HOPPERS have only themselves to blame for this defeat after conceding no fewer than seven penalties to the opposition.

They scored three tries to their opponents two but lack of discipline proved their downfall.

Hoppers were 16-3 behind after 20 minutes with their only points coming from a penalty by the Tongan Sengili Tuihlamaka. They staged a remarkable comeback to get themselves into the match before half-time thanks to tries by Neil Ashton and Tuihlamaka also kicked two further penalties and a conversion.

The final 20 minutes saw the lead change three times but it was New Brighton who took the points with a try and four penalties.

Hoppers could only respond with a try by Chris O'Toole which Tuihlamaka converted.

But in the end Hoppers paid for not making the most of several scoring chances which went begging, particularly in the first half.

Hoppers will need to be more disciplined when they visit Macclesfield in the second round of the PowerGen Cup on Saturday.

New Brighton 33 Hoppers 31