Newton Aycliffe Rugby Club came out on top after a hard fought battle in difficult conditions at Chester-le-Street.  Aycliffe came into this game in 3rd place with their opponents 4th so it was never going to be an easy match.
The strong cold wind made handling difficult and both teams had to play accordingly.  Aycliffe’s side looked strong, but flanker Drew Gibson had to fill in at centre where there was still a shortage of players.
Aycliffe began well, with their backs showing pace, but Chester’s defence was strong.  The first score came after a 15 minutes; an Aycliffe move seemed to have ground to a halt when the ball hit the floor, but Gibson picked up and ran powerfully forward before spinning the ball out wide to Dan Montgomery whose pace saw him outsprint the defence as he ran the ball in from 40 metres.
Chester fought back and their forwards’ driving play saw them inch their way up the field.  Finally they powered over for a try in the corner.  The score remained at 5 – 5 for the next 20 minutes as the teams turned around level.
Aycliffe’s forwards up a gear in the second half as they took the game to the opposition, with hooker Jamie Whelan at the forefront of much that was good about their play, but the scoreboard stubbornly stayed at 5 – 5.  Eventually, with only 15 minutes left, the forwards gained their reward when captain Deryk Cairns was able to power over from short range.  Montgomery added a fine conversion to make the lead 7 points.
The game was effectively won with a bizarre try.  The Chester full-back, under pressure from Jeff Hodgson, completely missed the ball in his attempt to kick it into touch; Andy Littlefair quickly picked it up and calmly drew the last defender before feeding Jonny Griffith, who sped in unopposed.  Montgomery added another excellent kick.  Although there was time for only one more play, Aycliffe now sensed a 4th, bonus point, try.
They quickly spun the ball wide and broke into Chester territory, but the final pass went to ground; Chester launched a counter-attack and, with the Aycliffe defence in tatters, crossed the line for a try.  Their kicker then coolly slotted the extras to give the home side a losing bonus point of their own.  The game ended with a 19 -12 victory for the visitors.
This result keeps Aycliffe in 3rd place in Durham and Northumberland Division 3, but on 17th January they host 2nd place Houghton in a must win game at Moore Lane; kick-off 2.15pm.
Aycliffe Rugby is sponsored by S Cars and Whitehouse funeral services.