Two well matched teams, strong in all departments, physical in defence, some lovely rugby going forward, all the ingredients were there for a classic .... and so it was.

Both teams went at each other early on with some ferocious tackling but it was Hindley who broke the deadlock when they moved the ball out wide for one of their big forwards to go in at the corner (0-4). The home side then started to get into their rythm with halves Tom Flanagan and Dan McLean starting to run the show. It wasn't long before prop lewis smith found a huge hole to go through and score under the sticks, Ben Jones converted (6-4). The game continued at a great pace with second rows Rick Haythornthwaite and Curtis Lacey going well together with hooker Tom Carter for the Panthers. With defence on top there were no further scores before the break and the Panthers held a slender lead as the teams turned around.

The visitors threw everything at Chorley in the second half but again the wall of defence held firm with skipper Pete Schwandt and fellow centre Alex Bridge with his wing James Bowden leading the way with some superb tackling.

But in the end the pressure told and the Wigan outfit got over for two tries to take a 6-16 lead. With plenty of time on the clock the Panthers showed great patience and again they came back into the game when prop Dean Mattinson steamed through the tackles and crashed over for a fine try, Jones converted (12-16). Hindley were now under real pressure and Chorley were definitely on the front foot. Bradley Mayson- Cooper was going well for Chorley together with Tom Burns off the bench. The pressure grew on the visitors and the Panthers got their reward when loose forward Dan Helme backed up to take a pass 40 metres out from the line. Helme showed pace worthy of an Olympic sprinter as he stepped and jinked his way through defenders to score in the closing minutes (16-16). Unfortunately the conversion just drifted wide of the posts and the match finished on level terms.

It is difficult to pick a Man of the Match from such an outstanding team performance but you could probably take your pick from Smith, Mattinson or Helme. Special mention also for James Hainsworth who made his debut and had a fine game tonight.