On Saturday Keswick 1st XV hosted Fleetwood in the North Lancs/Cumbria League at Davidson Park. The away fixture had been a 5 point win for Keswick, 31-21, who were looking to build on that earlier success. The morning’s rain meant that the pitch was slippery and muddy in places but an open running game was anticipated as otherwise the weather was clear and there was little wind.

Fleetwood kicked off and immediately gave Keswick the ball by not kicking it 10 metres. Keswick returned the favour from the scrum by kicking direct to touch only for Fleetwood to lose their own line-out put-in. From that line-out at the half-way line a good run by Matty Roper was followed up by Carrick Wharmby for Ryan Weir to score in the corner; the try was unconverted, 5-0 after 3 minutes.

For the first 20 minutes both sides were testing the other but Keswick had the better of the possession, position and play, driving with the forwards and good running by the backs. Fleetwood’s first scrum put-in gave an indication of what was to come as their heavier pack pushed Keswick back. This became a feature of the game, with Keswick struggling to win clean possession on their own put-in and giving away penalties, something Fleetwood were quick to capitalise on.

On their first foray into the Keswick half, after an exchange of kicks, the Fleetwood attack was shepherded into touch on the right for a line-out just short of the try line at which they won a free-kick for Keswick not forming the line-out quickly enough. Their subsequent attack crossed to the left where a good tackle by Robbie Bland just short of the line prevented a score. A bit of a fracas ended with 3 yellow cards but Fleetwood were unable to take advantage of the extra man and Keswick’s line-out proved more solid than their scrums.

Another Fleetwood attack was stopped by David Ray and after sustained pressure by them, Keswick were able to get back into the Fleetwood 22 for some good attacking phases. From a line-out win Keswick moved the ball across the field twice before Weir was able to avoid two tackles to cross for his second try, on the right, again unconverted for 10-0. The Fleetwood restart was returned with interest and Keswick were able to win a penalty which Andy Muir converted on the stroke of half-time for a 13-0 lead.

It seemed that a different Fleetwood took the field in the second half. They had used their big forwards in the set pieces in the first half but now they used them more in attack in open play, tying Keswick defenders in to create overlaps for their backs and putting the Keswick defence under pressure. After another exchange of kicks and a couple of penalties to Fleetwood the inevitable happened and good running and supporting play by Fleetwood’s backs allowed them to cross for a converted try after 16 minutes, 13-7. Both sides attacked and lost possession in midfield for a while before Andy Wallace fielded a kick in his 22 and decided to run it back. Some good passing through the backs saw Michael Bunting release George Holme who crossed for a try, converted by Muir, to give Keswick a 20-7 lead after 26 minutes.

Fleetwood responded immediately, winning a scrum on the Keswick 10 metre line and running the ball. The Keswick backs came up out of alignment allowing a space for Fleetwood to break through for their left wing to score under the posts after 30 minutes. The try was converted to bring the score to 20-14. The next Keswick attack through a line-out in the Fleetwood 22 was intended to be a driving maul but the Fleetwood pack backed off instead of making contact resulting in a penalty against Keswick for obstruction; good knowledge and use of the relevant law. Keswick were quick to learn from this and when Fleetwood tried it again later it didn’t work for them.

The last 5 minutes saw strong pressure on the Keswick line, well defended by the whole team, and assisted by Fleetwood’s poor handling, with one final pass going astray and another a forward pass with the try-line beckoning. A number of scrums for Fleetwood gave them the upper hand and defending kicks to touch were much in evidence. At the back of a number of retreating scrums Aaron Thompson was able to secure possession with none more important than the final scrum close to the Keswick line which resulted in a maul that ended with the final whistle.

This was a difficult game against an improved Fleetwood team that made good use of their large pack to dominate the scrums in the muddy and slippery conditions. However, the win sees Keswick move into third in the league, one of 3 teams on 61 points, 4 points behind first placed Aspatria, but with a game in hand, and 2 points behind Wigton, but with 3 games in hand. Of the 14 teams in the league only 4 are Cumbrian and 3 of those occupy the top 3 positions, evidence of the strength of Cumbrian rugby at this level.