Glory in Defeat

On a perfect morning for rugby Preston kicked off, an unfortunate knock on and then some missed tackles allowed the massive Grasshoppers forward to stride over for the opening try and after the dose was repeated 10 minutes later Manchester found themselves 10-0 down. It would have been easy for the boys to let their heads drop as the big and powerful Preston team continued to drive into them but to respond like they did was fabulous. The reds showed the character and determination they have developed this year and the running, tackling, rucking and scrummaging by Manchester’s smaller but very brave side was a joy to behold. They moved the ball into Preston territory and it was Tom Walsh who twisted, turned and forced his way through the home defence to register a well deserved try; the confidently struck conversion by TJ making the score 10-7.

Unfortunately we gave the ball away again from the restart and once more the big Preston no8 drove over to extend their lead. However any thoughts of a home team route were dispelled as Manchester came back and mounted some good pressure in the Preston 22, The game had moved up a gear with both sides moving the ball well but clear chances remained at a premium and the last of the half would fall to the home team who powered over again before the whistle sounded making the scoreline Preston 22 Manchester 7.

The second half was a close encounter for much of the play despite Preston going over a further 3 times and at the end Manchester stunned the Grasshoppers with a fine try created by Tom W who broke through the Preston defensive line and was held up just short of the line before fine support play saw Hamza rewarded as he picked up the ball and went over near the corner. Another excellent conversion by Tom Jones was followed by the final whistle and the scoreline read Preston 37 Manchester 14.

Epilogue
In the end Preston deserved their win and we wish all the best to a side that are rightly favourites to go on and lift the cup.

Captain Ciaran Booth and his team never took a backward step and the coaches can have genuine cause for believing they now have the nucleus of a side capable of competing on level terms with some of the best around. As the physical gap gets smaller we look forward to taking on this fine team in future cup battles.

But for all that, the bottom line is that this was the end of Manchester’s adventure in this year’s Lancashire Cup after an absorbing quarter final encounter between two unbeaten sides that but for our bad luck with matches being called off could have been a worthy final.