On Saturday 8th of October the 1st XV travelled to face Hartlepool A in a friendly to fill the gap left by Seaham, who were unable to field a full squad. Hartlepool 1st XV play two leagues above Aycliffe, so given that this was their A team, most of whom would be expected to be pushing for first team contention, this was set to be a good test of Aycliffe’s abilitiy to deal with higher level teams. Despite some difficulty finding the ground, Aycliffe arrived in good time, and following a focused warm up, lined up to receive the kick. The first contact of the game set the tone for the next eighty minutes, with a solid chase forcing the Aycliffe receiver into touch. Aycliffe realised that this was going to be a real test of their abilities both as individual rugby players, and as a team. The first ten minutes saw Aycliffe dictate the pace of the game through solid defence and smart work at the breakdown. Hartlepool were clearly shocked, as they were pinned back into their own half by the more junior side. This pressure soon told as wing Ben Walton outpaced the Hartlepool wing on the outside to dash over taking the visitors in to a five to nil lead, which was converted by fly half Alex Lineton. Aycliffe were straight back onto the front foot from the restart, again pushing Hartlepool back. Strong defence combined with physical close phases from the forwards and bruising runs from the backs further frustrated Hartlepool, and fifteen minutes after his first try, wing Ben Walton made it a brace with an almost identical try, taking the Hartlepool winger on the outside and despite fallacious calls of a forward pass from the embarrassed wing, the try stood to take Aycliffe into double figures, the conversion slotted by Lineton. The pressure was reapplied as rampaging wing James Thacker crossed for another Rugby Club Remain Unbeaten try, continuing his record of scoring in every fixture this season. Following this try, there was some scrappiness off the ball from the clearly frustrated Hartlepool forwards, but Aycliffe held their composure and went in nineteen points to the good. The second half saw Aycliffe return to the field with an unchanged fifteen. The game degenerated somewhat at this point, with Aycliffe allowing themselves to be dragged down to Hartlepool’s level, which resulted in antagonistic scrum half Ash Bolsover being sent off the field for ten minutes. This man advantage soon told, as Aycliffe were caught out on the drift, leaving a gap in midfield which the Hartlepool 7 stormed through to score, which was converted to take Hartlepool within two tries of the visitors. Shortly after this try, a frustrated James Cocks was overly vocal toward the referee, which cost him ten minutes. With Aycliffe now down to thirteen, pack leader Niall Kelly and Captain Lineton took control of their players, demanding a higher level of intensity to make up the two-man disadvantage. The period of play that followed summed up Aycliffe’s success thus far; solid defence with smart commitment to rucks resulting in no tries for the home side. With Cocks still in the bin, wing Thacker joined a scrum on the Hartlepool five metre line to add ballast. Following a strong scrummage, the ball came loose and was pounced upon by Thacker, who charged at the line and crossed the line with four Hartlepool defenders in tow. This try was converted by Lineton, taking Aycliffe into a twentysix to seven lead. The final minutes played out with Aycliffe showcasing more smart rugby, maintaining possession and running down the clock to victory. The game finished with a total of four tries run in by Aycliffe with the backs taking all four. Tries came from Ben Walton (2) and James Thacker (2). Three of the tries and were converted by Alex Lineton. Final score Hartlepool A 7 – 26 Newton Aycliffe 1st XV.