Newton Aycliffe Rugby Club had another convincing win to move up to 3rd place in Durham and Northumberland Division 3, a seven try performance seeing them to a comfortable 39 – 0 win away to Chester-le-Street.  With the return of a number of players from injury, Aycliffe were able to pick from a strong squad on a wet day at the Riverside.
Initially, Chester-le-Street were on top in the forwards as Aycliffe struggled to get into the match in the slippery conditions.  Gradually though they began to impose themselves and after a number of attacks, they took the lead when Chester made the mistake of kicking the ball straight to James Thacker, who made them pay by touching down under the posts.  Luke Tinkler added the conversion and, soon after, had the chance to extend Aycliffe’s lead, but his penalty kick brushed the outside of the post.  Aycliffe’s forwards were beginning to make their opponents suffer in the scrum where props Cymon Lee and Bob Malvern were dominating their opposite numbers to the satisfaction of front-row coach Steve Turnbull.  In the lineout too Aycliffe were looking strong and from a catch by Ronnie Gilyeat, they mauled the ball towards the line with Warren Parsonage breaking away to score a try.  At the break Aycliffe led 12 – 0.
At the beginning of the second half, Chester again kicked the ball to Thacker, who drew the defence to allow winger Luke Crossen to add another try.  Pressure from the Aycliffe forwards near the goal line allowed scrum-half Chris Richards the space to dive over the side of a ruck to add further points.  Another try followed when Thacker released the other winger Adam Gascoigne.  Tinkler added the sixth try after combining with Richards to shred the defence.  The Aycliffe backs were handling the ball well in the conditions, frequently keeping moves alive when they threatened to break down, with centre, Darrell McLaren sucking in defenders to create space outside.  The final try came from a penalty; Richards saw Thacker unmarked out on the wing and chipped the ball into his hands; Tinkler’s second conversion of the afternoon completed the scoring.
This was an excellent all-round performance from Aycliffe who will look to maintain their challenge at the top of the table for the rest of the season. Aycliffe have no game on 1st February, returning to action on the 8th when they host Houghton with the kick-off at 2.15pm.  Newton Aycliffe are sponsored by Boola Clothing Aycliffe and Hayward Home Appliances, trading as Serviceforce Visit the website at www.pitchero.com/clubs/newtonaycliffe.