Trafford travelled to Wood Lane for Marple's first fixture of 2024 after frozen pitches put paid to last week's trip to Caldy.

The game was very evenly matched, with both sides having spells of dominance and scoring some excellent tries. Marple raced into a lead with quick fire tries from Eric and Isaac B, both showing superb pace round the side of the Trafford defence to score in the same spot wide on the Marple left.
Trafford responded with three of their own to get into a 17-10 lead, before Bodhi, Tyler and Felix ran in tries to put Marple into a 29-17 lead with a couple more straightforward conversions from Isaac B.
After the break Trafford showed huge determination to get a win, with three tries in quick succession making the lead look unassailable at 38-29 with only five minutes remaining.
Marple regathered, returning to some structured rucking platforms with a number of excellent phases and Eric scored in the corner; Isaac B slotting over a great kick to bring Marple within two points and ensuring the scoreboard reflected the competitiveness of the game.
Final score 36-38.