All four senior mens’ teams played this weekend, but only the Third XV were in a ‘competitive’ fixture
A depleted First XV went down 22-10 against the newly formed Hutton RUFC (ex-Tarleton). Though a ‘friendly’ match, Hutton really took the game to ‘kirk, who were surprised by the strength, speed and ability of the opposition. Paul Kearney and John Curly scored for the Gingerbread Men, but Hutton always had the upper hand, especially in the first half when two ‘kirk players were sin-binned. The second half saw ‘kirk perform better, especially in the last twenty minutes, but by then it was too much of an uphill battle. A useful game for coach Harland to try out a few new players - and a timely ‘wake up’ call to Ormskirk that they must re-double their efforts if they are to sustain the level of performances recently that has seen them climb to third in the table.
The Second XV likewise went down to Huttton’s Second XV. Another spirited performance form the home team and a disjointed effort from ‘kirk saw a tight game slip away from the Green Laners after the referee gave yet another penalty decision against them. Like the First XV, the Second XV had a changed line-up and were perhaps too complacent going into this fixture. the backs saw precious little ball, and the majority of the 60 minute game seemed to involve scrums and re-scrums as the referee struggled to inject any sort of continuity into the proceedings. Final score - 10-7 (Paul Keech scored ‘kirk’s try, a typical burst from outside centre to barge over - Alex Lambie kicked the extras).
The Third XV did well at Home against Hope Valley in the First Round of their Miller Homes League Cup competition, winning 29-10. The travelling team were short of a full team, so ‘kirk players obliged and played for the ‘Away’ team, making a competitive game of it. A blend of young and old in Ian Critchley’s team ensured that recent good form continued. Well done!
The 4th XV lost away against St Mary’s Old Boys in another friendly. Though close at half-time, the home team used all their 25 players to good effect, ‘kirk not having the replacements nor the energy to cope with SMOB’s rolling substitutions. Final score - 44-22.
Next week sees all the senior teams back in the thick of the action in their respective leagues.
