No Prizes at Preston

Three matches were played, 2 against the Grasshoppers (A and B Teams) and one against Sedgeley Park.

The first match against Preston Grasshoppers "B" set off at a blistering pace which was maintained throughout both halves. Each side moved the ball well and Fin Wilby was on his mettle to thwart several Grasshoppers breakthroughs on their left wing. His fierce tackling set the tone for the rest of the team. More than once Nathan Waddington put down forwards much heavier than himself and Noah Taylor, back in at 2nd Row forward, was like an extra back chasing down the opposition at every chance he got.

Joe Bedlow was determined to make his mark & was regularly able to disposess the opposition in the maul. On one occasion, after delivering a jarring tackle, he was quickly to his feet and able to charge towards the oppositions line, metres short he punted the ball forward over the try line and Nathan Waddington was unlucky not to score as he was narrowly beaten to the ball by the scrambling Grasshoppers defence.

The home side were relentless in attack however and were awarded with 2 quick try's. Dan Dunham replied for Rossendale with a well taken try after quick thinking by Josh Beeken at Scrum Half , feeding Rowan Hopkinson in to the clear ,who with quick handling of the ball released Dan down the right wing.

Tyler Johnson and Joe Bedlow linked well in mid field and they conducted several deep incursions into the oppositions half and it was unfortunate that their enterprising play was not rewarded with a score.

Preston had the edge in the loose play however and ran in 4 more try's to finish at 30 points to 5.

Rossendales second match was against Sedgeley Park and whilst both sides played some fast committed rugby, it was Sedgeley Park who made the most of their possession, running in 7 try's with no reply against the Rossendale defence which seemed to lose concentration at the vital moments. Final score: Sedgeley Park 35 - Rossendale 0.

The final match against Preston Grasshoppers "A" proved a far more even affair. Jack Flanagan playing as captain re-motivated his players. Haig Howarth was fearless in the tackle and saved a certain try when the Grasshoppers left wing had a clear run to the Rossendale line only to be clattered into touch by Haig.

Reece Howarth playing in only his second game of Rugby contributed well in both attack and defence, showing a good aptitude for the game.

Rossendale enjoyed good periods of possession and were unfortunate not to get some points both Ieuan Dwyfor-Jones and Joe Bedlow made frequent ground against their opponents.

Nuri Stoner made a welcome return to the front row having been out injured for several weeks, and along with the other powerhouse prop forward, Sam Ashworth was influential in the performance of the Young Buck's scrum. Final score: Preston Grasshoppers "A" 15 - Rossendale 0.

Well done to everyone who played. We are looking like a team to be reckoned with for next season and beyond.

A big thank you from all the coaches to Gwil for reffing today (and this season) and also for his splendid match reports each week, and also to Chris for looking after the kit and being a top notch waterboy each week.