Thatto Heath Crusaders 44-12 Wigan St. Patricks
Thatto Heath Crusaders got back to winning ways with a confidence boosting 44-12 win over Wigan St. Patricks at Crusader Park.
In a game that meant more than two competition points, Thatto Heath raised their game to grab the local bragging rights and give head coach Richard Owen a win against his former team.
After their stunning start to the season, Thatto Heath had lost their last two games, whereas Wigan St. Pats had been struggling to gain momentum with frustrating results in recent weeks.
Yet it was the away side who hit the front first as Lance Wright crashed over in the corner despite the best efforts of returning Thatto Heath Captain Chris Frodsham.
Thatto Heath took a while to settle into the game before Adam Prendergast showed great strength to barge over from dummy half, Dan Birkett nailed the conversion to give his side a narrow 6-4 lead.
After a nervy start, both sides kicked into gear scoring tries within minutes of each other, first Jamie Bristoe crossed for the away side before Thatto Heath hit back through Dave Sutton.
Strong Running from Jamie Tracey allowed him to break into the backfield before drawing the fullback, sending Sutton under the sticks, Birkett converted to make it 12-8.
Tracey would again be involved as Brad Ashurst showed neat hands for a front rower and Tracey showed his athleticism to round the opposition fullback and grab his first try of the afternoon.
Dan Birkett would round of the scoring with his third conversion, the half-time scores 18-8 giving the home side an advantage as conditions worsened in the second half.
However, the conditions did little to dampen the spirits of the home side, Niall Allen crossing just five minutes into the second half, Allen showing great footwork in a tight space to extend the scores.
Wigan St. Pats were their own worst enemy in the second half, two silly yellow cards for delaying 20 metre restarts ultimately costing them the game.
Lance Wright would cross for his second before Dan Birkett showed his kicking prowess once again to lay a beautiful grubber on for Dave Sutton to grab his second making the scores 28-12.
With around twenty minutes to go the floodgates opened and Thatto Heath piled on the points, Jamie Tracey grabbed his second before a quick-fire double for Adam Saunders.
The final score 44-12 to the home side as they banish the memories of two harsh defeats to keep the pressure on Siddal at the top of the table.