Cleck start the season with a win.

With newly promoted Middlesbrough fielding a well drilled side it wasn’t long before they had points on the board from a early raid into the Cleckheaton 22 when only a missed pass stopped them scoring, but from a lineout mins later Chris Webb went in for a try, Moore converting 7-0 on 7 mins.

Cleckheaton had few chances to break out of defence for the next 20 mins, but to their credit they defended well and the game started to go their way in the 23rd min with a long range kick at goal from Owen Edwards which went wide, but a minute later he kicked a sweet ball over to put Cleckheaton on the board, 7-3.

Cleckheaton upped the pace and with the backs coming more into the game they had a blistering run from Ryan Duckett on 30 mins Cleckheaton were soon into Middlesbrough’s 22 only for the ball to go to ground.

Middlesbrough pushed out of defence, but Cleckheatons backs were soon back on the move and a kick on from deep led to new boy Simon Bradshaw darting in for a try in the corner, Edwards converted on 34 mins to put them in front, 7-10.

From the kick off Joe South collected the ball from his new position in the pack, and with 3 Middlesbrough men on his back made 15 mtrs up field, the pace was kept going up field, and with the backs working the ball across field Bradshaw went in for a try in the corner. 7-15.

Cleckheaton looked to keep Middlesbrough out from the kick off, but they moved up to 5 mtrs from some slack defence and from a scrum Peter Wright went in blind in the corner. Half Time, 12-15.

With Cleckheaton making changes in the pack at half time Middlesbrough started to push them around in the scrum, but no team seemed to get the breakthrough until the 62nd when Middlesbrough won a penalty in front of the posts which Moore kicked to make the score 15 all.

With Middlesbrough getting new life from this they were soon back in the Cleckheaton 22, but they defended to a man and even the sin-binning of No 8 Burrows didn’t dent the defence and with this resolve Cleckheaton pushed out of defence into attack and in the 79th min Edwards kicked a sweet penalty from out wide to make the score 15-18.

Middlesbrough made a late attack on the Cleckheaton line, but the nerves of both team and supporters held for this win.