Penrith traveled to the North East in determined mood, they knew if they avoided defeat at Percy Park they would be guaranteed a promotion play off place. There were quite a few permutations possible in their race for second spot with West Hartlepool but a win would take all the mathematics out of the equation and their chance of a play off place would be secure.
They had trained well in week in the run up to the game but started nervously, a few first up tackles were missed in the early stages and they put themselves under a bit of pressure but they soon got up to speed. There was little to chose between the sides to start with, Percy Park had an enormous pack, Penrith have a number of forwards who measure well over six foot but they looked dwarfed in the lineouts in particular.
The home side had the first opportunity to open the the scoring but a penalty shot from 30m went weakly wide. Penrith's centre partnership were putting themselves about, Matt Allinson was making his presence felt but it was his partner Phil Armstrong who was making inroads when he crashed the ball in running back on the angle. It was one of these runs that set up the Cumbrians' first score. Armstrong made the initial break, the forwards then carried the ball to the 22 where George Graham found the gap down the right of the breakdown, got past the first line of defence then shrugged off two tackles to claim the try, Fearon added the conversion and Penrith looked to be away.
The home side came straight back though, the visitors looked to have cleared their lines when they were awarded a penalty deep in their own 22 and kicked to touch after a period of sustained pressure. Penrith had the throw into the line but lost it and a well worked move with Penrith on the back foot saw them concede a try under the posts and the scores were tied at seven apiece.
Penrith soon had their noses back in front, a strong Allinson run up the centre, continued by Phil Gardham put them in a good position and when Percy Park were penalised at the breakdown Fearon had a simple penalty chance to restore the lead.
Jamie McNaughton almost created Penrith's second try, he was found with a long Allinson pass and then cut back inside, he then cut a swathe up the middle of the field and was supported by Jon Fell but the move broke down when a pass went astray. Penrith did manage another score before half time, Dan Richardson broke from the base of a scrum 10m out, got further than he should have before Graham moved the ball and Harlan Corrie was stopped under the posts with a high tackle, the tackle was penalised and Fearon slotted his second penalty.
Penrith had the jitters just before the break when they had to defend a lineout on their own line, they managed to hold out and were relieved to turn round 13-7 to the good. The home side started the second period well and after some sustained pressure forced a deserved try. They had the conversion to take the lead but it came back off the post.
This score seemed to galvanise the Penrith effort, coach David Preston introduced Mike Stephens and Ryan Banks to the fray off the bench, Corrie took the home restart high in the air, Percy Park infringed and Allinson kicked the penalty to the corner. The Penrith forwards secured the lineout ball, Richardson drove for the line and was held up just short, Banks, fresh on the pitch, picked and went for the line and was awarded the try. Fearon was again successful with the kick as he was just a minute or two later when another penalty was awarded after good ground had been made by Allinson and Will Morgan.
Penrith were now two scores ahead and looked reasonably secure but the home side were still causing problems and might have scored again themselves. Penrith, however, put the game to bed with just over ten minutes to go. Their forwards were battering away up the right flank on half way playing a tight game in a bid to kill off the game, the ball was then suddenly moved quickly wide to the left. Ed Swale put McNaughton away and for the first time he was in plenty of space. He stepped back inside his winger with ease, accelerated away before stepping inside the cover and drew the last man and released Graham with a straight run in under the posts. Fearon's boot was again accurate and with a 30-12 advantage they could just about relax.
In front of a big home crowd Percy Park were not going to give in and scored in the corner off the last move of the game. The touchline conversion was short and the final whistle went, both sides had scored three tries but the scoreline showed the value of an accurate placekicker. Fearon had a 100% record with his six attempts. Penrith can now look forward to their trip to Birkenhead Park in what will be in effect their second cup final in a week.