Bears tamed as Higgy win epic

CAUSING A SPLASH: Higginshaw’s Kris Richards (right) drives the ball in through difficult conditions.

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HIGGINSHAW produced a stirring effort in the mud to defeat a lively West Bank Bears team

11-10 in division four, picking up a second league win of the season.

This was an epic battle — and one that was one by Higgy despite them playing with just 12 men for 70 minutes, after the early dismissal of Kris Richards.

An unconverted try from the visitors was responded to by the home side, who went close when man-of-the-match David Sweeney's kick just went dead before Mark Ward could drop on top of it.

Higginshaw's forwards then started to dominate, with Alan Dunn, Matthew Corbally and Chris Tomlin making big inroads up the middle and the Hewson brothers Scott and David, Paul Turner and Sean Stubbs tackling everything that moved.

The score remained 4-0 until the break. Six minutes after the restart, West Bank scored again with a well-worked team effort and must have thought the game was there for the taking.

But Higginshaw had other ideas, hitting back when Michael Smith burst on to Mick Jewitt's short pass to score near the posts, Sweeney converting to cut the deficit to two.

A Sweeney penalty then levelled the game and, following a David Hewson run from dummy-half, the position was set up for Sweeney to knock over a drop goal.

A penalty 10 minutes from time put the visitors back in front but with four minutes left, a Higgy penalty awarded for offside gave Sweeney the chance to win the game for his side, which he duly took.

The games between Oldham St Anne's 'A' and Widnes Moorfield in division one, Golborne Parkside 'A' and Saddleworth Rangers 'A' in division three and Woolston Rovers and Waterhead 'A' in division four were all postponed.