WIGTON COLTS  23  PERCY PARK 3   From the Wigton kick off Percy Park launched an all out attack.The much bigger and stronger Park side were winning ball and looked dangerous,it appeared for a while that all Wigton could do was tackle and hope for the best.Parks handling in their back line let them down,they even crossed the Wigton line with their right winger over elaborating and being tackled over the dead ball line by Jordan WOOD and the try disallowed.Zack Rutter kicked a penalty for Park to be later equalled by an Ally Ledingham Penalty.Some "sound advice" from the coaching staff seemed to give Wigton some much needed confidence with Tom Martin ,Trevor Fisher And captain Ewan Shand to the fore the forwards started to win ball.Ryan Clark at scrum half with effective passing and kicking got the back line moving.A penalty by Ally Ledingham put Wigton in front.From a ruck  ball Fly half Ledingham set off on amazy individual to score a try and later land another penalty. Parks big forwards were tireing and Wigton again won quick ball for ledinham to work a miss move and set off centre Jordan Wood for a jinky run to the try line,converted by Ledingham.Park had a final flurry but strong Wigton defence held out. Wigton U14 35 - 5 Marple U14 Wigton u14's entertained Marple, a touring team from Chester the conditions were blustery with occasional driving rain,so handling was always going to be difficult, yet both sides acquitted themselves remarkably well. In the early exchanges and with defence dominant the first ten minutes remained scoreless. The deadlock was broken though when Alex Rudd injected some pace from fullback and touched down under the posts. Luke Williams successfully converted for a 7-0 lead. Strong defence by Wigton prevented any forward progress from Marple over the following minutes and when the visitors spilled the ball inside their own half Jack Balma pounced and raced 40 yards to score, the resultant conversion making the half time score 14-0. The second half started as the first ended with scrambling defence and some punishing tackles from the Wigton eight, well lead by Joe Wannop, Jonny Evans and Billy Smith, forcing Marple to take increasing risks in their attempts to move the ball out to their backs. Indeed as their frustration grew the mistakes started to mount and with gaps appearing a mixture of well timed passing and some excellent support play saw Wigton add three quick tries through Alex Rudd, Ryan Beattie and Andy Smith. All were converted by Williams and Oliver Richardson for a commanding 35-0 lead. The final word though ended with Marple and full credit should go to them for never giving up and a try next to the posts was just reward for their endeavours. The conversion drifted wide though and shortly after the re-start the final whistle sounded for a final scoreline of 35-5. Both teams should be commended for playing the game in an excellent spirit and with the utmost sportsmanship . Westoe 20 - Wigton 31 Westoe  got off to a good start with some very good rugby resulting in classic try by their speedy right winger, which went unconverted.They were winning the ball quite easily and soon scored again  after some sharp handling  to the right wing ,but failed to convert. Wigton had to get into the game and soon did with an Ally Ledingham penalty from the touch line.  Soon after Wigton were awarded a penalty in front of the posts but as colts would decided to kick for touch and let Westoe win the lineout ? Westoe soon replied with a brilliant try from their own half with good interplay between backs and forwards .Wigton were stung into action,  forwards Alex Johnston, Josh Bell,Alex Coulthard  and Jay Henderson to the fore and encouraged by scrum half Paul Vickers. They won ball for Ally Ledingham to break out,chip over and retrieve the ball,sell a dummy and score. The kick hit the posts just on half time.Wigton were now in the game and soon kicked an Ally Ledingham penalty . With some good fielding of the ball and line kicking from fullback Ryan Clark, Wigton applied pressure and a quickly taken tap penalty from scrum half Paul Vickers to score, Ledingham converted. From a Wigton mistake Westoe won the ball to score from a maul on the Wigton line.Two more Ledingham penalties were added.Wigton then kicked  into the Westoe corner  and from the line out Westoe touched down for a scrum five. Number 8 Chris Owen fed Vickers who dummied to dive over for a try Ledingham converted again from the touch line. if anyone likes a good rugby day out , meet friendly people, and experience excellent hospitality Westoes the place. Consett 12 – 34 Wigton After a late change to an away fixture the right decision was made to play at Consett, so as to ensure we had a game after a few weeks lay off. Wigton did not have their usual slow start and were applying pressure early on with a rolling maul from just inside the Consett half. Driven on by scrumhalf Paul Vickers the forwards neared the Consett line where he joined the maul to dive over, Ali Ledingham converted from out wide. Some great foraging work from Alex Johnstone and Charlie  Ray set the ball up on the Consett 22 for Vickers to take off selling dummies  to score again, Ledingham converted. Consett were trying to get back into the game with some strong forward drives but came up against a strong defence.Ledingham intercepted a Consett backs move on the Wigton 22 to run in and score.which he converted.  Ledingham then kicked a penalty.  Just after half time Wigton were on the attack when flyhalf Ledingham kicked through.  The Consett full back caught the ball but had his kick charged down by Sam Noble for Jordan Wood to dive on and score.  Some strong forward drives down the Consett line resulted in quick ball for centre Wood to step inside the defence and score. Consett had a late rally and scored two tries one converted to make the final score Consett 12, Wigton 34. Wigton 29 : 5 Morpeth Although territorially dominant in the first half Wigton did not manage to turn this into  many points. Morpeth were very resiliant in defence and Wigton seemed to miss a few oppertunities. First half scores were from an Alister Ledingham penalty. Then came a typical try by Paul Vickers at scrum half, quick ruck ball on the 22 led to him darting and selling dummies to score. This was converted by fly half Ledingham. In the second half a well taken try by winger Nathan Benson came from a no 8 pick up by Chris Owen who fed Vickers to put in Benson to score. Owen was prominent in the forwards , and good games came from hookers Charlie Ray and Matthew Graham as Wigton gave all of their squad a game. After a good forward build up Ledingham linked up with his backs to break the defence and score a try which he converted. Vickers then snatched up a ball from loose play to kick and chase to add another score, which Ledingham converted. Morpeth came back in the last ten minutes to score an un converted try. Wigton u14 12 : 32 Upper Eden u14 Wigton’s tries came from Jack Barna and Adam Pritchard with a conversion added by Luke Williams. Two more tries were scored by Wigton players Jack Kenwright and Adrian Williams who were playing for Upper Eden who were three players short. Wigton Colts 10 – 0 Consett Colts Wigton found themselves in a very tightly contested game against an improved Consett side. They had to work hard for any possession they could get. Once again half backs Ali Ledingham and Paul Vickers were to the fore trying to open a tough Consett defence. After a few missed opportunities with over elaborate passes and ambitious kicks Ledingham found space on the blind side for Will Miller to come in off his wing and crash over, Ledingham converted. After the interval Wigton had a lot of defending to do with solid tackling from centres Jordan Wood and Sam Noble .Consett were really into their stride but Wigton held on with Josh Bell and Alex Couldthard clamping up posession in the loose play. With about five minutes remaining Wigton were into the Consett 22 when Vickers broke from the base of a scrum beating three men only to take on one too many with the line at his mercy. Soon after Wigton were awarded a penalty to make the score 10 - 0 which they held to the final whistle. In this game Wigton managed too get all 22 players on the field which isn’t easy when you have four hookers in your squad. We have some very keen but patient young men on the touch line and credit too them. Wigton 52 – 5 Morpeth Wigton seemed to hit a Morpeth side that still had the bus journey in their legs scoring a try right from kickoff from captain Ewan Shand playing number 8 for the first time. Ewan adapted to this role well by following up with another try. Some excellent play from forwards and backs resulted in a Sam Noble try. Morpeth started to claw their way back into the game with a try but the early damage was done. A try by Jordan Wood put Wigton further ahead .Fly half Ali Ledingham was in good form scoring four tries himself and adding 6 conversions to make it a 52 - 5 Wigton win. Wigton used a full squad of players allowing the younger ones more match time.   Wigton Colts7 - Westoe Colts7  Wigton colts had a daunting task of taking on Westoe with players away on a sking trip. However, they buckled down to the task from the start with wing forward Alex Johnstone putting in some tireless work in the loose aided by his farming compatriot Alex Coulthard showing strength securing possession for  Wigton. Westoe defence returned a kick to Wigton winger Christian Anderson who set of a counter attack and off loaded to Sam Noble who crashed over near the posts with Jordan Wood converting. Westoe were straight back into the game and launched an attack with their backs and looked dangerous untill Sam Noble put in a big tackle to snuff it out. Hard tackling from Noble and fellow centre Will Miller stemmed the Westoe attack. Just before half time Westoe disrupted Wigton scrum ball to set off a counter attack and score out on the right which was converted. The second half was keenly contested and a Jordan Wood penalty dropped just short. Later an attempt by Paul Vickers was followed up by Miller who tackled the ball receiver for Wigton to win the ball, but was penalised for an improper tackle.  Late in the game Westoe came back strongly down the left but Wigton defence tackled the certain try scorer into the corner to prevent defeat right on the final whistle. Wigton Colts 10 Keswick Colts 3 Wigton and Keswick colts slogged it out in a typical cup match, played in heavy conditions. The first half was very evenly matched with strong defence from both sides. Wigton full back Ryan Clarke coped well with the high balls rained on him by Keswick’s flyhalf, he fielded and counter attacked at regular intervals and linked up well but could not break the defence. Eventually the deadlock was broken with a penalty for Wigton by Ali Ledingham. This was later equalled by a Keswick penalty just on half time. The second half was similar in pattern to the first each side having spells of dominance to no avail .Wigton started to win good possession but wasted it with over elaboration, wrong decisions or simply kicking away good attacking situations. Keswick were not going to break easily ,their No8 in particular having an excellent game in both defence and attack. Wigton No8, Ewan Shand, drove over from a maul only to be held up. Shortlly after from a scrum Shand picked up and drove forward  to set up a maul on the Keswick line where Alex Johnson rolled over to score which Ledingham converted. From the re-start it was all out attack from Keswick and Wigton had to work very hard to hold them out.  Percy Park Colts 0  Wigton Colts 21  All of Wigton’s points were scored by one player, but this was certainly not a one man show. A very big Percy Park side started out as if they would power their way past Wigton with ease, but once again Wigton’s defence were up for the challenge with Sam Noble and Jordan Wood tackling solidly in the centre. After three minutes Park were on the attack when Wigton’s winger Christian Anderson tackled his opposite number on the Wigton 22 who spilled the ball, Alistair Ledingham snapped it up to set off on a jinking run to score behind the posts. Ledingham converted. The Wigton pack took inspiration from this and competed ferociously, Tarran Vailoniss, Trevor Fisher and Alex Johnson working really hard .The game was back and forth between the 22 meter lines until Wigton kicked a penalty on half time by Ledingham. The second half had the same intensity with Park gaining possession but unable to crack the Wigton defence, Wigton were awarded a penalty converted by ledingham. Then from a scrum Paul Vickers broke  to set of an attack down the right which went to Ledingham who showed the ball dummied and sprinted over for a try which he converted. Wigton held the lead from a now tired Park side. Alnwick Colts 3 Wigton Colts 23 Away to Alnwick, Wigton got off to a slow start and found themselves pinned back for a while by some astute kicking from the Alnwick fly-half. Some good defence and clearance work got Wigton back into the Alnwick half .A well taken lineout ball and drive got Wigton on the move with Jay Henderson and Tarran Vailoniss prominent in the forwards. Scrum half Paul Vickers was stopped just short of the Alnwick line and from a resultant scrum five he dived over to score with Ali Ledingham converting. From the restart Alnwick pinned Wigton down for a while and were rewarded when their fly-half dropped a goal. Wigton scored just on half time when Ledingham received a ball from a scrum on the Alnwick 22, broke blind dummied to his winger to beat the defence and score an unconverted try. Wigton forwards had to work hard in the second half with Alex Johnston strong in the loose. They kicked two penalties by Ledingham. Wigton camped on the Alnwick line and eventually scored from a well taken try by centre Sam Noble. Ledingham uncharacteristically missed near the posts.   Billingham Colts 18 – 18 Wigton Colts  Wigton took the game too Billingham from kick off and were were rewarded with an Ali Ledingham penalty after only four minutes. Soon after Wigton defence got sucked in and Billingham scored an unconverted try out wide.  Wigton were competing well with excellent work from their younger forwards Will Kirkaldy, Dan Ewart and Man of the Match hooker Charlie Ray.  Wigton were awarded a scrum after a Billingham 22 metre drop out. The scrum was won and Ledingham spotted the Billingham centre was up too fast so he cut inside to sprint in and score. He missed the convertion. Billingham kicked a penalty on half time to turn around eight each. Wigton started off the second half having to defend strongly but Billingham drove over in the corner, but again failed to convert. Ledingham replied again with a penalty. Wigton were back in the game and from a Ledingham kick, Christian Anderson put his winger under pressure who passed inside and  the ball went loose, second row Ewan Shand scooped it up to run between the posts from the 22 metre line. Ledinham converted.  Near the end of the game Billingham had a scrum on the Wigton five metre line which they won, but Wigton pack pushed them off and retrieved the ball and cleared their line. The referee decided to take the scrum again which Billingham won and scored out wide but failed to convert for the game to end in a draw as a fair result. Northern Colts 0 – 27 Wigton Colts  As a result of the past bad weather Wigton travelled away for the fourth consecutive week. They started well and an early attack saw winger Nathan Benson tackled short after a long run. Elliott Armstrong had only been on the field of play as a substitute winger for seconds when the ball was spun along the back line for him to run in at the corner for an unconverted try. Wigton had to work hard for a while due to windy conditions, good defensive work by Northern and not taking easy options. A second try by centre Jordan Wood eventually came from broken play where he jinked over, but again Ali Ledingham failed to convert the points. Strong runs from props Trevor Fisher and Josh Bell  made ground which resulted in Fisher crashing over for an unconverted try. The second half saw fly half Ledingham receive the ball from a scrum to dummy, go himself and score in the corner which he converted. Undeterred Northern had a good period  of play and without strong Wigton defence were close to scoring more than once. The last ten minutes saw Wigton back on the attack and Northern held out until on the final minute centre Sam Noble forced his way over to score. But again the wind beat Ledingham’s conversion.   Wigton Colts 21 – 12 Camphill School  Camphill School touring side who are frequently entertained by Wigton at Easter arrived once again with a strong side. Early in the first half centre Sam Noble was held short of Camphill line to set up a rolling maul in which he was driven over to score. A conversion was added by Ali Ledingham. Soon after Camphill replied with an unconverted try in the corner. With winger Nathan Benson having one of his best games in defence and attack Wigton were competing strongly again. From quick ball fly half Ledingham dummied and broke for a long run to score which he converted. Just before half time Camphill stormed back and some uncharacteristic poor tackling from Wigton allowed them to cross for a converted try. The second half saw Wigton having to work very hard and some of their decision making did not help them. But as usual a kickable penalty (any coach would have told them to take ) was run, resulting in centre Jordan Wood setting up back row Chris Owen for a try. Once again Ledingham converted into a strong wind to seal a 21-12 Wigton win. Wigton U16 5 - 25 Camphill School   Wigton played very well in a strongly contested game.  Camphill scored three first half tries to take them 15 - 0 up.  Just on half time winger Shaun Johnston crashed in at the corner from a backs move to make it 15 - 5. In the second half Wigton competed with great spirit but conceded two more unconverted scores.