Widnes keep out resurgent Wirral

Oct 3 2012 by Our Correspondent, Birkenhead News

AS usual matches against these two sides are close and Saturday’s game was no exception with the result in doubt until the final whistle.

It was Widnes who took the lead with a penalty by Kevin Leadbetter followed by an unconverted try by Mike Lamb to build up a lead of 8-0. A kick through from Craig Harvey and a slip by Leadbetter allowed Mike Ludbrook to dive on the ball to score with the try being converted by Craig; however Widnes scored a try through Paul O’Connor to give them a 13-7 lead at half time.

After the break it was Wirral who went ahead with a converted try from Rob Pearl following good work by the Wirral forwards. Widnes were next on the score sheet with a penalty try, easily converted and this was followed up by another try from the Widnes forwards to increase their lead to 25-14.

It was Wirral who controlled the final 15 minutes scoring a try through Colin Dyer and again converted and turned down a number of penalty opportunities as they strove for the winning try. A kick through and race to the try line saw a Wirral player deliberately obstructed but on this occasion the exchange referee declined to award a penalty try. Wirral continued to pound the Widnes line but could not find the break to cross the line for the winning score.