EAGLE started life in the Cheshire League after promotion last year with a hard-fought 36-34 victory, and a bonus point, at Trentham.

Eagle went into an early 10-point lead following quick tries by Danny Cahill and James Tickle.

Mistakes and some rustiness cost the visitors dearly as Trentham scored three tries, all off the back of Eagle mistakes.

Eagle rallied in the second half and regained a lead that they would hold onto with further tries from Sam Cook, Mike Bridge and JP Ainsworth.

Man of the match went to Owen McInroy.

EAGLE seconds' start to the season brought together a mix of youth and experience, but they lost 15-6 to an experienced Macclesfield side.

The game was lost in the set piece as Macclesfield put pressure on the scrum and denied Eagle any real quality possession for much of the game, and a spate of injuries that saw four Eagle players leave the field did not help the team’s fluidity.

A strong defensive performance with Chris Jordan, captain Chris Broadfield and Carl Leach putting in a series of big tackles, prevented Macc converting the possession to points, apart from a try in either half and two kicks.

Mike Whelan at stand off for Eagle kicked two goals to keep Eagle in the running, and also demonstrated that the backline does have some real attacking flair as he set off a number moves, but were unable to cross the Macc line.