Before the game started both sides & spectators marked the tragic recent passing of Christleton player Josateki Matasere whilst back home in Fiji on leave from the Army with a minutes silence before producing a fabulous encounter with both sides mixing strong forward play & scintillating back moves, in a game played in the finest traditions of club rugby.

Josateki (Teki) has played for Christleton for 2 years since being posted to the Chester Barracks. Representing his Regiment & The Army at Rugby Union, Rugby League and was a key members of the Army 7’s squad.

A fantastic naturally gifted rugby player who played the game with a huge smile on his face, a friend to many and will be a huge loss not only to his family & friends but also Christleton RUFC, The Army and his many comrades. A fitting minutes silence was observed before the fixture kicked off on Saturday

An early attacking move saw Miles Sautu slice through the away defence to score after barely 5 minutes had been played and James adding the extras 7 v 0. Crosby then started to get into their stride and scored a well worked try after a slick passing movement to level things up after 20 minutes. On 25 minutes Miles Sautu was injured requiring a reshuffle & Will Thompson replacing him and both sides meeting attack with staunch defence before Crosby mounted a counter attack from their own half and a deft offload gave them a run in under the posts and a narrow 7 v 14 lead at half time.

Buoyed by the score just before the half time whistle Crosby extended their advantage with another well taken try early into the second half and opening up a healthy lead of 7 v 21. Not to be deterred the Swans came right back and following some great work by the pack tying in the Crosby forwards quick ball gave James half a yard of space which he exploited brilliantly to score a wonderful individual try, having come from a background of playing 7's rugby he then opted to take a drop kick instead of using a tee, sadly the post got in the way and the conversion was missed, something that would prove to be crucial later on 12 v 21. The home side kept attacking hard & defending for all they were worth and were rewarded in the final 10 minutes when Lako crashed over the line under the posts & with James opting to use a kicking tee to add the extras 19 v 21.

There were a number of stand out performances Junior was ferocious in tackling & never stopped working, his kick chase was fantastic, Tristan had a great game at 9 and kept the ball flowing really well, his performance earned him the Man of the Match. Despite giving their all the Crosby defence held firm until the final whistle blew, a great game with 2 good club sides giving their all & a fitting tribute to Josateki, the epitome of rugby values & spirit.

As a lasting tribute to Josateki we will be creating the "Josateki" shield to be awarded to the man of the match at the annual Cockers cup fixture in addition to having one of his signature shirts frames and proudly hung in the club.

Match Reporter - Tim Clough