard, and as the ball bobbled away from a ruck, Idrees Nazir pounced, picked up the ball one handed, and sprinted 70m down the pitch to score his first try. The final try of the match came from another pickup at number 8 by Rhys Tighe, and with the 4 conversions by James Willetts, the game ended Kirkby Lonsdale 12-50 Rossendale.

Man of the match this week, was awarded to Jake Ruding for the effort and go-forward he created at the breakdown, especially throughout the first half.

Next week, Rossendale take on Littleborough at home in the second round of the Blacksticks Blue Lancashire Challenge.

I was very pleased to see the lads bounce back from last week’s disappointment, and hopefully there were a few hard lessons well and truly learnt. The lads stuck together as a team, used their physical advantage well and did not get complacent when they got the upper hand.

Thanks to all the parents and our supporters making the trip up there – we couldn’t do it without you.

It was an enjoyable game to watch, in an idyllic location, with very warm and friendly hosts. Thanks to all the coaches, players and supporters for making us feel so welcome and look forward to finding the opportunity to hold the return fixture at our place. I'd also make a special mention to the young referee, who I felt had a great game - letting the game flow, and was talking to and coaching the lads all the way through.