ALTHOUGH they fielded an unfamiliar back line, Leigh RU first XV had enough firepower to demolish Northwich 39-5.

Leigh struck quickly when Wilcock fielded a loose kick to beat the cover to score in the corner. Northwich tried to respond but No8 Sutton split the midfield, well supported by Eccles to put Wright over, Greenwood completing a touchline conversion for an early 12-0 lead.

The pack then took a scrum against the head and the ball was quickly transferred across the backs for Lester to complete the touchdown.

The Northwich pack began to claw their way back into the game as Leigh conceded a string of penalties, and they claimed a try when a defensive kick was charged down and scrambled over the line for a half time score of 17-5.

A blindside break by scrum-half Bentham was well supported by Sutton allowing Wright to touchdown and settle Leigh's nerves, then a break by Eccles fed speedy Wilcock to again outpace the cover to score behind the posts, Greenwood converted.

Leigh continued to move the ball wide and Greenwood completed a further touchdown. Sutton completed the scoring when he drove strongly from the back of a scrum to claim the final try.

Leigh U15s 12 Waterloo 14

In this first match of the Sedgley 10s competition Leigh started slowly, Waterloo breaking clear and scoring a converted try. Parrot replied and Knapman converted. An interception try, converted, gave Waterloo the lead but Cunningham scorched through but the conversion failed.

Leigh U15s 15 Winnington Park 5

Leigh played with more confidence and tries from Adams (2) and Knapman gave Leigh the deserved victory.

Leigh U15s 24 Sedgley Park 0

Superb teamwork destroyed Sedgley with four great tries from Knapman (2), Mikalauskas and Adams with two Rushworth conversions.

Leigh U15s 26 Egremont 5

In the semi-final Leigh's handling became more clinical and backing up in numbers, tore through Egremonts defence with tries from Knapman (2), Cunningham and Trumble with Rushworth converting three.

Leigh U15s 14 Waterloo 0

In the final Leigh gained revenge for the first match defeat with a superb final performance. Cunningham finished off a move which started on the left side of the 22 metre line passing through everyone's hands down the right wing and under the posts. Leigh kept up the pressure and an outrageous dummy from Andrews saw him score under the posts. Rushworth converted both.

Liverpool U14s 25 Leigh 0

Leigh, playing under floodlights for the first time, came unstuck in this Lancashire Plate semi-final against a big, strong Liverpool side.

In their first 10-a-side festival, Leigh U13's learned a lot but got little reward for their endeavours across a series of competitive group matches. Leigh got off to an excellent start, beating Sedgeley Park 15-12. Jonathan Grimshaw scored two tries, split by a try from Steven Meadows. A defeat of 22-5 in their second match against Altrincham Kersal, proved decisive. Leigh competed in attack but Altrincham exploited missed tackling in defence. Christopher Govin scored Leigh's try.

The eventual tournament winners, Winnington Park, proved too strong for Leigh, winning this match 35-5. Leigh's consolation try was scored by Jonathan Grimshaw. The final match against Widnes was expected to be close, with Leigh fielding their strongest selection. Leigh's early forward play was excellent, allowing Adam Bridge to score a well deserved try. Close to half time, Widnes responded with a converted try, taking a 7-5 lead. In the second half, Leigh couldn't win enough ball to respond to a brighter Widnes attack. Widnes scored two converted tries, producing a final score of 21-5.

Overall try scorers for Leigh: Jonathan Grimshaw (3), Steven Meadows (1), Christopher Govin (1) & Adam Bridge (1).

Leigh U10s 40 Marple 5

Leigh's tries came from Thomas Lloyd (2), Kyle Jones (2), Richard Thorpe, Patrick Paine, James Wilkinson and Matthew Unsworth. Top Tackler was Thomas Lloyd and Man of the Match was shared between Kyle Jones and Michael Lloyd.

Leigh U9s 50 Marple 15

Leigh's tries came from Matty Wilkinson (5), Deacon Monks (3), Matthew Quinn and Craig Town. Manof the Match was Nathan Modlinsky and Best Defence was by Sam Oultram.