Stockton and Aspatria also both have two games to play so the Fat Lady has yet to appear. Regardless, the West side has finally proved it can win on the road after a baffling barren spell before Christmas.

Acklam went into the game off the back a 124-5 drubbing at leaders Percy Park, and with almost half the side returning for this game they started conscious they had a big point to prove. They missed a penalty shot after just two minutes, but went ahead after five when their right winger George Pemberton was put into space to evade Zac Southern's tackle.

The restart allowed West to finally get into the opposition  half. Ollie Connolly capitalized by running a great line from a quick tap  to take the ball  just inside the Acklam 22 - gliding past two defenders to go in under the posts with Sam Heron giving his side a 7-5 advantage.

Chris Atkins almost sent in Southern after he burst through the defence. The pass was wide of the mark but showed signs of things to come as West took every opportunity to run the ball.

However, the lead was extended by a more traditional route as Andy Turner forced his way over from a line-out, with Heron converting from out wide. Undaunted Acklam came back with prop Jordan Rae charging over from close range,  but once again the kick at goal was wide.

It was entertaining stuff and West almost scored the try of the season when Heron burst through the middle. Slick close-range  interpassing between Sam, Will Hilditch and Ryan Painter had the home defence all over the place. They did manage a tackle, but suffered a yellow card at the breakdown when Jake Linighan was hit with a no-arms tackle while he was on the floor.

The penalty came to nought but there was better luck with a kick to the corner which saw Ryan Painter unstoppable as he went between the posts. 21-10 to West.

Matt Siddle was the next to try his hand - fielding a kick in his 22, dummying the first tackler and setting off on a run which took him well into the opposition half before a knock-on stopped the move.

The full back had to wait another ten minutes to see a bit more action. This time he had better luck after a couple of quick tap penalties - running a great line to take a pass from his skipper to go in behind the posts to secure the try bonus point. It took the score to 28-10 at the break.

Sidd scored an even better try soon after the  restart. He came into the line on the half-way with Turner sending him on a weaving run which saw him outpace, and outfox,  the full back to score out wide on the right - just too wide for Sam to convert.

The pressure was maintained with a second yellow for Acklam as second row Ryan Buckton was penalised at the breakdown.  The kick to the corner setting up a drive from the line-out with Aidan Jackson-Smith bursting over and touching down just before the dead ball line. Again a bit far out for Sam.

Jake Tennant had come on for Zac at the break and he seized his chance with 15 minutes left. An Acklam attack broke down on the half-way with Sam Heron seizing on a dropped ball to send Jake away to outpace the defence to set up an easy conversion.

Ollie Connolly, who had put in some tremendous tackles, including one which drove an old college mate back five metres to earn gasps from both sets of supporters, was next on the scoresheet.

Again strong defence forced Acklam to drop the ball with Connolly kicking on to collect and once again go in under the posts for try number eight. Number nine came courtesy of the skipper who was lightning quick from a tap and go.

That was the end of the West scoring. However, Acklam weren't prepared to wait for the final whistle. They came back with a try in the right corner with five minutes left. They continued to press with Zac celebrating his return to the action from the bench to receive a yellow card for a deliberate knock on. Unlucky, he almost got the interception.

So, the question was who would get this week's "Last score in the very last minute?." It was Acklam and a deserved one for veteran No 8 Paddy O-Brien who, by all accounts, had been heroic in that big defeat at Percy Park. He forced his way over from close range to give his side a deserved try bonus point.

John Dixon, who served both clubs with such distinction was the Man of the Match selector. West's was Ollie Connolly whose influence on the game grows every week.

Rovers  next week for the first time at Brinkburn since Boxing Day 2018.  Hopefully, the issues which led to them conceding the game against Percy Park will be resolved and we can end the Brinkburn season with a game against our oldest rivals.

Acklam: Miquel Tomas, George Pemberton, Marcus Sudron, Ricky Scott, Dan Scott, Dan Ashton, Nathan Saint, Jordan Rae, Ben Pearson, James Pearce, Ryan Buckton, Connor Mitchell, Jon Baines, Lewis Mace, Paddy O'Brien.

Tries: Pemberton (2), Rae, O'Brien.

Cons Ashton (1).

Reps (all used): Jacob Jackson, Nat Fincken-Hayes, Jack McLoughlin.

West: Matt Siddle, Owen Westhorp , Will Hilditch, Ollie Connolly, Zac Southern, Sam Heron, Ryan Painter (capt), Craig Hadwen, Aidan Jackson-Smith, Adam Hutchinson, Jake Linighan, Tom Robertson, Chris no Atkins, Isaac Robinson, Andy Turner.

Reps (all Used): Ollie Webster, Jake Tennant, James Tyers.

Tries: Connolly (2), Siddle (2) , Painter(2) , Turner, Tennant, Jackson-Smith.

Cons: Heron (7).