08/09/2026
📰 First team match report
Mirfield Spartans’ play-off hopes were dealt a blow with defeat in the opening round at home to Blackbrook.
The St Helens side were dominant for most of the game and fully deserving of their win, making a fast start and giving our lads far too much to do in windy conditions at Frank Middleton Park.
Opting to play up the slope and against the wind in the first half, our job was to ride out the challenge and set our stall out.
But the visitors were having none of it and crossed for two early tries, converting both, to make it 0-12 with barely ten minutes on the clock.
Two tries then became three as Blackbrook punished our errors out of yardage and poor discipline, unlocking our defence again with some flowing attacking play.
We got back in the contest later in the half when quick thinking from Logan Sykes at ho**er found James Pickering inside the touchline on the blind side.
Lewis Martin’s conversion attempt from the touchline just dropped wide, making it 4-18.
We then closed the gap further when Jordan Paga twisted and dived over the line on a last tackle play.
Again the kick was missed, but we were back in the contest at 8-18 as half-time approached.
But crucially, Blackbrook crossed the line twice more before the break, again punishing our errors and exploiting a lack of concentration, and again adding both goals, making it 8-30 at half-time.
With a 22-point deficit to chase we knew we needed to score first after the restart, and quickly, but after seeing two tries chalked off for marginal forward passes, it was the visitors who added to their lead.
Blackbrook added four more tries after the break, including a brilliant long-range effort on a last-tackle play, plus kicking two goals, to notch up 50 points.
But as you’d expect, our lads wouldn’t throw in the towel - and we added two more tries of our own to earn a little consolation on a tough afternoon.
First, Adam Harrison powered over from short range for Martin to convert, before Sykes capped a top performance by dummying round the full back to dot down under the posts.
The scores brought some cheer to the Mirfield sideline but, while Spartans can point to key absences in our line-up, and some battered bodies following a gruelling schedule in August, all the plaudits belong to Blackbrook, who were the best side on the day.
We’d like to thank Blackbrook for making the trip across, our players and coaching staff for their efforts, and the sponsors and volunteers who make it all possible.
We return to play-ff action this Saturday with the visit of Newsome Panthers, before making the trip to face Dalton next weekend.
