Proud Colts can’t stop whitewash
●● Action from Rossendale Colts’ game against Liverpool St Helens at the weekend LIVERPOOL SH COLTS 33 ROSSENDALE COLTS ..... 0 PAUL KILSHAW
DESPITE all of the rain in Rossendale, the trip over to Liverpool St Helens saw the rain clear enabling the final game of the league to be played.
LSH needed the win to go joint-top and Rossendale Colts wanted to avenge the heavy defeat they suffered in their previous meeting. It was a fiercely contested game with pride, aggression and commitment on show and some huge collisions as both teams tried to exert themselves.
Despite a small set-back after three minutes when the home side scored an unconverted try, Rossendale matched LSH up front and kept the pres- sure on most of the way through the first half.
They spent about 10 minutes continuously in the LSH twenty-two, with the home side testing the referee’s patience with a series of penalty offences in the final five metres.
However, the cards stayed in the referees pocket and eventually LSH weathered the storm with Rossendale gaining nothing.
Dominic Martin came close to scoring, but was stopped inches short.
A short while afterwards, Tom Unsworth made a break from his own half, only to be stopped by a good covering tackle five metres out.
With the final play of the half, LSH managed to slip through a tackle and sprint over to score – LSH 12-0 Rossendale.
A couple of injuries to key players seemed to disrupt the Dale composure after about 10 minutes into the second half, and allowed LSH to get a couple of quick tries as they broke through some weak Dale defending to score.
The Dale lads seemed to rally round after this and fought back fiercely and looked like they might score, but the strong LSH defence remained resolute and kept them out.
The final LSH try was unstoppable, as one of the backline ran an excellent diagonal to slice through to score.
It was a closer affair than the scoreline suggests and the Rossy lads should be proud of the way they played against a very strong team.
Rossendale’s Man of the Match was awarded to Dominic Martin.