Wary Black Reds have final in their sights
Last updated 11:32, Friday, 04 April 2008
ASPATRIA have the scent of another Cumbria Cup final in their nostrils but will be wary of a whiff of banana appearing at Underley Park tomorrow afternoon.
The Black Reds take-on Kirkby Lonsdale in the semi-final with the winners of Kendal versus Penrith also going through to the final on April 26.
There was a time when Aspatria got through to the Cup final year-in, year-out – but that hasn’t happened on a regular basis for some time now.
It would be a nice time for the Bower Park club to win it, however, as Fred Story is sponsoring the competition for the last time. Story was a stalwart at Bower Park for years and still has a sponsorship involvement with them.
Aspatria will be without winger Kenneth Bowes who is away on a fire service course so there has to be an enforced change in the backs.
The good news is that centre Lee Askew is available again after an ear problem last week while Mark Bowe, who was working last Saturday, is available and returns to the pack.
Joint coach Adrian Bateson is still an absentee, however, as lambing time on the farm means other commitments come first.
Kendal, the holders, struggled to beat Workington 36-29 off the last play of the game in the quarter-final two weeks ago.
They fielded five fringe players but will be close to their championship-winning line-up for the semi-final at Mint Bridge against Penrith.
In the North Lancs Cumbria League Wigton can move into third place if they beat Upper Eden away in a re-arranged game.
They will edge ahead of Kirkby Lonsdale on points scoring differential, with Workington a point worse off in fifth.
Wigton still have to go to De La Salle and St. Benedict’s – the bottom two sides – and will probably be favourites to hang onto third place.
That’s where they finished last year and was the target set by coach Malcolm Brown after it became clear that Blackburn and Rossendale were going to be the two teams to get away from the rest at the top.
Kirkby Lonsdale have a contrast in fixtures – at second-placed Rossendale and at home to second from bottom De La Salle. Workington still have to host struggling Didsbury Toc H, who are on the edge of the relegation battle, and travel to Upper Eden in the final game.
There are only two scheduled games in the Cumbria League – Millom v Moresby and Aspatria Eagles v Workington Steelers.
