IN THE first ever game between the two sides, it was Wirral who came away with a bonus point win, 32-6 over Fleetwood following some astute kicking to touch in the second half.

The visitors who had a much heavier pack used this to good effect in the first few minutes and were rewarded with an early 0-3 lead through Riches. At this stage it was evident that the Wirral backs were key to this game but it was veteran forward Tim Hodson who scored the first try out on the wing.

A further Riches penalty enabled Fleetwood to regain the lead but a penalty from captain Craig Harvey saw Wirral go into half time with an 8-6 lead.

Playing with the slight breeze in the second half, Wirral applied the pressure and in the first few minutes they were awarded with a penalty by Craig quickly followed by a well taken converted try by Chris Speed.

Play then became somewhat fragmented with Wirral looking to use their backs whilst Fleetwood looked to utilize their forwards and there was a number of errors by both sides.

Territorially Wirral had the advantage and from a scrum close to the line, Craig Harvey dummied his way over from 10m to score under the posts, duly converted.

Wirral were then chasing the try bonus point and it was not until the 73rd minute that this was secured with a well executed move by the backs resulting in Matt Loon breaking clear to score under the posts.

The 5 point win which leaves Wirral in sixth place in North 1 West.