Leading 18-6 and having scored three tries before half-time it looked as though we would go on to win comfortably, especially seeing as the hosts had only really threatened the try-line once in the first period. But we failed to kill the game off and Morpeth responded with three second-half tries of their own to ensure a nail-biting finish.

Injuries and unavailability had forced 5 changes from the side that beat Rovers last week. Adam Coates and Ross Wood came in at prop with Peter Hodgson, Simon Cavey and Stu Waites starting in the backs.

Morpeth had the early possession but we scored with virtually our first touch of the ball 4 minutes in. Andrew Foreman picked from the base of a scrum on half-way and set brother Gareth clear up the right flank. The fly-half timed his pass perfectly to new wing-man Simon Cavey who finished well to mark his first-team debut in style. Unfortunately for him that debut wasn't to last much longer as he was forced from the field after just 10 minutes with a hamstring problem bringing Gav Robinson into the action.

Morpeth full-back Matthew Jinks opened his side's account with a penalty on 9 minutes but Paul Moss, having missed the earlier conversion, slotted over a 35 metre penalty to restore the lead. Jinks nudged Morpeth closer again with a further penalty on 23 minutes and had it not been for some wayward lineout throwing the home side would probably have threatened much more.

We'd hardly been knocking on the door for more points but two quick fire tries got the scoreboard moving again. First a scrum against the head in the Morpeth 22 allowed Darren Thomas to race into the left corner and then, with 32 minutes played Dan Boatman scored the try of the day. Lovely hands from Waites in a narrow space up the right wing set Boatman free just inside the Morpeth half and the flanker powered up the touchline before cutting inside the full-back and finishing off a superb try. Moss hit the post with the conversion to leave the score 18-6.

Morpeth started the second half on the attack and should have scored after 2 minutes but somehow squandered a five on two overlap inside the West 22. They then turned down a kickable penalty in favour of a kick to the corner but once again their line-out went wrong and West cleared.

Just as the game seemed to be fizzling out Jinks grabbed a try to put Morpeth right back in the game and it sparked them into life. With 20 minutes still to play they seemed to slip into another gear and it was no surprise when flanker Ritchie Armstrong burst through 3 tackles to score on 66 minutes leaving Jinks to level the scores with a simple conversion.

The way the momentum had shifted it looked like we would struggle to go on and win the game from that position but a great break from Gareth Foreman turned the match back our way. He broke clean through the Morpeth backline and chipped over full-back Jinks inside the 22 only to be cynically blocked by the Morpeth man. The referee rightly brandished his yellow-card but waved away what seemed reasonable appeals for a penalty try.

We had to settle for Stu Waites slotting over the 3 points and when Morpeth went up the other end and scored a try through Liam Carmichael the momentum shifted again. It left 5 minutes to try and regain the lead and when Morpeth drove the ball deep into the 22 it was looking like an increasingly difficult task. But a quick tap penalty from Thomas and powerful running from replacement Adam Howard got us back up to half-way. Gav Robinson made further inroads before Gareth Foreman opted to chip over the top. A combined chase from him and Thomas resulted in Morpeth being tackled in their own in-goal area and got us a vital 5-metre scrum. The hosts had had the better in the scrum all afternoon but we kept it solid long enough to win possession and after a couple of surges for the line the ball came back to Howard and although tackled just short he somehow managed to stretch over the line and touch down. Waites added the conversion and although there was time for the restart we controlled possession and kicked the ball to touch without allowing Morpeth another opportunity.


West: Waites, Cavey (Robinson 10), Hodgson, Moss, G Foreman, A Foreman, Coates, Bailey, Wood (Howard 55), T Dixon, Davies, D Boatman, J Boatman, Rudd.

Tries: Cavey, Thomas, D Boatman, Howard
Con: Waites
Pen: Moss


Morpeth: M Jinks, S Manley, B Hills, D Lynn, L Allen, T Wilkinson (c) ,P Jackson; K Campbell, A Charlton, L Carmichael, B Butler, J Forsythe, M Smith, R Armstrong, M Dawson.
Reps : S Leslie-Miller ,B Bell ,R Stephenson


Tries: Jinks, Armstrong, Carmichael
Cons: Jinks, Stephenson
Pens: Jinks 2

Yellow-card: Jinks