Penrith took as strong a side as was possible to Carlisle in the semi final of the county cup but Head Coach David Preston did not risk any of his players carrying knocks or niggles, Carlisle took a similar route so it was two much changed sides that competed to appear in the final.
Penrith could not have had a better start, Nathan Wooff hoisted the kick off, the Carlisle player under the kick lost his feet and the ball was allowed to bounce, young Newton Rigg student Adrigh Cole flew in to secure possession, the ball fell to the outstanding Josh Dowson who powered through two tackles to make his way to the line. 21 seconds had elapsed and the visitors were five points to the good.
In the third minute Penrith were once more on the front foot, first Ryan Lee made ground then Dowson, before the Penrith three quarters took play to the line. The ball was then recycled from the ruck close to the home line and popped to New Zealander, Lee, who powered over from close range.
Five minutes later Dowson was again involved in the visitors third score as he won lineout ball close to the home line, the forwards then set up the driven maul and shunted the Carlisle pack backwards over their own line, Tom Lindsay had the ball at the back of the maul to claim the score. After quarter of an hour Dowson, playing at No8, broke from a scrum in his own half, set up Ed Swale at scrum half who moved the ball on to Jonny Wills, he made good ground and then dragged the cover infield to return the ball to Swale on the outside. Swale looked as if he might be caught but showed some nifty footwork to throw off the defender and go in at the corner.
At this stage there was a serious injury to one of the Carlisle backs, it was very quickly obvious it was going to be some time before he could be moved and play was switched to the adjacent pitch, this did Penrith no favours as it was much narrower and was not suited to the brand of open rugby they were playing.
Penrith scored a fifth try when Carlisle won a lineout deep in their 22, they attempted to run the ball from their own line which combative flanker Lindsay was awake to. He caught the runner under his own posts, went in hard and the ball span loose into the air, Adam Howe was on hand to catch it and dot the ball down for the score. If he plays rugby for another 20 years he will not score an easier try but all the credit would go to Lindsay for his awareness and strength of tackling.
Penrith lead 29-0 at half time and with the game won the second half was a much different affair, Carlisle played much better and the smaller pitch made it easier for them to contain the free flowing Penrith backs. As the game went on it got more fractious and much less of a spectacle.
Carlisle enjoyed some period of pressure and were able to spend time in the visitor's 22, Penrith were determined not to yield and in two minutes received two yellow cards as they desperately defended. Carlisle looked to take advantage but the 13 remaining Penrith men stood strong. They continued to boss the set scrum with only seven forwards and looked the more likely side to score when it was 15 v 13.
Penrith had just got their two players back on the pitch after their ten minutes in the bin when Carlisle scored from an interception on half way. The game then degenerated into a scrappy affair in the final minutes and it was probably a relief to all concerned when the final whistle went. Penrith had suffered no serious injuries and they now have a cup final to look forward to at the back end of the season.
They return to league rugby with a tough looking home game against Warrington and will look to keep up the momentum following two away wins. Kick off will be at 3.00 to make full use of the new facilities and the floodlights.