Penrith made the trip to Stockport with a mathematical chance of beating their hosts to second spot and a play off place; there were many different scenarios with points for a win and various bonus points but at the end there was no need for any head scratching or a calculator at the final whistle as they were soundly beaten. They conceded nine tries to a single penalty which is a hiding in anyone's
language, the first game all season they have not crossed for at least one try.
Penrith's problems started before a ball was kicked or tackle made, Steve Wood, the side's lynchpin, had declared himself fit after what looked to be a serious hamstring pull the previous Saturday. It was clear in the warm up he had not recovered enough to take part in the game and had to reluctantly stand down. James Ellar moved to stand off and Sandy Kerridge came into the centre and although no one let the side down it did upset the balance of the team and make a near impossible task even more difficult.
Penrith started positively and steadily enough and spent time in the opening minutes in the home side's 22, they pressurised Stockport into conceding a penalty and James Ellar's boot eased them into a three point lead. As the first quarter wore on Penrith saw less and less of the ball until they were fighting a full blown rearguard action with no respite desperately defending deep in their own 22. After 20 minutes they were finally broken down when a penalty was kicked to the corner and the strong home pack caught and drove from the lineout to claim the try.
Stockport were to score from the restart, they caught the drop out and moved the ball well through several phases with the home stand off dictating the play for an excellent try. They almost scored from the next restart and it was all Penrith could do to hang on as the home side played some hard running, clinical rugby. Often in these circumstances Penrith have not panicked and always felt capable of out scoring the opposition but today was different, they just couldn't get their hands on the ball and on the rare occasions they did they were under extreme pressure. Stockport's pack disrupted the Penrith set scrum and although Mike Raine made some brave runs from the base it was never enough, the lineouts were a mess and it was only a matter of time before more scores were to follow.
They added two further tries before half time; another catch and drive from the lineout and the next in broken play after fielding a kick ahead. The second half saw little change and the home side scored a further five tries as Penrith hung grimly on defending for all the were worth but on the day they were just not good enough against a very good side on the top of their game playing some really well drilled rugby. It was a disappointing way to end the league season but the season should be looked at in its entirety. To come to the final game of the
season with a chance of promotion was a tremendous achievement considering it is the highest level the club have played at. The whole club would have taken that in September 2009 before a game was played. They scored more points and more tries than anyone else in the league and played some breath-taking rugby along the way. Who could forget the home wins against Stockport and Morley, the two top clubs in the league? There is also the progress they have made through the season, the development of the younger players under coach Stuart Connell, the resurgence of veteran prop Steve Dixon, the emergence of James
Thornton as a genuine quality hooker and the way the established, experienced squad members have pulled it all together to form a tight knit, competitive unit.
There were many different ways this final game of the season could have
worked out but no one envisaged it turning out the way it did, it came as a shock to perhaps all but the Stockport faithful. It was one game too far but all is not lost, it was only one game and there is the county Cup semi-final to look forward to next weekend at Workington.