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Local rivalries were on the line again as champions Aspull took on Orrell in the sunshine at St John Rigby.

Local rivalries were on the line again as champions Aspull took on Orrell in the sunshine at St John Rigby.

tracy monckton8 Apr 2019 - 07:30
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ORRELL 13 ASPULL 26 Match Report By Dave Parkinson Photographs courtesy of Bryan Fowler

It was two tries each at the end, however not for the first time this season, the visitors were indebted to the performance of their mercurial fly-half, Liam Reeve. Not only did he push and prompt his side around the park all afternoon, but he also claimed 16 points to put the boot into Orrell.

The hosts started brightly and had several chances in the first ten minutes to register points with some good ruck play and dominant forward charges. Craig Thomas missed an early penalty for Orrell and Reeve got the scoreboard ticking with the first of four penalties.

Aspull then got over the line with a sprightly piece of play from skipper Sam Kindred and Reeve converted for a 10-0 advantage. Orrell fought back and claimed a good try on the left through Matt Johnson after Adam Glover's offload, but another Reeve penalty kept Aspull clear. Thomas responded with a well-struck penalty goal before half-time to reduce the arrears to 8-13.

Orrell then made a great start to the new half with Andy Kelly sending Mike Caldwell in at the corner. Thomas couldn't convert from wide out and although Reeve missed a penalty, he was on target with a further effort on the hour.

Orrell remained in the game, their pack tackling well while the backs chipped in with some important carries. Crucially though, they couldn't convert their limited chances and it was left to Aspull centre Kieran Ford to score the crucial try which Reeve converted before adding a long-range penalty. James Pearson was sin binned in the closing stages for Orrell who could only watch on as Aspull won their 19th league game in succession.

Orrell can still mathematically be promoted. Next week they are away at Congleton for their last game of the season and will hope for a result and a favour from Garstang, who travel to Eccles. Aspull finish their campaign at home against bottom-of-the-table Oswestry.

Match photography can be found on our Facebook Page courtesy of Bryan Fowler.

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