Waterhead win through

WATERHEAD safely secured a place in the third round of the BARLA National Cup after easing to a 46-12 win away at Leigh Central Lions.

After recovering from conceding the first score, Mick Slicker’s men safely established their authority and ran in nine tries against an outclassed North-West Counties division four outfit.

Half-back pairing Michael Diveny, with two tries, and Terry Fitzgerald, who picked up a hat-trick and a 26-point haul overall, ran the show throughout for a Waterhead side which featured six players from the under-18s side.

The Leigh side opened the scoring with a converted try on a game played out on an artificial 3G surface.

But the visitors responded with four tries before half-time, two from Fitzgerald – who also three goals – and one each from Ashley Wildman and Jordan Pye, to establish a 22-6 half-time advantage.

Further scores after the break came from Fitzgerald and Andrew Cheetham, adding to Diveny’s pair, with Fitzgerald kicking another four goals.

Waterhead now face Castleford Lock Lane at home on consecutive weekends. The first tie, in the Carnegie Challenge Cup, is on Saturday, January 17, with the last-32 National Cup clash coming seven days later.

Oldham St Anne’s and Saddleworth Rangers both had Challenge Cup preliminary round ties twice postponed at the weekend.

Saints’ frozen Higginshaw Road surface was deemed unfit for play on both Saturday afternoon and the reserve Sunday date. The game against Wigan St Jude’s is now likely to be played out at the same venue on Saturday, January 11, pushing the scheduled BARLA National Cup third round tie at Siddal back a week.

It was a similar story with Saddleworth’s game at Eccles and Salford Juniors, also unable to take place on either weekend date due to a frost-bound pitch. That tie will now be played on Tuesday, January 13 (7.30pm).