On an emotional afternoon at Warwick Road, Carlisle scored six tries to give themselves a massive boost in the battle to avoid the second relegation spot. The bonus point win and results elsewhere lifts them to eighth spot, and means their destiny is in their own hands going into the final game in two weeks time.

Before the game a perfectly observed minutes silence was held in tribute to Kelly Graham, whose unexpected and sudden passing had rocked the club earlier in the week. No doubt her spirit inspired our players to produce a performance of steel and determination.

It was West who started brighter with Carlisle spilling the kick off. Resolute defence kept the visitors at bay though and Carlisle were eventually able to clear their lines. Back came West and they had a second period of pressure in the Carlisle 22, a no arms tackle seeing Freddie Rawlings sent to the bin on 13 minutes. West continued to press and were unfortunate not to score in the corner, spilling the ball under pressure as they were going over. That phase of play saw the unfortunate Rory Parish have to retire following a knee injury and replaced by Tyler Callaghan.

From the goal line dropout the visitors looked to press further, but a dropped pass on the 22 saw centre Euan Forlow put boot to ball on the floor and hack the ball into the West half. He won the chase and a second grubber bounced kindly into his hands and he was over for the first score under the posts. Vince Lung converted for a 7-0 lead. It got better for the hosts. Alfie Baty took the restart and surged up the right flank and then infield barging through and avoiding tackles to make it to the West 22. A couple of forward surges took them close to the visitors line and with West scrambling, Matt Tomkins crashed over from close range for Carlisle’s second try, this time unconverted, and a 12-0 lead after 17 minutes.

This time the restart was dropped! The resulting scrum gave West the opportunity to attack and an offside penalty a lineout in the Carlisle 22. The visitors catch and drive inched forward and flanker Jay Corbett broke off and crashed over for a try converted by Matt Siddle on 20 minutes. West were now on top and continued to exert pressure from the restart, helped by Carlisle conceding needless penalties. On 30 minutes West got a second try after a series of drives near the Carlisle line, and the defence eventually ran out of numbers allowing centre Will Hilditch to go over near the sticks. Siddle converted and West were ahead 12-14.
The lead however did not last long as the visitors conceded a penalty from the restart which Vince Lung converted for a 15-14 lead.

The home side now began to dominate. Some great driving play with Josh Holmes, James Brockett and Lloyd Clark to the fore required some stout West defence. Then on 36 minutes a tapped free kick saw Vince Lung feed skipper Joh Holmes on the West 22 and his surging run barged through and carried West players with him. It looked as though he would be brought down, but strength and determination saw him stay on his feet and crash over near the posts. The successful conversion gave them a 22-14 lead which they were able to see out to the break.

The visitors started the second half better, with Carlisle again conceding territory through penalties. It allowed the visitors to put pressure on the home line from which hooker Andrew Rollins eventually went over. However, West delight was dissipated when the referee showed a red card to a West forward for a punch thrown after the try was scored! The successful conversion made it a one point game but Carlisle now had a man advantage for the rest of the game.

And how they took advantage. A penalty restart gave them a lineout and driving play earned a second penalty which to brought them close to the West line. A well executed catch and drive from the line out followed and it was James Brocket who went over for the bonus point score. Conversion missed but Carlisle had a six point advantage.

And it quickly got better. West restart went straight to touch, and from the scrum on the halfway line Carlisle worked the ball left , forwards and backs combining well and with great fluency. Forlow looked to score but was just short, however the ball was quickly recycled left and Lloyd Clark went over for a fifth Carlisle try. Again unconverted, but there was now a 11 point gap at 32-21 as the game went into the last quarter.

The next ten minutes saw West pressing to get back into the game, pushing hard but coming up against a determined and resolute defence. On one occasion the visitors got over the Carlisle line but were held up. Carlisle failed to clear their lines properly and West were back in scoring territory with a 5m scrum, however a tremendous effort from the home pack saw West driven back and concede a penalty. This time they did clear and a couple of further penalty concessions saw the home side back in the visitors half.

It was Carlisle’s game to see out. West tried to open up but they just gave the ball back to Carlisle. Winger Jonathan Park made a sharp dash down the left and when brought to ground was able to pop the ball up to the supporting Tyler Callaghan to go over for a final score at the death and secure the win.

A much needed win for Carlisle and with a bonus point it means their fate is firmly in their own hands as they go to Durham City in two weeks time. With results elsewhere changing the order of sides at the bottom of the table, all three sides below them would need to win their final game. That of course is possible so there is still work to be done for Carlisle, although this result gives them a huge lift for the challenge ahead.

Report by Phil Healy