Middlesbrough arrived at Bower Park with a single intent: to take a full five points and remain top of Division 2 North.
This was achieved in some style with seven tries, but they also had to weather a remarkable show of resilience from Aspatria, who, thanks to scrum power, hunted down a try bonus point.
Aspatria stay 8th in the table and with 4 games remaining in this season’s campaign relegation worries are receding but have not completely disappeared. Kirkby Lonsdale and Guisborough remain the bottom two, but examining remaining fixtures provides a glimmer of an escape route.
It would take an exception upturn in current form but both have upcoming games against opposition just above them in the league standings. A couple of wins would set up a nervy end of season for all the clubs in the bottom 5.
Aspatria started poorly losing possession of the ball in a dangerous area from the Middlesbrough kick off.
The home side did manage to clear the immediate danger but from the subsequent lineout, Boro mounted a charge at the line and with less than 2 minutes played led 0-5.
Apart from an odd foray into Boro territory, the game was confined in and around the home 22. Aspatria assisted the Boro effort with a succession of penalties. From one of these Boro took a set scrum and moved the won ball the width of the pitch to score in the right corner.
At 0:10 it was beginning to look ominous for Aspatria but there was still plenty of fight in the home ranks. Just inside the second quarter of the game a comeback even looked possible. A sustained attack dragged Boro’s highly disciplined defence out of position and this provided an opportunity for second row Jude Wilkinson to charge through a slender gap and gallop a good 30 metres to the try line.
Jack Clegg converted for 7-10 but the positive vibe did not endure. Boro once again took command of the game and the rest of the half was a torrid time for Aspatria. Boro’s 3rd try came on 26 minutes from a well worked maul by the forwards.
Aspatria’s penalty count continued to grow and on 30 minutes it seemed mission accomplished for Boro as their 4th try earned a bonus point. At 7-24. It would be a hard road back for Aspatria.
Before halftime Boro took any hope Aspatria might have held with try number 5 and a penalty with the last kick of the first 40 minutes.
With a half-time score line of 7-32 it was looking grim for Aspatria and it got worse very early in the second period. Aspatria started the half on the front foot and gained a position close to the Boro line but when the ball was turned over Boro seized the opportunity to gallop upfield and increase their scoreboard advantage to 7-37.
It was job done for Boro but not for Aspatria. Boro made a change in their forwards and this clearly disrupted their cohesion, particularly in the set scrum. Aspatria had more than held their own in this area but were now able to wreck the Boro pack at near enough every opportunity.
On 60 minutes this pressure paid off when a 5 metre scrum disintegrated in front of the referee who had no hesitation in awarding Aspatria a penalty try.
With 2 tries scored there was renewed interest in the home ranks. The chase was on for two more to earn a bonus point.
The fact that Boro scored the next try a couple of minutes later to extend the lead to 14-44 was immaterial. The hunt continued but hope and time remaining was ebbing away. Until, with 8 minutes left on the clock a magical break by Mark Watson operating at scrum half ended with a 40 or so meter run to the line for try number 3.
Aspatria were now in the ascendency. Boro looked determined to prevent the 4th try any way they could. Indeed, it was an illegal tackle by a Boro man that kick started the payday move.
The resultant yellow card reduced Boro to 14 men and provide a penalty that Aspatria used to go deep in the visitors’ half.
From the developing play Aspatria earned another penalty and opted for the scrum. There was only going to be one conclusion and that was Boro going backwards where once again the referee deemed the march to the line had been illegally interrupted and awarded a second penalty try.
This delivered a bonus point for Aspatria ending the day’s scoring and providing a satisfactory conclusion for both sides.
