Vale of Lune shine in Lancashire Cup win

Match Report: Aldwinians 0 Vale of Lune 31

With September on the horizon, the final pre-season match for the Vale of Lune first XV had the considerable motivation that comes with a cup tie.

This first round Lancashire Cup fixture at Aldwinians, to the east of Manchester, brought these two old rivals together after several seasons apart.

The energy and enthusiasm of both sides shone through the drizzle to leave the malaise of the summer recess behind. Focus and determination showed on the faces of every participant. 

The identical club colours required the Vale to turn out in two-tone blue.

Harry Fellows succumbed to a hamstring issue, but head coach Mark Goodman had the selection options of several new and returning players.

The half-back partnership of Billy Swarbrick and Harry Finan rolled back the years, and prop Mike Bradshaw returned from injury to restore his presence in the pack. Vale debutants were Joe Crompton, Jamie Mayall and Kurt Gledhill. 

Early exchanges took place in the middle of the park with no real threat of a score, until a break by Swarbrick gave space for Ryan Busby to dart into the Aldwinians danger zone.

Purposeful forward cohesion pushed for the line and Vale tight head Bradshaw forced his way over to open the scoring, with Damon Hall converting.

Aldwinians came back strongly with a period of sustained pressure near the Vale tryline. The home side was frustratingly unable to top off this phase with any points to show for their endeavours.  

The Vale front row was having it all their own way, with a driving maul in the right corner, ending with a try by the versatile Matt Mount, and Archie Fowler repeatedly tore holes in the Aldwinians defences in midfield.

A sharp turn of speed by Damon Hall set up Jamie Mayall to score his first competitive Vale try and the half time score reached 19 points to nil for the visitors. 

Replacements were deployed en masse, mostly for tactical reasons. However, a deadleg sustained by Swarbrick had begun to limit his mobility and he was replaced at scrum half by Kurt Gledhill.

No. 8 Sam Wallbank powered through hapless tacklers to set up the Vale backs. Damon Hall applied the acceleration to score near to the left corner.

The final cherry on the cake was placed by Jack Macfarlane under the posts, and Hall added the extra two points. 

Aldwinians' frustrations spilled over in the dying moments, requiring the referee to show red. The Vale maintained their composure and all was forgiven at the final whistle.   

Notable performances were acknowledged by Vale officials: Jamie Mayall and Joe Crompton were worthy of praise for fine debut performances, but it was stand-off Harry Finan who was dubbed man of the match for his skilled distribution, decision making and defensive zeal. 

The NW2 campaign begins next week with a home clash against Firwood Waterloo. Kick off at 3pm. 

Team:  A. Fowler, M. Mount, M. Bradshaw, J. Crompton, J. Sutcliffe, J. Ayrton (c), E. Abdelghafar, S. Wallbank, B. Swarbrick, H. Finan, D. Leighton, J. Mayall, D. Hall, R. Busby, C. Ramwell.      Reps:  H. Dokter, K. Gledhill, G. Oyston, J. Macfarlane.