LIONS WIN CLASSIC CUP TIE TO PROGRESS TO ROUND THREE

INCE ROSE BRIDGE 26

SWINTON LIONS 44

IAN RIGG Pinfold Street Saturday

Ince Rose Bridge gave Swinton Lions a tough cup game on their own patch, but the Championship side showed their superior fitness to finish the game strongly and book their place against Wakefield in the next round. Bridge started strongly and had the better of the early attacks forcing the Lions into a couple of handing errors which proved costly when Boyd Wilson exploited a gap to score the opener on five minutes and Mason Fillingham added the simple conversion. More pressure from Bridge before the Lions levelled the scores when Harry Higham flew in at the corner and Jack Stevens converted. Jamie Reddicliff was held up for the Lions on twelve minutes but two minutes later his side where ahead when Tom Ratchford collected a loose Bridge pass to score under the posts and Stevens converted. Five minutes later the scores were level when Bridge substitute Kallem Rodgers scored with his first touch and Fillingham kicked the simple conversion. It got even better for the home side on twenty-three minutes when Gareth Jones finished a move to score in the left corner, but Fillingham was unable to convert. The Lions tried to hit back and had a bit of pressure on the Bridge line, but the defence frustrated them time after time. In the last minute of the half Ratchford made a break up the right and as the tackle came in he offloaded the ball and Bridge went back on the attack and were awarded a penalty in the dying seconds with Fillingham converting to give them a six-point advantage at the break.

What Lions coach Paul Wood said to his side will stay in the dressing room but whatever it was it worked as they scored just thirty-six seconds into the second half when Gav Rodden broke to send Higham in for his second try and Stevens converted to lock the scores again. Bridge went back on the attack again and went back into the lead on fifty-one minutes when Kyle Malone scored on the left after pressure on the line and Fillingham converted. The lead was stretched to eight points three minutes later when Fillingham landed a penalty for offside. A big turning point in the match came on fifty-six minutes when Jones broke away down the left for Bridge and looked an all on scorer until a super tackle from Trent Kelly-Duffy stopped him ten metres from the line. This seemed to turn a corner for the Lions when Higham had a good chance down the left but was tackled to touch, but they did hit back when Rodden made a break to set up Louie Roberts on the left, but Stevens missed the conversion. Roberts added his second on sixty-eight minutes after a good passing movement and Stevens converted again. Rodden and Roberts combined with ten minutes left to send Ellis Anderson over on the left and Stevens converted again. Bridge sub Eli Steinberg was held up on seventy-three minutes but the Lions went further ahead with three minutes left when Adam Jones collected a loose pass to score his first points for his side and Stevens missed this conversion. Rodden finished the scoring for the Lions with seconds left charging down a bridge kick and Stevens converted as the hooter sounded.

MATCHFACTS

INCE

1 Mason Fillingham

2 Callum Hughes

3 Ryan Wood

4 Peter Valentine

5 Gareth Jones

6 Kieron Eccleston

7 Matt Gaskell

16 Boyd Wilson

9 Byron Aspinall

10 Craig Sanby