It would be hard to overestimate the importance of Aspatria’s 24-0 win over Northern to their players and supporters.
It was the first victory of the season, following two disappointing defeats and it came against top notch opposition.
It was a landmark win for the Black Reds. In the two previous seasons they have fallen short.
in efforts to record wins against teams at the top end of the table but this result is undoubtedly a turning point.
Make no mistake, Northern remain a formidable side and despite this setback at Bower Park they will contest the league championship.
For the game coach Mike Scott had several backline permutations to choose from. He opted to go for Jack Clegg at fly-half with Mark Watson at scrum half and this combination proved its worth throughout the game.
Added to this were the kicking skills of centre Matthew Irving making his first start since injury ruled him out early last season.
Northern exerted most of the early pressure as they looked like a team who expected yet another victory at Bower Park.
Around 10 minutes in, a series of penalties conceded by Aspatria placed Northern close to the home line. There was no hint of penalty kicks as this was a team chasing tries.
That is exactly what happened with the visitors switching play across the field and eventually dotting down in the corner to take the lead.
It was a setback for Aspatria but they were beginning to generate some telling moves of their own and on 15 minutes one of these was stopped illegally by Northern and a Clegg penalty kick was successful.
The game was swinging both ways as Aspatria upped their skill levels and there was little to choose between the teams as each had try scoring opportunities but failed to deliver.
It was becoming clear that Aspatria had a distinct advantage in the set scrums but at this point in the game Northern still had the energy and nous to ensure this Aspatria plus point failed to supply any reward.
With 30 minutes on the clock Northern delivered what, at the time, looked a decisive blow.
The visitors won a defensive scrum on their five-metre line and with an excellent inter-passing move charged downfield to score a second unconverted try in the corner.
Aspatria refused to fold and again took the game back to Northern territory. A high defensive tackle was punished with a yellow card and Clegg added further misery with a well-taken penalty shot to bring the score back to 10-6.
The half-finished with Northern back on the attack and there were some nervous moments for Aspatria to endure but they remained organised and saw out the half without further damage.
Northern had been marginally on top in the first half but the gap was nowhere near wide enough to deter Aspatria.
The home side roared out of the blocks and stunned the visitors by taking the lead with only minutes played.
Under pressure Northern botched a clearance close to the try line. A home scrum turned into a penalty and Clegg took full advantage of the subsequent disarray to take this quickly and launch a cross-field kick.
The kick was perfect with left wing, Grant Bethwaite not having to break stride and take the ball before racing to the corner flag for a one-point lead.
Aspatria began to take control of the game. Northern were still full of fight and intent but they could not break the stranglehold Aspatria held and added to this they were beginning to dread Aspatria’s main weapon, the scrum.
Another Clegg penalty took the score out to 14-10 and a point had been reached where Aspatria were now looking favourites for the win.
This was more or less sealed on 61 minutes when back row Greg Dickinson intercepted a desperate Northern attempt to escape up-field and with a clear run under the posts extended the lead to 21-10.
Into the final 10 minutes and Aspatria sealed the victory with a fourth Clegg penalty and Northern accepted that there was no way back.
Aspatria go to Cockermouth next Saturday for the first local derby of the season and should have available two key forwards coming of the injury list.
Ex-team captains Matthew Atkinson and Phil Dixon will be in contention for the game, bringing a welcome selection problem to coach Scott’s doorstep.
