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   Barrow Raiders 30 Swinton Lions 34
Ian Rigg reports from Craven Park
Swinton Lions scored six second half tries to secure victory over a very enthusiastic Raiders side in a game played in very windy and cold and sometimes wet conditions. The Lions started very brightly and took the lead on four minutes when Chaz I'Anson scored on the left after an initial break from Dale Cunniffe but Ian Mort could not convert against the strong wind with the ball actually coming back towards the corner flag. Kevin Penny was seeing plenty of ball and he went close on nine minutes but was just knocked into touch as he went for the corner and he had another chance five minutes later when he weaved in and out of the Raiders defence to cross the line only to lose the ball as two tried to tackle him at the touchdown. I'Anson then had a try cancelled out by referee Matt Thomason when he was judged off side from a kick through from Ian Watson. Raiders took the lead on the half hour against the run of play when the Lions lost the ball in their own thirty and Dan Toal scored to the left of the posts with Scott Kaighan converting with the wind at his back. The Lions tried to hit back when Darren Hawkyard went close and Andy Ballard was forced dead to hack the ball dead in goal. The home side then hit the Lions with two tries in two minutes just before the break when Toal scored again after a good passing movement and then he set up a try for Scott Kaighan and the scrum half also added both the conversions. From the first whistle of the second half the Lions were on the attack again and in the first minute Lee Wingfield had a try disallowed for a forward pass from Mike Morrison who was involved in most of the Lions attacks. The next Lions try came on forty-two minutes when Martin Ainscough sent out a pass for Dale Cunniffe to cross on the left but again the wind took Mort's conversion attempt away from the target. Ainscough himself scored the next try three minutes later from a short pass from Watson and again the conversion was missed. The Raiders extended their lead on forty-nine minutes when the Lions were trying to clear the ball down field with a kick and it rebounded off a Lions defender for Brad Marwood to race away and score unopposed by the posts and Kaighan again converted. Tom Armstrong scored his first Lions try four minutes later when he scythed his way through the defence to score on the left and Mort added this conversion. Ainscough then set up another try this time for Darren Hawkyard to score on the right but again the wind took the conversion away from the posts. Richie Hawkyard added the next try to put the Lions into the lead when he scored under the posts and Mort converted and the final Lions try came with fourteen minutes left when Karl Ashall sent Sam Reay over on the right but this time Mort was unlucky to miss again when he hit the uprights. The Raiders set up a grandstand finish when James Dandy sent Barry Pugh over by the posts and Kaighan converted to put the home side within four points but the Lions defence held out for the final eight minutes to claim the victory despite losing Ian Watson just near the end after a accidental blow to the face from one of his own players in a tackle. After the game Lions coach Steve McCormack was pleased with the side's second half turnaround: "We scored some good tries having bombed some good chances in the first half and also having three tries disallowed. "The Raiders were always going to give us a tough game but I also thought the conditions played a big part in the game too. A couple of injuries were picked up but they will be assessed during the week before the Warrington game next week." Lions : 1.Ian Mort 2.Rob Foxen 3.Adam Higson 4.Tom Armstrong 5.Kevin Penny 6.Chaz I'Anson 7.Ian Watson 8.Mike Morrison 9.Karl Ashall 10.Neil Holland 11.Dale Cunniffe 12.Darren Hawkyard 13.Danny Meekin Subs (All Used) 14.David Mills 15.Lee Wingfield 16.Richie Hawkyard 17.Sam Reay 18.Martin Ainscough 19.Alex Hurst Ref : Matt Thomason Due to problems with spam only SalfordOnline members can now leave comments. Becoming a member of SalfordOnline only takes a minute, just hit the red Join Us button at the top right hand side of the page to create your Personal account. Got a news story? Need help with publicity for an event in Salford? Send it to newsdesk@salfordonline.com or call the SalfordOnline newsdesk on 0161 789 5377. |
