A much changed Heughers side (12 of last week's squad were not available) travelled through to Acklam for what is always a competitive encounter. To replace the absentees we had some new, and some not so new, talent on display.

The Heughers had the advantage of the slight wind when we kicked off and were first on the scoreboard when Sean Swallow scythed though the Acklam defence near the posts. Surprisingly Josh Healey missed the conversion but this was possibly 'cos some dozy sod had forgot to check a kicking tee had been packed. Acklam went ahead with the double whammy of a penalty try for a high tackle against debutant Declan Henderson which also earned him a yellow card. 7-5. Rovers retook the lead after forward pressure led to Darren Smith forcing his way over for an converted try but lost it when Acklam scored a try out wide. Riley Davis had looked dangerous on the rare occasions we got the ball to him but ironically got a try after Acklam rashly chipped the ball to him trying to break out of their 22. Riley scooped up the ball and skipped past the Acklam defenders. With Josh adding the extras we led 12-17.

HT Acklam Talbots 12 - 17 Rovers Heughers

Despite playing into the elements we extended our lead when Darren Smith got his second try after gliding through a gap in the back line. Apparently it was from 350 metres out. Anyway we led 12-22. A lead we promptly lost after first knocking on in the Acklam 22 and seeing them race downfield to score and later giving them an interception try. 26-22. We had lots of pressure and were over the line at least twice without being able to ground the ball before Michael Tucker put us ahead again with a powerful drive. Our 26-27 lead didn't last long though as Acklam once more broke clear to score through someone called Alex. I know he was called Alex as his wife/girlfriend/sister was shrieking his name loudly in my ear. Lovely. We retook the lead when Matty Stevo recovered a kick 40 metres out and cut through several defenders before passing onto the supporting Sean to go over under the posts. With Josh's dinked drop kick we were ahead 33-34. The last 10 minutes were pretty tense but generally we controlled the game well to see it out for a satisfying win.

FT Acklam Talbots 33 - 34 Rovers Heughers

Cracking game played in a good spirit which could have gone either way but which we probably deserved to win not least by virtue of scoring 6 tries to 5 and for leading for the majority of the game.

We are really grateful for the new lads who came along to bolster our numbers and aid the more regular players. Tucker is still a powerful forward and gave us some go forward when he got the ball. His cousin Aaron Preston looked pretty rapid on the wing and Craig Vincent's mate Declan Henderson looked like he could cover a few positions. Another Aaron this time Kemp tightened our pack up and was a strong runner. Thanks also to Kieran Wright who has a bad knee injury but still turned up in case he was needed. With these debutants I reckon we are up to 50 players who have turned out for the Heughers.

Some of our more unsung players also showed up well. Billy Hudson had probably his best game in a Rovers shirt with him hitting rucks and taking the ball into contact. Ben Padget covered every blade of grass and ran himself into the ground. Riley Davis shows Shane Williams like stepping qualities and was a real threat whenever he got the ball. There was a good combination of experience and youth on the pitch and our commitment was really excellent. Last season we had 90 odd points put on us at this venue. Darren Smith, now a loose head prop, probably edged the man of the match award but there were a few people who ran him close.

And a final thank you to Kev Cook and Andy Palmer who brought a semblance of organisation to our pre-match warm up. Would have been even better if more players had been there.

Team

Swallow, Davis, M Wilson, Addison, Preston, Vincent, Matty Stevo, Tucker Healey, D Smith, Tyler, Hudson, Barker (c), Padget, Lane

Interchanges

Henderson, Wright! Buttery, Kemp

With League leaders Stockton Saracens not playing our full 9 point haul should keep us in second place and bring us to within 1 point of them.

Next week we have a county Cup tie scheduled, but still to be confirmed, away at Mowden Park 2nds