Sunderland run ten tries past Houghton
Sunderland scored ten tries in a 66-5 derby dismantling of Houghton.
The Ashbrooke side put last week’s bitterly disappointing loss against Redcar behind them to underline their superiority over Houghton - running in try after try and kicking nine conversions to the visitors’ one unconverted try.
The victory cemented the team’s slot in third place in Durham and Northumberland Two.
Captain Joe Arrowsmith scored four - the first within a minute of the kick off - from a well-worked maul and his hat-trick was completed on 30 minutes.
Arrowsmith notched his fourth, opening up the second half scoring from a touch down at 8 as Sunderland’s pack walked a scrum back over Houghton’s try line.
Houghton came into the game on nine minutes, and scored out wide as Sunderland failed to make tackles. But that was the main attack of their game.
Wingers Fletcher Jackson and Harry Price enjoyed a lot of possession and both attacked well from set pieces and in open play to bag three tries between them.
Jackson benefitted from a great break from Andy Wordsworth, who kept the ball alive after breaking gain line to feed backs and eventually the young winger to round his opposite number and then touch down under the posts.
Price supported well and on two occasions in the first half, found contact rather than space before showing his true scoring prowess out wide on the right wing, and popping up on the left wing in the second half to grab his second and Sunderland’s final score of the game.
Senior Colt James Savage gave the selectors food for thought, showing pace and determined aggression through his appearance to score a well-worked first team debut try.
Joe Buckley grabbed a brace on a day that showed how well Sunderland can perform when the build solid platforms to build on.
Seaham took advantage of a league free weekend by hosting a 2nd XV fixture against Novocastrian Centurions.
A free-flowing game was played in spite of a horrible wind.
Touchdowns were scored by John Dixon (3), Chris Bland (2), James Bromley, Connor Drinkwater, Brad Robinson, Matt Buckley and Jack Adamson. Conversions were added by Connor Drinkwater (3) and Paul Harvey. It wasn’t all one-way traffic though and Novos scored two converted tries as the game ended 58-14.