Whitchurch 14 vs Waterloo (Firwood) 10

Waterloo (Firwood) came to Edgeley Park with a hundred per cent record but found the Shropshire lads in great form. The Merseysiders showed in the opening ten minutes why they are still a formidable club but, gradually, the home side began to come into the game and went ahead through a penalty by Robbie Leighton after 20 minutes. They then pressed home their ascendancy by scoring a typical Whitchurch try with a “catch and drive”. The conversion was missed but the home lead was eight nil. The Waterloo backs looked lively but were held up by fine tackling, particularly in the centre. A long kick from Danny Nicholas was double rewarded when the opposition flanker late tackled him after the kick and gave away a penalty where the ball had landed. Leighton stepped up to kick it and Whitchurch led eleven nil at half time.

            The second half was very much tit for tat with both side unable to cross the whitewash until the 70th minute when the visitors managed to scramble the ball over on the touchline. The conversion was missed. Less than two minutes later, the Reds charged back and forced another penalty which Leighton happily converted. Time was running out as Waterloo ground out some territory and were awarded a penalty. The scrum half took a quick tap and raced over in the corner. The kick was symptomatic of the visitor’s kicking game and fell well short. The Shropshire ran down the clock in a composed and organised way to run out 14 – 10 winners.

            This display showed the potential for this Whitchurch side and they look forward to the long trip up to Kirby Lonsdale next week.