Keighley Cougars 18 Widnes Vikings 48: Cougars denied bug day out by Vikings

Widnes Vikings booked their trip to Blackpool to take on Batley Bulldogs in the Northern Rail Cup final after knocking out Keighley Cougars in a comfortable victory.

Player-coach Barry Eaton added his name to the Cougars teamsheet after Jonny Presley was injured last week with a medial ligament problem.

There were 20 minutes of stalemate before any points were put on the board, with each team taking their time to size up the other.

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Both teams struggled to get out of their own halves which culminated in a number of confrontations.

But, eventually, Vikings opened the scoring first when Anthony Thackeray crossed in the 21st and 34th minute.

Dave Allen then scored with a minute to go until the half-time break.

Shane Grady then stepped up to complete the scoring spree to make it 18-0 at half-time.

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The game and hopes of a final day out at Blackpool were quickly over for Keighley when the Vikings came out in the second half and ran in another four tries.

Thackeray was first over to bag his hat-trick, Paddy Flynn, Shaun Ainscough and Mark Smith scoring the others.

As in the first-half, Grady was on hand to step up and convert all the tries.

The Cougars had a final flurry in the last five minutes of the game when Jamaine Wray, Eaton and Will Cartledge all scored with Danny Jones tagging on all the goals but it was too little too late.

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Keighley Cougars: Moss, Duffy, Sheldrake, Williams, Hutchinson, Feather, Jones, Law, Wray, Shickell, Baines, Pursglove, Cartledge. Substitutes: Nicholson, Benjafield, Rawlins, Eaton.

Widnes Vikings: Flynn, Ainscough, Kohe-Love, Gardner, Gaskell, Thackeray, Smith, Gannon, Netherton, Kavanagh, Grady, Allen, Doran. Substitutes: Varkulis, Gerrard, Houghton, Kelly.

Referee: Ronnie Laughton (RFL).