Fylde RFC boss makes the case for their defence after Darlington draw

Hard work on defence during the week paid off for Fylde RFC as they restricted Darlington Mowden Park to their lowest points total of the season on Saturday.

- by Andy Moore

It wasn’t enough for a Fylde victory but the 17-17 scoreline - their second home draw of the season — was further proof for boss Chris Briers that they can compete with the National Two North’s top sides.

It was a surprisingly low-scoring affair between free-scoring clubs: second-placed DMP had averaged 43 points in their first nine games, topping 50 in two of the previous three.

Fylde were fresh from winning a 43-39 try-fest at Wharfedale and joint-head coach Briers said that had prompted the midweek defensive work.

He told The Gazette: “We did work hard on defence after Wharfedale because we knew that, if that side of our game didn’t hold up strongly against a top team, we could be on the wrong side of it. So we worked on that and that work showed in the game.”