West Bowling 19

Skirlaugh 8

West Bowling's long wait for their first win of this season's National Conference Premier Division campaign came to an end with a stunning display against Skirlaugh at the Bankfoot Oval.

Wests' determination to end their worst ever start of ten successive defeats was evident straight from the kick-off when new signing and former Hunslet Hawk Steve Pryce brushed three defenders aside in a barnstorming run which left second-row forward Ashley Johannesson badly in need of the magic sponge.

Bowling were rewarded for their considerable early efforts when full back Peter Simpson joined the line to put centre Martin Tordoff steaming in at the corner.

Wingman Lee Innes added the touchline conversion but when prop forward Lee Hutchinson was caught holding down in the tackle, Skirlaugh marksman Mark Hewitt made no mistake with the penalty. Innes replied in kind when the visitors interfered at the ruck but Hewitt popped over another gift when the hosts gave the referee some unsolicited advice. Bowling should have gone further in front from a run by stand off Gareth Cullington but his final pass to lively scrum half Steve Illingworth went astray as the half closed 8-4 in Bowling's favour.

Illingworth looked a certain scorer on the restart but his jinking run was brought to an abrupt end with a head- high tackle and Innes stepped up to add the two.

The crucial try of the match came with 50 minutes on the clock when Simpson put the impressive Innes into the narrowest of gaps and the former BARLA international gleefully took the chance to crash over, despite the attentions of four Skirlaugh defenders.

He once again added a difficult conversion and when the Hull side were forced to drop on a loose pass from an offside position he slotted over another crucial penalty.

Skirlaugh are a class act and, as expected, refused to throw in the towel with Hewitt and hooker Chris Batty to the fore.

Wests, however, were in no mood to surrender and two crunching tackles from man-of-the-match Tordoff and another mighty hit from Pryce kept them at bay.

Bowling's over-worked defence was finally breached when Skirlaugh full back Danny Wilson found the whitewash out wide but it was only a minor irritant and Simpson coolly dropped a goal to give crown a tremendous performance from a team that looks to have turned the corner at last.