Weakened team returns empty handed

The Greens had travelled without several regulars but to a man, those who came in, played with a lot of character and commitment. In fact Wigton scored first after only ten minutes when young centre Scott Smith slipped a clever pass to Tom Gardner and the powerful winger broke down the touchline before cutting round to score behind the posts. David Hanabury landed the conversion.

For a spell Vale looked worried, dropping passes and generally struggling to cope with the natural enthusiasm of the young Wigton side. Hanabury made a couple of good breaks and both Greg Smith and brother Scott Smith were just unfortunate when they showed excellent support.Tom Carter did kick a penalty for Vale but generally it was Wigton who looked the more capable side, although the half ended on a high note for the home side. Darren Wilson, who proved to be the main difference between the two teams, produced a corkscrew-type run which eventually led to a try for Owen Hughes which Carter converted.

Vale of Lune started the second-half as they had finished the first and on 47 minutes James Hodder raced 40 metres for a try which Carter converted. Gaps started to appear in the gritty Wigton defence and on 57 minutes Alex Baines peeled off a Vale maul to go in for an unconverted try. Carter popped over a penalty and the floodgates started to open in the Wigton defence late on as Lee Acton helped himself to two tries, the second a superb individual effort from over 40 metres.