Widnes Vikings 60 Blackpool Panthers 12

Widnes had made a new signing in the past few days in the name of John Duffy and he helped himself to a brace of tries as Widnes completed the expected defeat of a Panthers side that showed grit and determination throughout the 80 minutes at the Stobart Stadium, Halton.

The Vikings have been desperate for quality in the halves for some time and it seems that their missing link may well have been found and Duffy was the perfect partner for stand off Tim Hartley, as the former super league man slotted in well and was the hub of the Vikings attack alongside, man of the match, Bob Beswick. Meanwhile Beswick is quickly re-capturing the kind of form that made him National League’s most wanted man, the Panthers simply couldn’t contain him. It was true to say however that most of the Vikings tries came from several minor errors which, against a full-time and more experienced side, went fully punished on each occasion.

The Vikings got off to a good start as Paterson sliced through the Panther’s defence after only four minutes play. Hartley added the extras and five minutes later, Shane Grady showed his strength and powerful running as he burst onto Beswick’s pass to touch down.

Jonny Leather, making a welcome return from injury, a former Viking’s Academy prospect, hit back straight away with a four pointer as he finished off a sweeping Panthers move – the best of the day, for the visitors, Lee Marsh slotted over the conversion to reduce the deficit to six points. Unfortunately this was about as good as it got for Panthers as Widnes quickly redressed the balance with two tries in three minutes. First Danny Hill crashed over from Beswick’s pass and Gavin Dodd crossed in the corner, both as a result of silly mistakes. At this point Duffy made his debut and it wasn’t long before the former Leigh scrum half was on the score sheet as he eased himself over for a simple try from the base of the scrum. Duffy then collected his second of the afternoon on 47 minutes when he backed up Bob Beswick. The floodgates started to creak open two minutes later as Smith flew in after some good work from Dodd. Widnes’ slick hands saw Yates go over before Leather got one back for the Panthers with an electric burst down the flank. Vikings skipper Smith put Paterson over and Dodd rounded off the scoring for the Vikings.

Resilient Blackpool, who didn’t show any lack of effort,  commitment and fighting spirit throughout the contest, managed to keep the Vikings scoreless for the remainder of the game, but on the day it was simply class that told.

 Attendance 3169