Young Morpeth team loses to Consett despite chances to clinch the win
Morpeth suffered a second league defeat against a Consett side who thoroughly deserved their win.
It proved to be a chastening afternoon for a young Morpeth side who could, and possibly should, have won the match.
Indeed, as the game moved into the final quarter they looked odds on victors, playing against 14 men. But to their immense credit, Consett rallied with two tries in the final minutes to clinch the contest.
The game kicked off and saw the home side immediately on the offensive when a grubber kick through only just went beyond the dead ball line as the Morpeth players dived for the touchdown.
That was as good as it got for the home side in those early encounters with Consett dominating both in terms of possession and territory.
Inventive half backs coupled with an exciting midfield combination caused a Morpeth side massive problems.
The game had lasted six minutes when the visitors established a 10 point lead from a converted try and subsequent penalty.
Further opportunities were spurned as Consett continued to look the better side.
Morpeth were further hampered when Carl Hill, one of the better home performers on the day, was sin binned as the pressure increased.
It was therefore not a surprise when further excellent handling saw another Consett converted try on 20 minutes.
It wasn’t until the 25th minute before Morpeth finally managed to secure possession in the Consett 22 metre area. It came from a penalty kick to the corner which created an attacking opportunity for prop Tom Leeson to storm over from a coherent forward effort.
Jake McKay kicked a good conversion.
Then the same player who was on the mark again after 34 minutes with a simple penalty to make the score 10-17.
Just when everyone thought the scoring had ended for the first half, it was the home side who scored with the very last play.
A cleverly worked set play at the front of the lineout involving Hill and Elliott Clark saw prop Theo Gavaghan bury over for an unconverted score.
Half-time score 15-17.
The second half saw an improved Morpeth performance. The hard-working Gavaghan went over again from close range to record a brace of tries on 45 minutes to make the score 20-17.
With Ben Jackson adding some much needed ballast it was the opportunity for Morpeth to dominate, yet it was the visitors who were the next scorers when the usually competitive home defence became increasingly disjointed. It was again the Consett midfield which sliced through on 54 minutes for a converted score. 20-24.
The free scoring continued on 56 minutes when driving runs from Jackson and Clark saw McKay with a penalty opportunity that was gratefully received. 23-24.
Going into the final quarter, Consett found themselves with a player down following a sending off. This provided the home side with the perfect opportunity to seal victory.
The fact that this wasn’t the final outcome was in no small way to the spirit and attitude of a determined Consett team.
Despite a Morpeth try on 68 minutes when Hill finished off from an attacking lineout and McKay kicked the conversion which made the score 30-24, Consett came back with a vengeance and the visitors scored two further tries and converted a successful penalty to clinch the game against a crumbling Morpeth defence.
Final score 30-39.