In bright, sunny conditions West kicked off into a stiff breeze. West made a good start in the Darlington half as the two packs contested fiercely right from the start. However, a clever kick and excellent chase deep into the West corner saw Darlington pile on some early pressure and with some slick passing the away side worked the ball quickly to the left hand side and scored a well taken try and conversion to take a 7-0 lead. Surprisingly, this was to be their only score of the morning.
West kicked off again and the combative James Baxter showed he had not lost any of his competitive edge as he charged into the fray as he linked up with Baden Knibbs. From the scrum, Knibbs made his first break and the home pack set up a good platform. Clearly a year in the sun has done wonders for Will Hilditch as the home backs spun the ball wide to send CJ Beales over with no defender able to get a hand on him. The sheer class and speed of execution showed that the hard work of summer has been well worth it. Hilditch missed a tough conversion to leave West trailing by a single score.
Right from the kick off, Hilditch caught the ball and fed Isaac Robinson who drove the ball on and fed George Wall. West looked impressive as they poured forward but a penalty allowed Darlington to clear the pressure. West came right back and Beales jinked his way up to the ten metre line. Solid defence saw Darlington clear their lines but the kick found full back David Wells who found Callum Johnston who took the ball on and then passed to Jack Mason who drove deep into the vistors’ territory.
West had a good spell of pressure but came away empty handed after a Hilditch penalty drifted just wide. Moments later West surged forward again with Johnston and Mason again linking up well and driving the ball back into the vistors’ half. Beales again darted past the first line of defence but Darlington won possession. Unfortunately the kick to touch was sliced and gave West a line out five metres from the line. The impressive Danny Ashton caught the ball imperiously and as the home pack drove in, Issac forced his way over close to the corner. Hilditch’s kick into the breeze was close, but West were happy to be leading 10-7.
West were looking very good at this stage. Robinson took a good catch from the kick off and fed Danny who powered his way forward. The ball was quickly sent wide and Michael Hainsworth beat the first defender and looked as though he might score from long range before the home full back bundled him into touch with a fine cover tackle. Darlington rallied and their right winger through from his own 22m and showed tremendous pace, leaving a trail of defenders in his wake. However, Wells stopped him dead in his tricks with a copy book tackle.
In the first few minutes of the second half West won a scrum close to their own line and decided to run the ball out of defence. Callum Johnson picked the ball up under the shadow of his own post and spotted a gap in the centre. He glided through the centre and then showed blistering pace as he outpaced the cover and then cantered in under the posts for a fabulous solo try. The simple conversion saw West take a 17 – 7 lead and with the breeze blowing down the pitch in their favour, they looked set for a comfortable win.
Darlington had other ideas and came right back at their hosts and had the territorial advantage as West were unable to relieve the pressure. Despite some powerful running and good support play the black and whites were not quite able to score as West defended well.
The home crowd had to wait until five minutes before time to see a trade mark run from their hugely influential skipper Callum Montgomery, back in the side after a long injury.
Both sides played some excellent rugby at times and the Darlington back line looks to have some real pace and skill. Coach Andy Boagey was happy with the way his side played. ‘At times we played some outstanding rugby. There is still a bit of work to be done with the line-out but overall a good start against some tough opponents.’
Whilst there is no denying that, as usual, the West pack looked very impressive, the first try showed that the West back line could really be force this season.
Knibbs and his half back partner Ben Reed looked comfortable and ran the game well whilst Knibbs looked a real threat around the fringes; the centre partnership of the returning Hilditch and Johnson look as though they can release the pace out wide, with Wells looking rock steady at the back.
West: David Wells, Michael Hainsworth, Callum Johnston, William Hilditch, CJ Beales, Ben Reed, Baden Knibbs, Callum Montgomery, James Baxter (James Piper), Alex Hester, Danny Ashton (Danny Fox), Shane Jeffery, Isaac Robinson, George Wall (capt.) Jack Mason
Replacements: Ben Foley, Adam Lennard, Charles Tilly, Nicky Rathbone
Replacements: Ben Foley, Adam Lennard, Charles Tilly, Nicky Rathbone