Southern Nomads took second place in rugby's Manx Shield on Saturday afternoon with a 32-26 win against Western Vikings at a windy Ballakilley Park.
The last meeting between these two was nip and tuck and this clash didn’t disappoint either
With the strong wind behind them, Vikings raced into an early lead. Ed Knight crashed in from close range after just over a minute and Harry Corrin doubled the advantage six minutes later. Harry Goodwin converted both to make it 14-0.
Tom Collister added a third on 22 minutes to stretch the lead to 19-0 before Nomads came to the party. As half-time approached, Tony Quinn’s angled run took him across the line to get Nomads on the board and the teams turned round with Vikings 19-5 in front.
George Callister reduced the deficit with a solo run down the right touchline for the first of his two tries. He was closely followed in by Matt Gorry and suddenly Nomads were in striking distance at 19-15.
Callister then made another solo break for his second which gave Nomads a 20-19 lead and a try bonus point.
There was more to come though. Sean Christian and Harry Corrin (who had swapped sides at half-time) both struck from inside their own half, with Corrin claiming the honour of scoring for both teams.
Christian converted his own try and, with a 32-19 lead, the game looked safe.
With the final play, Gus Stander had taken Vikings close and earned a penalty. Harry Goodwin tapped quickly and the on-loan Tom Davies smashed his way over the line to give Vikings a try bonus point. Goodwin then converted to secure a losing bonus point too.
Results
Saturday, March 23:
Regional Two North West
Winnington Park 43-23 Douglas
Manx Shield
Western Vikings 26-32 PDMS Southern Nomads