Familiar foes share the spoils

FOR the third time this season Heaton Moor Colts locked horns with their local rivals in what was a pulsating game.

Both sides made light of the damp conditions in a tremendous battle which was played in a terrific spirit. Kersal made the early running, Moor encamped within their own 22 for pretty much the first quarter and were happy to only concede the one score. Kersal’s try was the result of a brilliant rolling maul which started a long way from the scoring zone after just ten minutes. But slowly the home team got to grips and were well rewarded with a great try started and finished by hooker Jake Barrett. Jake initially picked up loose ball from a ruck in midfield and after several phases, he was at the coal face to touch down for his first score of the season. He would soon leave the field injured just before half time.

The second half was of the same pattern, some of the defence and tackling by both teams quite a spectacle. James Bellis and Shane Ennis were outstanding up front, tackling everything that moved in an Altrincham shirt. The first twenty-five minutes of the half were scoreless but that was purely down to the fact that it was a cracking battle between two ferocious sides. But ten minutes from the end it looked like Kersal had taken the spoils. Colossal pressure from several forward phases led to a scrum under the posts and they broke to score, the extras added to open up a seven-point cushion. But Moor refused to accept defeat and pushed Kersal back into their own 22, several penalties accumulating and from one lineout deep in Altrincham territory, Asa Bottomley somehow managed to find the smallest of gaps to find the try line. But the difference was still two points with a difficult conversion, Nick Tenney narrowly missing, But the drama didn’t end there as Kersal were adjudged to have advance early, Nick getting a second attempt to equalize. He made no mistake and the game ended in a fair result, both teams exhausted by their efforts in a wonderful game. The colts now look forward to a home fixture against Wilmslow, slowly leading up to the Cup quarter final in February