Sunshine Saints!

SOMETIMES scorelines lie and this is one of those times. Don’t get me wrong, the Saints played some fantastic sunshine Rugby League to win 82-0, but the Scorpions pushed them all the way, never giving up in attack or defence until the final whistle and are a credit to the burgeoning Welsh Rugby League, writes Graham Henthorne.

The scores were close in the first quarter with the Saints finding themselves only 6 points to the good, Chris Webster celebrating his first start in the Red Vee with a great try sprinting in form 60 metres.

In fact twice the Saints had to withstand sets of six on their own 10 metre line scrambling for dear life to keep out a Scorpions side well marshalled by the lively hooker Connor Farrer.

But once Ben Parry had taken André Savelio’s round the man pass to sprint into the corner for the score, the Saints never looked back.

Four further tries followed. Matt Cooke’s powerful and play the ball gave Matty Fozard the impetus to jump out of dummy half. Lewis Charnock then gathered his own grubber to the line for the try.

Quick hands from Charnock, Cooke and Savelio put Connor Dwyer clear on the left for the fourth try before Jack White finished a length of the field effort. Tilley fed Savelio who put Corey Lee away down the right, his inside ball found the supporting Charnock onto Brandon Lewis only for White to outpace the full back for a sparkling try.

The final try of the half was a simple charge over from close range from Brad Ashurst after a Scorpions fumble from Charnock’s massive up and under had given the Saints field position.

The players were reminded to be professional in the second half, not to let their concentration slip and resume where they had left off. They did it in spades leaving the Scorpions dizzy at times trying to contain them.

Savelio punished a Scorpions knock on in the first minute of the half reaching over to score his first before Fozard got his just deserts for hunting the kicker on the last when he charged down the kick on half way and won the race to the line.

Savelio again used his big hands to reach out to score at the posts before Leon Tatlock started and finished a blinder. From the kick off the winger burst through the line fed onto White who in turn fed Charnock, he turned the full back fed it back left to Dwyer and out again to Tatlock who finished the 103 metre move by diving over under the black dot.

Corey Lee put the score back on even time taking a peach of a short ball from prop come stand off Brad Ashurst to scorch in from 40 and it was left to Greg Richards to score the last of the tries in the purple patch around the hour mark, the big prop taking White’s pass and handing off the full back to score.

At this point the Saints could have run into triple figures but the Scorpions dug in and restricted the Saints to only two more tries.

Lewis Galbraith finished a handling move by rounding his opposite number on his way to the posts.

Then Charnock rounded off a commanding display with ball in hand with his second try taking Corey Lee’s pass, and a majestic kicking display in difficult conditions with his thirteenth goal from fourteen attempts.

Where do you start? All 16 were very good, Matt Wood went off concussed in the 6th minute, but one or two were slightly better. James Tilley ran all day, Matty Fozard sparked the attack into life off the bench and Lewis Charnock provided the direction sadly lacking at times this season.

Match Summary:
Saints:

Tries: Corey Lee, Ben Parry, Lewis Galbraith, Leon Tatlock, Lewis Charnock 2, Jack White, Greg Richards, Chris Webster, Connor Dwyer, André Savelio 2, Matty Fozard, Brad Ashurst.
Goals: Lewis Charnock 13.

South Wales Scorpions:
Tries:
Goals:

Half Time: 34-0
Full Time: 82-0

Teams:

Saints:
1. Corey Lee; 2. Ben Parry, 3. Matt Wood, 18. Lewis Galbraith, 5. Leon Tatlock; 6. Lewis Charnock, 7. Jack White; 8. Greg Richards, 9. Tom Roughley, 16. Chris Webster, 13. Connor Dwyer, 12. André Savelio, 11. James Tilley.
Subs: 10. Brad Ashurst, 14. Matty Fozard, 15. Brandon Lewis, 17. Matt Cooke.
South Wales:
1. Jack McKenzie; 2. Alex Jones, 3. Nathan Morgan, 4. Chris Leyshon, 5. Ben Burgess; 6. ewis Barnett, 7. Jacob Morgan; 8. Osian Phillips, 9. Connor Farrer, 10. Rhys Fitzgerald, 11. Rhys Anderson, 12. Luke Kell, 13. Mike Connor.
Subs: 14. Josh Brown, 15. James Mason, 16. Ed Jones.

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