PERCY PARK 6 - 20 DARLINGTON

PERCY PARK 6 – 20 DARLINGTON

To say Percy Park didn’t fire on all cylinders would be somewhat of an understatement, and it has to be said the performance was more like an eastern block trabant firing on one cylinder, and to continue the motoring analogy Park rarely got out of first gear. 

Darlington, who had lost their previous four matches, started brightest and had much of the early play before being penalised for back chat relieving the pressure in the home 22. Some further indiscipline led to the first score of the game when the trusty boot of Marcus Rutter kicked 3 points after Darlo were penalised for holding on to the ball in the tackle.

Park came into the game more after the first 15 minutes, and when one of the Darlington centres was sin binned for a late shoulder charge on Thomas Turnbull, the home side should have capitalised but didn’t.

Another penalty for Park, nearer the half way mark than the 10 metre line saw Rutter’s goal attempt fall short, and although Park stepped up a gear (momentarily in second) they couldn’t breach the visitors defence.

Park’s usual scrum half was injured and Ollie Gilmore stepped in, but several weeks playing on the wing left it’s mark and the Park half back combination just did not fire, leading to a good deal of possession being squandered. The cause wasn’t helped when skipper Brett Sylph took the law into his own hands when the Liverpool exchange referee failed to stop Darlington slowing Park’s ball, and repeatedly coming into the side of rucks. Sylph was sin binned on 40 minutes, although Park held out for the remaining two minutes of the half and went into the break with a slender 3 – 0 lead.

Four minutes into the second half, Nick Baldwin levelled the scores with a penalty, then Rutter and Baldwin exchanged further penalties to take the score to 6 – 6 with ten minutes of a dour game remaining.

It has to be said, that Darlo always looked the more likely to score and Park had on two occasions give interceptions which the visitors couldn’t make count, despite coming close. By this time the coaches had to make a change at half back, and Thomas Turnbull was moved to scrum half and Phil Morse switched from centre to fly half. This did seem to help a little, although Thomas Turnbull was still looking somewhat under the weather after the late hit he sustained in the first half.

Of the two sides, it was Darlington who played to the referees laxity regarding the off side laws and they scored on 71 minutes with a well worked try by David Richardson which was converted by Baldwin.

Park knew they had to throw everything at Darlo, and as is often the case left themselves wide open when a Marcus Rutter pass was intercepted by Matthew Brown who ran the length of the pitch to score, five minutes into injury time. With the conversion by Baldwin Darlington had won 6 – 20 and Park had lost at home for only the second time this season.

The coaches will have to have a long hard look at the video to see how they can iron out the problems which seem to surface when the structure of the game is allowed to break down, whereas some of the players will have to have a long hard look at themselves. On the positive side, well, it didn’t rain!

Next week, Park travel to Hollow Drift to take on league strugglers Durham City.