Waterhead Warriors 12 Crosfields 28

CROSFIELDS maintained their stranglehold at the top of the league with a hard fought victory away against winless Waterhead.

After the hosts had opened the scoring, tries from Jack Reid, Keiran Thomas and Matt Barber put the visitors in control.

Martin Sarsfield got Waterhead back in it before the break, but Crosfields held out under intense pressure and added late scores through Joe Clark and a second for Reid.

Soap remain unbeaten from their five games so far and sit top of the National Conference League Division Three with nine points.

After Waterhead had opened the scoring with a neat set play under the posts, a purple patch of three tries in seven minutes sparked the visitors into life.

Reid dummied his way over for the first, before Thomas crossed from a set play following a scrum and Barber barged his way over from close range.

That seemed to put Soap in control, but Sarsfield had other ideas as he crossed for Waterhead to keep them in touch at half-time.

That was to be the Warriors’ last score as Soap held them at bay with some superb defence in the second half.

This gave them the confidence to add more points and they did just that when Ash Cornelia put Clarke over for his first try in over three years.

Reid then completed the scoring after a brilliant ball steal and dummy to canter through from ten metres out and his conversion secured a hard-fought two points.

Crosfields: Cornelia; Taylor, Rookes, Burgess, Thomas; Reid, Clarke; Brazendale, James, Pickersgill, Mahoney, Moore, Barber. Subs: Holcroft, Boden, Ansell, Lee