LEIGH EAST 10

WEST BOWLING 40

In their final home game of the season, Leigh East found West Bowling too hot to handle, conceding eight tries on-route to a 10-40 defeat.

Even the welcome return of Phil Bickerstaff couldn't lift a largely ugly game. The visitors had two players sin-binned and another sent off. East too saw Zac Nicholls yellow carded twice before the late dismissal of Aaron Noon.

An early scuffle brought the referee into play, resulting in Nicholls and West Bowling pair Ryan Patchett and Liam Darville getting put in the sin-bin.

The visitors scored first after 13 minutes through Isaac Khan with Liam Coe adding the goal. Leigh East fought back strongly and scored from close range through Jordan Hutchison with Adam Holland goaling. Holland was in good form for East, continually teasing and testing the West Bowling defence, however, two tries in nine minutes tipped the game in their favour. 

First Danny Gregory got through, then Ben Heald followed before half-time with Coe booting the visitors to a 16-6 lead.

Gregory scored a crucial second try at the start of the second half to put Bowling in control at 22-6 with Coe adding his third goal. Next, another strong finish from Khan edged the visitors further clear, although their victory charge was held up when Coe was dismissed for a kick to the head area of a grounded man.

Rugby was restored moments later when Khan got his hat-trick. There was no respite for Leigh East when Darville and Heald added further tries with Heald converting one. East grabbed a consolation score seven minutes from the end when powerful winger Bernard Aboagye finished a good scrum play but they were second best well before Noon's late dismissal.