Rampant Morpeth RFC demolish Keswick in 85-14 victory

Morpeth RFC produced a dominant display on home soil to secure a belting 85-14 victory over Keswick on Saturday afternoon.

The match was played in near perfect conditions - firm under foot, with little or no wind - but remarkably, given the final score, it was the visitors who put the first points on the board after just eight minutes. An excellent lineout around halfway led to a missed tackle in midfield, and Keswick were able to touch down near the posts - with the try duly converted.

From there, however, Morpeth sparked into life. On 12 minutes, full-back Harvey Gillie scored out wide from an attacking scrum, and then, just four minutes later, the home side produced a great team try, with impressive handling and decision-making from numerous players before winger Nathan Arkle finished off on the overlap. Gillie added a stellar conversion to make the score 12-7.

It was Arkle again in the 20th minute who finished strongly after a great line taken by Miles Gavaghan, as the home side began to look increasingly rampant.

Arkle then made good ground yet again after combining with centre Callum Burgess, before Ryan Shaw - who was a handful throughout - snaffled a botched Keswick defensive lineout to score.

Scrum-half Ben Hornby scored the next, before the classy Burgess deservedly got a score after more excellent handling. The last try of the half went to skipper Jack Elliott, with Gillie making the conversion to take the score out to 45-7.

The second half began in the same fashion, as hooker Tom Leeson went over underneath the sticks after another Shaw break. Gillie’s subsequent conversion was a formality.

Leeson breached the defence again a couple of minutes later, which allowed Hornby to dart over to make it 57-7.

Captain Elliott then went over again to secure a brace of tries, before the visitors, showing a great deal of spirit, hit back with a converted score on 62 minutes to make the score 64-14.

But that setback didn’t deter Morpeth, who finished the match in full flow. A Shaw try came after a super Hornby break close to the breakdown, and then in the final eight minutes, two barnstorming efforts from Arkle sealed the match. The second came when both Elliott and Gillie combined with superb long passes to stretch a tiring defence, before the winger stepped on the gas to score, with Gillie again kicking a great conversion.

Morpeth now sit second in the Regional Two North, having won five and drawn two of their opening seven matches.