PLAYING on the Astley Village mud flats, Chorley were desperate to put the disappointment of last week's performance behind them.

The game opened with a period when both sides tried to run with the ball, but the boggy conditions prevented any clean breaks.

Despite Burnage having the better of this opening period Chorley cleared their lines well with Dave Layder and Sam Keane finding touch on most occasions with good long clearance kicks. The state of the pitch made for a slow game with many scrums. Chorley managed to secure their own ball with ease and put pressure on the Burnage pack on their put in. The lineout was a little more difficult for the Chorley forwards who found it difficult to win their own ball cleanly which dramatically reduced the opportunity to attack.

Burnage, though, used quick clean ball from their lineout to attack the Chorley defensive line which held firm for most of the first half. Towards the end of the half Burnage managed to break through in the centre of the park for a try. At 5-0 down at half time Chorley had the comfort of playing down the hill in the second half, and knew they had the chance to take the match

Despite a hard fought battle the opportunities didn't arrive for Chorley and one penalty that may have been in range was kicked to the corner in the hope of a try to take the game.

The scoring was completed with a late Burnage penalty.

Despite the loss this was a dramatic improvement on the match at Heaton Moor, and a standard that must be maintained if Chorley are to avoid the drop at the end of the season.

Final score: Chorley 0

Burnage 8