A roaring forty for West Bowling as Darville’s dazzling show shocks Drighlington

Stand-off Liam Darville contributed two touchdowns in a stunning first-half West Bowling performance to knock Pennine League Premier Division leaders Drighlington off their lofty perch at Emsleys Rec.

West’s captain Richard Lumb, operating in the centre berth, got the scoreboard ticking over when he collected a Darville pass to round his opposite number and race clear.

He broke the attempted tackle from full back Adam Newton to crash over near the corner flag – too far out for scrum half Liam Coe to add the extras.

Darville was obviously in red-hot form and once again showed the visitors a clean pair of heels when he sprinted 40 metres down the middle.

He found hooker Joe Lumb, who was hauled down as the Drighlington defence reg-rouped, but a quick play the ball saw prop Connor Wood power his way under the posts to leave Coe a simple conversion for a 10-0 lead with as many minutes on the clock.

Another Richard Lumb effort was ruled out for offside as Bowling continued to attack and the intense pace saw tempers fray, leading to West’s loose forward Aidy Doherty and Drig hooker Sam Pickles both being sent to the sin-bin for punching.

The irrepressible Darville posted his first try when he elegantly rounded the visitors’ cover to sprint to the whitewash, leaving Coe to ensure full reward.

Shortly afterwards Darville added his brace when he again used his electric pace to shatter the defence to find substitute back Dan Gregory with a precision pass. Drig’s scrambling defence managed to bring him to a halt but Darville quickly spotted a glaring hole out wide to cross in the corner.

At 20-0, the end of the first half couldn’t come soon enough for the beleaguered visitors but with the blustery wind at their backs the match was far from over.

They quickly reduced the deficit when Pickles took advantage of a ball steal to cross and a clever flick out of the back door saw centre John Gallagher in unopposed.

Bowling now had a huge task on their hands against a resurgent Drig outfit and their cause was not helped when they conceded a raft of penalties under pressure.

The league leaders’ tenacity was further rewarded when wingman Danny Sanderson collected a dropped pass to scoot to the corner flag but once again the conversion attempt sailed well wide, and that was their final hurrah as Bowling shut up shop to register a well-deserved win.