Penrith Junior Colts retained the County Cup after beating Cockermouth 21-5 in a physical battle at Silloth.
Penrith were quickest out of the blocks and had most of the ball in the first 25 minutes. As such they were the stronger team for large periods of the first half with their dominance of possession.
They had taken the lead after ten minutes when the forwards exploited gaps around the breakdown and forced Cockermouth onto the back foot.
From 15 metres out the Penrith captain, and man of the match, Isaac Murray dummied to a support runner before sprinting through to score. He also landed the conversion.
Following the restart Penrith continued to test Cockermouth’s defence and 15 minutes later centre Sonny Askins crashed through from ten metres with Murray converting.
After half time Cockermouth started to find some form and the majority of the second half was played in Penrith’s half.
The Cockermouth forwards started to dominate the scrums and put Penrith under pressure for long periods. Although they put together some good attacking moves the final pass usually went astray.
Penrith, although short of possession, still looked dangerous and after centre James Bent made a break from his 22 a few good phases followed and big second row Morgan Bland crashed over from five metres. Murray converted.
Cockermouth showed their spirit in the last ten minutes as they rallied with several attacking phases only stopped by determined tackling.
During the last play of the game Cockermouth centre Finton Hedley ran a brilliant line 15 metres out before scoring untouched.
The game was a physical contest throughout and played in a fantastic spirit from both teams.
