Wigton were the victorious side according to the scoreboard but the better rugby was played by Penrith with three well worked tries, all finished by Joe Connelly capping a very encouraging all round performance from the home side.

Wigton’s aggressive start paid dividends in the first half with three tries being run in despite some effective tackling from Warren Porter, Kyle Glasson and Dalton Frith. Some impressive line speed pressured Wigton into mistakes and the smaller Penrith forwards showed their determination not to let the away side dominate the set-pieces or the rucks and mauls with Matthew McDonald impressing around the fringes. Kyle Glasson unfortunately incurred an injury that required a trip to hospital and was replaced by Harry Beatty who fitted in very well making some good runs.

Then Penrith rallied and after some great work from the forwards to win the ball and impressive support play from Will Smith, Joe Connelly went in for his first try. A good try by Penrith was immediately followed by another with some outstanding back line play culminating in a well- timed delayed pass from David King to Harry Beatty creating space for Joe Connelly to finish off with his electric pace again. Half time saw the visitors go in 10-19 up.

The second half saw Wigton’s large and fast fly-half run in a few tries as Penrith tried out a few changes to their line up and gave everyone a run out. Penrith’s third try came after more excellent rugby with Bruce Glendinning, Ewan Ivinson and Elliott Bullman all handling the ball impressively and Joe Connelly once again providing the finishing touch. An all-round battling display by the Penrith forwards was pleasing to watch with Michael Dunne showing his much improved fitness off and Calum Scobie-Youngs impressing with his overall power in the loose.

The final score of 15-45 wasn’t a fair reflection of the game but the winner today was rugby as both teams competed well in an aggressive and fair manner that entertained the parents and supporters and blew any Christmas cob-webs away nicely for the players.

Penrith Man of the Match: Joe Connelly