Slaughter in the sun as Cents clock up a ton

Last updated 11:39, Wednesday, 28 May 2008

CENTURIONS were several levels above their North East visitors from Sunderland at Gillford Park on Saturday when they delivered a 22-try master-class to their brave but unskilled and under-strength visitors.

Carlisle Centurions 126 Sunderland Nissan 4

Carlisle opened the scoring from almost the first play of the game when Adam Pate took advantage of non-existing marking at a play-the-ball to waltz in under the sticks. In fact such was the visitors’ defensive naivety that Cents scored 12 tries in the first half to close the stanza at an embarrassing 70-0 ahead.

Carlisle tired a little in the second half when they were reduced to scoring only ten more tries before the referee blew the whistle on this most uneven of matches with Carlisle posting their all-time record score of 126-4.

The damage was fairly equally shared with Steve Moss and Tom Armstrong each crossing four times. Other try scorers were Mike Stephens (3), Steve Potter (3), George Graham (2) and Martin Stalker, Craig Atkinson; Tony Palmer and Chris Harris scored one apiece. Goals (all conversions) were kicked by George Graham (14) and Chris Harris (5)

Carlisle scrum-half George Graham received the visitors’ plaudits as their choice as Man of the Match.

The loudest applause from the generous Carlisle crowd was reserved for the Sunderland scrum-half who crossed for their second half try to at least save a “nilling” and temporarily halt the to flow of Carlisle points.

Carlisle: Steve Moss, Mike Stephens, Tom Armstrong, Adam Pate, Craig Atkinson, Craig Stalker, George Graham, Andy Holcroft, Joe Crowther, Steve Jackson, Stuart Bulman, Martin Stalker, Mike Dodd, Craig Brierley, Chris Harris, Craig Rumney, Tony Palmer, Martin Kalinowski, Steve Potter