Waterhead 11

Woolston Rovers 12

A BRILLIANT opportunist try from teenage hooker Mike Briggs seven minutes from time gave Rovers a 12-11 victory over Waterhead in an enthralling BNFL National Cup fourth round game.

This came after Woolston had trailed 11-2 with 15 minutes left after having second row Eddie Harris controversially sent off for the first time in his career.

The home side settled themselves quicker and were rewarded when full back Dean Partington used his strength to breach the Rovers defence for a converted try.

Rovers got their act together midway through the half when a short ball from scrum half Graham Smith on the last tackle found Karl Taylor and the loose forward used his power to force his way over despite the attention of four defenders.

Waterhead started the second half with a penalty from Perks. It was looking bleak for Woolston when Harris was dismissed on 50 minutes and Perks landed the resultant penalty plus a drop goal to give his side a seven point cushion.

But Rovers managed to step up a gear and centre Paul Fiddler used his pace to round the cover and score.

Their 'never say die' attitude paid off when a quick play-the-ball saw Briggs scoot over from acting half back to score the crucial try and seal the win.

The man of the match was Rovers substitute Stewart Cash. He was well supported by Taylor, Briggs and centre Paul Fiddler.

Team: Peter Livett, Neil Hyde, Paul Fiddler, James Brabin, Dave Lomax, Nigel Quarmby, Graham Smith, Mark Shephard, Mike Briggs, Paul Foster, Liam Horrigan, Eddie Harris, Karl Taylor. Subs: Andy Hill, Graham Muckalt, Stewart Cash.

Tomorrow, Saturday, Rovers are away to Wigan St. Patricks in the National Conference League Premier Division. The coach leaves the club at 12.15pm.

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.