LATCHFORD Albion fell to their heaviest defeat of recent times when they took on an impressive Ashton Bears side at Victoria Park.
The 0-50 scoreline was harsh on Albion, who were competitive throughout, but were under constant pressure on a hot day and tired at the end conceding three tries in the last ten minutes.
The first half hour was an equal contest, an early Ashton try being all that separated the sides, but two further converted tries on 30 and 36 minutes put the visitors in control at the break when the scoreli ne was 0-18.
An early Ashton try in the opening minutes of the second half quashed any hopes of a potential comeback and, as the hosts tired, Ashton ran away with the game.
Despite the result coach Martyn Ellis was still optimistic.
He said: “The scoreline was a bit tough given the effort we put in, but that happens quite a lot in rugby. The important thing is we do not let this change our season. We are holding our own in this competitive league and need to make sure we keep it that way. We came across a side who have only lost a couple of games in the last three years. We are still a young squad who need to gain the level of experience required to compete at the higher levels that we saw today.
“The positive was we had three of our Under 18’s playing and two debutants who long term will hopefully benefit from today. “
Next Saturday Latchford are on the road when they travel to Hindley, kick off 2.30pm.