Stourbridge 37 Fylde RFC 33: Classic clash goes to wire

Stourbridge and Fylde remain fourth and fifth respectively in National Two North after this battle between the top point-scoring teams, both closing in on 1,000 for the season.

Fylde dominated the opening exchanges, and after only three minutes Scott Rawlings freed his arms in the tackle to offload for Tom Forster to canter in from 30 yards, Greg Smith converting the try.

Stourbridge then lost centre Ciaran Moor to the sin-bin for a dangerous clear-out on Dave Fairbrother, who landed on his head.

Even so, the home side applied pressure but incurred a second yellow card on 11 minutes, when Joe Heatley took out a player without the ball.

Fylde immediately took advantage as Fairbrother drove through and offloaded for the supporting Matt Sturgess to score.

Smith's goal made it 14-0 against a somewhat shellshocked Stourbridge who were down to 13 men temporarily.

Fylde looked to drive home their as Forster sent Tom Carleton into space and he raced for the corner. The officials ruled that the full-back had not got the ball down before being bundled into touch and Stour breathed a sigh of relief.

Back with a full complement, Stour brought their power game into play, utilising their huge ball-carriers to tire and stretch the Fylde defence.

They ground out penalties to the point where the referee’s patience ran out and Fairbrother was yellow-carded on 24 minutes.

The dividend was immediate as full-back Rhys Pritchard went over in the right corner and the deficit was halved after Michael Heaney’s conversion.

Five minutes later, a move from a lineout left Heaney in acres of space to score, and although he failed to convert his side were right back in the contest at 14-12.

for a try, he failed to convert it, but Stour were now well and truly back in the contest at 14-12 down.

Fylde made early changes to bolter their front row, Adam Lewis having manfully answered the call to arms once again after Corey Bowker moved on.

But the Stour juggernaut was on a roll and right on half-time winger Matthew Mosely finished off a set move from a five-yard scrum for an unconverted try to give his side a 17-14 lead.

Fylde regrouped at the break, aiming to have enough possession of their own to stretch the larger home pack and create gaps.

And on 45 minutes fast hands created just enough space for Tom Grimes to squeeze in the corner and put them back ahead.

The lead didn’t last long, however, as a Stour catch-and-drive was deemed to have been collapsed illegally on 52 minutes and the penalty try meant Fylde trailed 24-19 and were a man short as Lewis was sent to the sin-bin.

Stour's running was too powerful and their ball recycling too quick for Fylde to deal with as Heaney went in for his second try, then scoring machine Dan Rundle added another.

Both conversions were missed but Fylde were now 34-19 down after 56 minutes, with Carleton and captain Ben Gregory forced to leave the fray.

s and the potential for a blow-out in the last quarter was a real possibility. Fylde were hampered by To their immense credit, Fylde gathered up every ounce of character in the face of adversity.

The pack took the game to Stour as Fylde flung the ball around. A break from deep saw Fairbrother and Grimes make inroads before Sturgess was hauled down just short of the line, resulting in a penalty and a yellow card for Fred Morgan.

Patient recycling saw Grimes go through a gap for Fylde’s fourth try and Smith’s conversion made it 34-26 down on 62 minutes.

Stour sought without success to pin Fylde in their own half, but great exit play resulted in Rawlings touching down on the overlap and Smith's goal cut the deficit to a single point with 10 minutes left.

Fylde continued to play expansively and disrupt Stour’s attempts to keep the game structured and tight game.

A Stour penalty made it 37-33 on 72 minutes but Fylde knew a try would still give them the win.

A fine break by young replacement Alex Clayton gave them hope, then a huge hit on Fairbrother forced a knock on as Fylde fought the the end of a titanic hammer-and-tongs contest.

Fylde: Carleton (Clayton), Turner, Forster, Rawlings (Lanigan), Grimes, Smith, Sturgess, Kyle-Clay (Barrow), Gregory (c), Ashcroft (Lewis), Parkinson, Garrod, O’Ryan (Blake), Corrie, Fairbrother.