Alex Keay's end of season thoughts

This season has been a rollercoaster of emotions for the Preston Grasshoppers head coach Alex Keay, with the fantastic start for the season, to the poor run of six defeats in the last two months of the season. This ecstasy of emotions was also prevalent in their fantastic Lancashire Cup run which saw them march all the way to the final at Lightfoot Green, only to lose 37-17 in the Final to local rivals Fylde.

Despite the rails coming off the Grasshoppers season in the final few months, Alex remains very pleased with their season and the season progress and says, “I think their has been a lot more good things than bad this season. I would have liked to have finished higher, especially with our form before Christmas, but realistically it is about right.”

Looking towards next season Keay is immensely focused with only one objective in mind, promotion. “Promotion has to be the target, their can be nothing else. If you don’t think you can achieve promotion theirs no point in taking part. But to be honest it all comes down to the boys and how much they put in and they summer. We also have to start the first couple of games next season in the same fashion as we did this season.”

The Grasshoppers squad this season has been decimated with injuries and Keay has received some criticism for the lack of depth in his squad. Keay sees this an issue that needs dealing with in the summer, “We want new experienced, quality players to join us in the summer. But we want players who can integrate with an already excellent robust squad which is already set up here, which now has one more years experience. We also want someone whose that little bit special that can push us towards our ultimate goal, promotion.”

Finishing eighth this season would leave many managers disappointed with their player’s performances but Keay is full of praise for his squad, especially his young fringe players. “There have been a number of players who have impressed me this season. But special praise has to go to the younger players such as Mark Rigby and Chris Stone who have stepped up to the mark this season when required. But to be honest Darren Wilson has been phenomenal this season. He gives 100% in every game and has been a real leader on the pitch.”

Despite a poor finish to this season Keay is full of confidence for next season. With a pre-season plan already arranged, his transfer targets identified and a good young squad ready to prove themselves there is no reason why he can’t fulfil his seasons objective and take the Grasshoppers to the National Division Two.”

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The Grasshoppers go to the Park

THIS Saturday sees the Preston Grasshoppers travel to Yiewsley Drive for the final game of the season against already relegated Darlington Mowden Park.

After last week’s fantastic 48-7 victory against Halifax, Alex Keay’s men will be looking to take this momentum into the final game of the season. The Grasshoppers away form could however cost them the victory. The Grasshoppers have only won two away games all season and this has been the reason for their disappointing season.

Darlington now face the reality of life outside of the National Division Three north league next season but still managed to give already promoted side Nuneaton a scare last Saturday, only losing 31-25 and giving a magnificent performance that truly deserved some reward.

Darlington may have been able to avoid relegation after a fantastic late run of results, but this unfortunately also coincided with both Huddersfield and Bradford and Bingley also recording victories. Darlington’s fate was also confirmed by their inability to win in very tight games, losing ten games by just seven points or less.

Alex Keay will no doubt look for encouragement from their 36-8 victory against Darlington earlier in the season where club captain Darren Wilson scored a brace of tries. But he will also be looking to crush the two main Darlington threats of club top scorer Jon Benson and Adam Mackenzie who has scored eight tries this season.

Keay’s extensive injury list has again come to thwart his end of season plans with Glynn Dewhurst unavailable due to an knee injury, Mark Rigbye out with an ankle injury and Alexander Zavallis Roebuck also unavailable due to personal problems. But most worryingly for Keay he is also without inspirational captain Darren Wilson who is suspended.

Darlington’s end of season efforts have not gone unmissed by Keay who despite their lowly league position thinks they will prove a difficult opponent, “Its difficult to know how they will play this weekend, they have had a fantastic end to the season, but they had something to play for. Now there relegated and have nothing else to play for and their performance will be quite different to the excellent form we saw earlier in the season.”

Building on last weeks fantastic performance against Halifax, Keay is looking to bring the grove back into their play, even if it is just for the last game of the season. Keay further added, “We lost our focus towards the end of the season and we are all to blame not just the players, but we just need to end the season in style now.”

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What do the Lightfoot Faithful think to the season’s disappointment?

After a season filled with hope and ultimately disappointment, the Grasshopper fans have continued to show their support to the club with the numbers through the turnstiles, but what view do they have on the Grasshoppers disappointing season?

Before the Grasshoppers travel for their final game of the season away to Darlington on Saturday I tried to get to the route of the fans disappointment, but also what they thought had to be done to both improve on this season, but also to see the club achieve its potential and realize promotion to the National Division Two.



Paul Smith, 34, an IT Technician said, “Alex Keay is defiantly the man to take us up, no doubt. But I would like to see more quality signings in the close season, we have a good young squad, but they are inexperienced and can’t grind out victories. We need match winners to compliment the likes of (Marcus) Jackson and (Darren) Wilson.”

This need for reinforcements is a recurring pattern in supporter’s opinions. Richard Tanner, 68, a retired teacher said, “Keay has done his best, but the squad is too thin and this was evident when the squad was decimated with injuries. He did well with what was available to him but more has to be done this summer to make sure we have enough quality to win games, but also enough quality on the substitute bench.”

But the fans have to think about the shoe string budget by which Alex Keay is running the team, the team do not pay players so signings such as Fylde’s Steve Nutt would always be unattainable, but quality youth players can be brought to the club at schoolboy level, but also on loan from bigger professional outfits such as Lee Imiolek. It is this route which Janice May would like to see the team continue to utilise and develop the youth at the club for a brighter future.

The 47 year old cleaner said, “This season the club has developed players for the long term. The season has been disappointing for supporters and players alike, especially the defeats to Fylde, but the Lancashire cup has allowed us to play our fringe youth players against tough opposition, and to be honest Fylde may have won the cup, but we have given our youth the best opportunity to shine on a grander scale in a few years.”

Fylde’s April double over the Grasshoppers brings some very harsh words from some supporters. After the pulsating 14-12 victory in December, the club had its first chance for seasons to record the league double over Fylde, but ultimately were disappointed 25-41 in front of the Lightfoot faithful. 46 year old, Jack Curtis said, “This fixture draws the most fans in the whole fixture list, no other teams can draw a crowd like that fixture with some fans only coming to the Fylde match. But to be honest we were out played. I may be in the minority, but personally I don’t mind losing as long as the players try, and to be honest all season the players have tried hard, we have just been unlucky and careless.”

The season’s final curtain will be drawn this Saturday, but the leagues final games is the reason for the fans frustration. A run of six league defeats in eight games and the Lancashire cup final defeat to the Preston Grasshoppers brought the Grasshoppers season crashing to a premature, trophy less end. Dave Guardan, 35, Plumber said “Due to the league restructuring, promotion was always going to be an uphill task this season, but the end of the season really ended any slim hopes we had. Quite admittedly they were slim, but the fans were clutching on to these straws of hope and the players just seemed to run out of steam, or just even give up when promotion was no longer an option.”

The ever present, ever faithful, ever hopeful Grasshoppers fans will continue to support their club next season, but for just how much longer will they tolerate disappointment?
The club may be a stepping block for bigger and greater things for players such as Lee Imiolek, but the fans would like to see their club achieve greatness and promotion.
The fans understand this season’s disappointment and their reasons, but for how much longer will they tolerate a season with no silverware?

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Preston Grasshoppers 2008/09 – A season of smashed hopes and dreams

This Saturday sees the Preston Grasshoppers face Darlington in the final league game of the season. The Grasshoppers sit eighth in the National Division Three North table with no chance of climbing the table. This has left some fans unhappy, but have the Grasshoppers actually had a poor season?

The Grasshoppers have made no progress from last season, actually finishing one place lower than last season. But the disgruntled Grasshoppers fans are dreaming of a return to the 06/07 season when they were unlucky to miss out on promotion coming third.

There is also some jealousy to their local rivals Fylde, this season’s Lancashire cup winners. Preston and Fylde both started the season with victories, but just as Fylde have progressed from this and now have the chance to finish third, the Grasshoppers have had a poor end to the season losing six of their last eight matches.

This poor form has undoubtedly cost the Grasshoppers with only 11 victories all season. The Grasshoppers away form has been dismal all season with only two victories recorded against the leagues bottom club Halifax and Bradford and Bingley. Without the clubs home record, nine wins from 13 they could have been relegated this season and fans are asking for changes to be made this summer.

With this seasons promotion hopes now over until next season, the fans will have to keep their faith in Alex Keay for two more seasons after he extended his contract until 2011. But with Keay’s future now settled with an extension of his contact, the fans want to see more experience players transferred into the club, with quality players such as Stephen Nutt of Fylde and Gavin Roberts of Caldy been asked for. These names maybe out of reach for the club, but fans would also be happy with quality youth players such as England U18 Lee Imiolek been loaned to the club for a year again.

Alex’s trust in youth has seen Lee Imiolek been the second youngest fielded player in the Division. But the clubs own youth system has seen Adam Crisp and Sean Hall, both 19, given the opportunity to gain invaluable playing experience this season and the average age of the team now standing at 20. This trust in youth could be the foundations for years to come but the fans are hungry for immediate success and the club’s already established star players bring a glimmer of hope for the 2009/10 season for the Grasshoppers in the shape of Darren Wilson and Marcus Jackson.

Marcus Jackson has scored a massive 181 points for the Grasshoppers this season, the sixth highest in the league and club captain Darren Wilson has had an inspirational season which was magnificently topped off with a call up to the Barbarian side to face England at Twickenham on May 3rd. But players such as Andrew Dockray and Russell Flynn have also had good seasons and it’s these players which the club will build for the future around.

The Grasshoppers fans have continued to follow their side both home and away despite poor away results the Grasshoppers actually have the best away support of the Division with over 325 fans following them over the North of the country to each and every game. But if next season follows the same pattern of results as this season finished with, it could see a sharp decline in the number of fans, despite there loyalty.

This season brought so much promise to Lightfoot Green and the Grasshopper fans, but ultimately delivered very little. The poor run of away defeats ultimately cost the loyal fans their National Division Two dream. But this season has delivered the foundations on which to progress next season, a young squad full of promise, established quality stars and hope. This season ends in Darlington on Saturday, but a victory could give next season promotion hopes the perfect start.

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Preston Grasshoppers 24 – 50 Nuneaton

The Preston Grasshoppers slumped to their third successive defeat after a 24 -50 defeat at the hands of top of the table Nuneaton.

Despite an excellent performance from Marcus Jackson who scored a try, four penalty kicks and one conversion, the Nuns ran over seven tries with an inspired performance from full back Robert Cook who created three tries.

The victory, which extends Nuneaton’s winning streak to 12 games, actually started well for The Grasshoppers when they took the lead through two Jackson penalties. Nuneaton replied immediately, and when a scrum in Preston’s 22 was passed swiftly from right to left, Richard Johnson went over for the first try of the game. Huw Thomas extended Nuneaton’s lead through a well taken conversion.

Inspired

The Grasshoppers were inspired by Nuneaton’s try and Marc Balshaw went over the line to finish a well made move which had started on the half way line. ‘Hoppers then allowed Nuneaton straight back into the game only four minutes after the try when poor defending allowed captain Gary Holmes to drive over the line from a five metre line out.

Jackson then gave the Grasshoppers a glimmer of hope for the second half when he scored his third penalty of the game, which meant that the score was 14-14 at the interval.

The second half started in fiery fashion with an influx of yellow cards and brawls. Holmes was the first to go for Nuneaton, closely followed by team mate Matt Aston and the Grasshoppers Glyn Dewhurst who were both yellow carded for fighting, the third such incident in the match. Both teams successfully converted the resulting penalties.

Lost

The Grasshoppers lost the game in the following ten minutes due to a magnificent performance from Cook. The full back took full advantage of the extra space, creating three tries for Aaron Takarangi, Dan Hurst and Richard Johnson. The Grasshoppers simply had no reply to his performance

Running from just outside Nuneaton’s 22, Jackson went over the try line for a Grasshoppers consolation, but the game had already been lost. With the Grasshoppers desperately trying to find a way through Nuneaton’s resolute defence for the elusive bonus point, the visitors took full advantage and t two good counter attacking moves saw Tim Douglas and Huw Thomas go over to seal the win.

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Grasshoppers face Nuneaton

After a disappointing 49-33 defeat away to Leicester Lions, the Preston Grasshoppers face top of the table Nuneaton this Saturday.

Grasshoppers, who now sit 8th in the National Division Three Northern League, face Nuneaton who have won their last 11 matches in a row and have not lost since the 1st of November at home to second place Caldy.

The Grasshoppers, who despite conceding 49 points, picked up a bonus point against Leicester and will not be looking for a repeat of their 46-22 defeat they suffered when they travelled way to Nuneaton earlier in the season.

Confidence

The Warwickshire side come to Lightfoot Green full of confidence after a magnificent season and beat Bradford and Bingley last week. The Grasshoppers will also have to contend with the form of Brook Davies who capped a man of the match performance against Bradford with two tries. The boot of Huw Thomas will also be of concern to Grasshoppers head coach Alex Keay after he contributed five conversions and two penalties at the weekend.

Preston, who have now lost three of their last four matches, come up against a team who have conceded the fewest points in the whole league. The Grasshoppers’ poor defence will have to be improved after least weeks dismal performance against the Lions to ensure there is no repeat of the Nuns’ win earlier in the season.

With Preston only having five games remaining this season against difficult opposition, Keay can not afford any repeat of the indiscipline his side have encountered over the past few weeks.

Gameplan

Looking ahead to this weekend’s match, Keay, who has just agreed to stay on at Lightfoot Green for two more years, said: “We need to be more disciplined than we were last week, and not just to the referee, we have to be more disciplined to our game plan. But obviously we just need to go out their and win.

“Brook Davies was exceptional when we played them (Nuneaton) earlier in the season and we need to cut the ball off to him. We have got a game plan to stop him from punishing us. But we just need to go into the game with the right attitude, we have got a few sore bodies from the Leicester match, but everyone should be fit for the weekend.

“Fail”

“I was not impressed with the defence at the weekend and that is something we’ve been working on in training to make us water tight, but to be honest we lost our playing pattern against Leicester and gave them too many opportunities. Our attack was also part of the failure, we failed to prepare in some areas, and so we prepared to fail.”

The Grasshoppers will face local rivals Fylde in the Lancashire cup Final on April the 13th after they defeated Broughton Park in the Semi Final 41 -10 last week.

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Lions 49-33 Grasshoppers

Despite tries from Tom Brady, Alex Zavallis-Roebuck, Darren Wilson and Tom Ball, the Preston Grasshoppers slipped to their third defeat in four matches after losing 49-33 away to the Leicester Lions.

The Grasshoppers started very poorly and found themselves 21 points down after only eight minutes as a result of three Jon Boden tries.

Brady then came close to getting some points on the board for the Grasshoppers before their first points came off the boot of Marcus Jackson.

The Lions were then reduced to 14 men after Drew Rudkin was sent off for his part in a flare up in a pack which also saw Lee Imiolek yellow carded and thenn substituted as a result of a badly cut eye.

Extended

The home side then extended their lead with tries from Wyn Roberts, Lee Dyment and through the boot of Boden with Preston’s only reply coming through a second Jackson penalty.

The second half started with Preston not only 42-6 down but also with an injury to Jackson who had to be replaced by Russell Flynn. Despite this, the Grasshoppers responded two minutes into the half through Brady who scored both the try and the conversion.

Error

Preston then further cut the lions lead with a try from Ball and a Will Hughes penalty, but another defensive error allowed Gareth Collins in for a try for the Lions

However the Grasshoppers confirmed a bonus point with late tries from Darren Wilson and Zavallis-Roebuck just before the end.

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Grasshoppers visit The Den

After last weeks 22-26 defeat at Lightfoot Green against Macclesfield, the Grasshoppers face the Leicester Lions this Saturday.

The Grasshoppers who travel to the Den, the home of the Lions, will be looking for a repeat of the fantastic performance they gave against the hosts earlier in the season when they won 34-8.

The Lions are unbeaten in four games after some impressive performances against Hull Ionians, Bradford and Bingley and Darlington Mowden Park. The Grasshoppers will also have to be aware of the boot of Jon Boden who has punished many teams, including three penalties against Kendal on Saturday.

Inspired

The Grasshoppers will be looking for another inspired performance from youngster Lee Imiolek. The England under 18 starlet, on loan from Sale Sharks, played a brilliantly against Macclesfield despite the result, and even managed to cap his performance with two tries.

The Grasshoppers could also take joy from the fact that despite their loss at the weekend they still managed to climb one place in the National Division Three North league table.

Tough

The Lions pose a tough test, with both teams evenly balanced in the league in sixth and seventh position, with the Lions having the slight edge with five points.

Indiscipline has been a sore point for Preston manager Alex Keay, after Lee Imiolek was yellow carded two weeks ago against Huddersfield he was disappointed to see club captain Darren Wilson penalised for punching in retaliation in the opening minutes against Macclesfield. Keay added that he is looking to improve the Grasshoppers indiscipline during the coming weeks.

“Hard”

Looking ahead to Saturdays clash with the Lions Keay added: “Going to the Den is a hard place to pick up points, but when we played them earlier in the season I didn’t think they looked that good and I think we will be able to punish their defence. But they have some good players, their second row is pretty strong and their full backs are quick.

“We also have a lot of injuries this week, about a dozen or so with Phil Whyte and John Peterson still out injured. These injuries disrupt the continuity of the side and it doesn’t help for competition for places, my squad is stretched to the limit.

“I was pleased with our defence last week but I’m looking to improve our line speed in training this week and try to develop more continuity into our play. We have to learn to keep control of the ball more and obviously when we lose it, get it back as quickly as possible.”

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Macclesfield 26-22 Grasshoppers

Despite two tries from England U18 International Lee Imiolek, a late try from Macclesfield’s Ian Lear was all that could separate both teams in a hard fought encounter.

Macclesfield took an early lead through the boot of Ross Winney but Marcus Jackson responded with a penalty before Winney again converted a penalty to retake the lead.

Macclesfield scored the first try of the game through Dan Baines, however the Grasshoppers responded immediately by driving over the line from a line out with Lee Imiolek putting the ball down for his first try.

Relied

After a second try from Macclesfield’s Fergus Mulcrone and a Winney conversion, the Grasshoppers again relied on the boot of Jackson to make the score 14-18 at half time.

The Grasshoppers started the second half the strongest and after a second Imiolek try and, after a penalty from both side, a tense finish was in store for the supporters. However a late try from Lear guaranteed the points for Macclesfield at the final whistle.

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Grasshoppers face Macclesfield

After a fantastic 17-13 home victory against league strugglers Huddersfield, Preston Grasshoppers face a difficult test away to Macclesfield.

Macclesfield, who currently sit fourth in the National Division Three North subjected the Grasshoppers to 35 -14 defeat when they visited Lightfoot Green earlier in the season in a game which manager Alex Keay was disappointed to lose:

“We were by far the best team on the field, we scored two good early tries and commanded the game until the last 20 minutes where they just ripped us apart.”

Keay was still disappointed however after their victory over Huddersfield at the weekend:

“Disappointed”

“We deserved to win the match and I’m pleased we did, but I’m still a bit disappointed with the performance, because we didn’t play well.

“But the conditions didn’t help and that’s why most of our points had to come off the boot. But I would love to see us play with a bit more flair; I like to see us running with the ball and ultimately making it more entertaining for the fans.”

The Grasshoppers’ only try of the match was scored by Phil Whyte, however it was club captain Darren Wilson who received high praise from Keay for his contribution to the try:

“Darren’s build up play was fantastic, different class even, he is playing magnificently at the moment and his contribution to the team is immense.”

Poor

Keay was very disappointed with the level of refereeing he and his team have been on the receiving end of lately after another poor decision from the referee in giving Lee Imiolek a yellow card 20 minutes before the end of the Huddersfield match:

“It was never a yellow card, he was the tackler in that situation is entitled to go for the ball. But yellow cards are just part and parcel of the game now and sometimes referees get big decisions wrong.”

The Grasshoppers will be without Whyte for the next few weeks after he suffered a fractured cheek bone against Huddersfield. John Peterson will also be out for the Macclesfield clash with an injured ankle. However Keay is hopeful that one or two of his long casualties may be able to pass fitness test during the week.

Risks

The boss would also like to see his team take more risks during games after been bored watching his team play last weekend:

“We are going to have to play better than we did last week to beat Macclesfield. We never looked like taking risks and we were always looking to kick the ball up field or turn it over. We need to be running at them and putting them under pressure”

The Grasshoppers opponents in the Lancashire Cup Final will also be decided tonight when Fylde take on Broughton in the semi final. Many Grasshoppers fans are calling for Keay to field a full strength squad in the final but he is prepared to stick by the players who have got him there:

“We have to give this Cup the respect it deserves but we have been playing a team which will develop our long term squad and they have been playing magnificently in every round and it would be harsh to drop them for the final.”

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Preston win war of the roses

In a hard fought match with Lancashire pride at stake, Preston Grasshoppers came out 19-13 winners over Yorkshire rivals Huddersfield.

The match, which was plagued by errors due to the awful weather conditions at Lightfoot Green, started with Preston’s Marcus Jackson scoring the opening points with a penalty. Preston then added to their lead with their only try of the match when Phil Whyte went over after 10 minutes.

Huddersfield responded just before half time with a well worked try from Mark Whitehead and a conversion from Chris Johnson.

Penalties

The Grasshoppers extended their lead in the second half with three penalties from the boot of Jackson with Huddersfield only scoring one from the boot of Johnson.

Grasshopper fans faced a nervy finish after they finished the match with only 14 men after Lee Imiolek was yellow carded and Johnson converted the resulting penalty. However Preston held strong despite Huddersfield throwing all they had at them and secured a vital victory

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‘Hoppers aim to bounce back

PRESTON Grasshoppers face a hard trip to Huddersfield this weekend after a disappointing 19-27 defeat at the hands of Loughborough Students last Saturday

With Preston dropping to seventh in the Northern Division 3 table they face Huddersfield who, although lying third from bottom, can help guarantee their future in the division with four points.

On a four match losing streak, Huddersfield went down 18-22 in their Yorkshire derby against Bradford and Bingley last weekend.

Star

The Grasshoppers could face trouble against Huddersfield’s young star, winger Matt Clark. The Academy player was not only Huddersfield’s man of the match in his debut last week, but also topped his fine performance with a brilliant try.

Defeat at home to Loughborough Students has now all but ended any remaining hopes of promotion.

Preston can still look for consolation in the Lancashire Cup after a 24-17 victory at home to Waterloo in the Semi Final saw them progress to the Final in spectacular fashion.

Semi-final

Preston will find out who they will face in the final as Broughton Park travel to Fylde in the other semi final.

Preston, who in their remaining eight fixtures of the season face all top six sides in the division, need the five points available on Saturday.

Otherwise they could enter the hardest part of their season with only 10 points separating them and the bottom three.

“Disappointed”

Preston first team coach Paul Manley said: ”After a good sequence of wins we are very disappointed to have lost at home, however we know what we did wrong and we will be looking to improve on this.

“Last week was just a bad day at the office but we’re looking to win every game and we will be looking to take all five points this weekend.

“Balanced”

Preston head coach Alex Keay added, “We never see any game as a guaranteed win, this is a very evenly balanced league and Huddersfield pose as much a threat as Loughboruogh did last week.

“I was very angry after the defeat at the weekend and I made this very clear to the players at full time. I was very disappointed with the level of officiating too, which to be honest was very interesting at times.

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“We will be without Adam Crisp this weekend after he was injured against Loughborough and Tom Hughes who has got a recurring shoulder injury after playing for UCLAN (University of Central Lancashire). Apart from them it’s a full squad for the match.

Students kill Grasshoppers

After winning their last five games, Preston Grasshoppers’ dreams of promotion were brought crashing back down to earth by the Loughborough Students in a 19-27 defeat.

Loughborough’s Phil Burgess ran over three tries to not only give his side victory, but also the important bonus point.

Loughborough’s superior speed and fitness was evident to all after just three minutes when, after playing a quick line-out, the ball was played from right to left before full back Pete Clarke scored.

Loughborough then extended their lead through Jack Bird who beat three men before crossing the line. Preston had Marcus Jackson to thank for their only points of the half, converting four penalties.

Pressure

Burgess then completed his hat trick of tries either side of half time, however Preston responded with a good period of pressure from which Andrew Dockray flew over the line from close range which took the score to 19-27.

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But Preston could not break down the firm Loughborough defence which stood firm for the final quarter of the game.