Rishton edge poor final.

Rishton 1 Waterfoot 0

THIS was hardly a classic and both coaches knew it.

In fact Rishton's Harry Nixon and Waterfoot's Gerry McEvoy provided most of the first half entertainment as they competed for touchline supremacy.

And they even suggested that I had picked the wrong game as Blackburn Eagles and Langho shared a goal feast on the adjacent pitch!

Thankfully the action was more interesting after the break and in the end it was one goal that settled it.

And it was the game's most memorable piece of individual skill from Sean Collard that won the day for Rishton.

The hard working striker received the ball from Andrew Mason with his back to goal and, in a flash, his quick turn left his marker for dead and his pace took him to the edge of the area.

Collard may have been going for goal but his low hard drive across the six yard box was turned in by Damien Landsberger.

Collard was the game's most outstanding player. His pace and skill continued to threaten the Waterfoot back four. And in one lung-bursting run he covered half the pitch before his fine shot was superbly tip over by Billy Carrington.

It was a more conventional save from the Waterfoot shot stopper who had earlier denied Collard when the ball struck him on the chest, spun up and bounced along the crossbar three times!

In Rishton's best move of the first half, Collard fired just over after some good work by Adam Cocker.

Waterfoot were surprisingly subdued and their only real chance before the break came from a good move when Alex Hoyle flicked on a header but Mark Fell's drive from just inside the area was blocked. Hoyle appeared to be Waterfoot's main threat but he flitted in and out of the game.

He showed what he could do when he controlled one high ball, beat a defender and sent in an inviting cross. Then he was involved in a good move with Chris Livesey which broke down on the edge of the box.

Hoyle then set up Jimmy Foster in the box but his control let him down.

However, in a last throw of the dice, McEvoy took off Hoyle and put on the busy Adie Robb who injected a bit of pace up front for Waterfoot.

Andy Cross moved wide to the left and he lived up to his name with a string of teasing crosses. And in the space of a minute one cross set up Foster who mis-hit his shot and, as Cross sent in another ball, Rishton's defenders managed to scramble the ball clear as Foster closed in.

With Waterfoot pushing forward, they were prone to the counter attack and Collard forced another good save out of Carrington before Landsberger fired just wide.

And with time ticking away, Waterfoot realised it wasn't going to be their day when Robb missed the best chance of the game when he fired over with just the keeper to beat.

WATERFOOT: Billy Carrington, Andy Bailey, Sean Munro, Graeme King, Jimmy Foster, Andy Cross, Mark Fell, Chris Livesey, Alex Hoyle, Lee Metcalfe and Richard Gisbon. Subs: David Snape, Adie Robb and Phil Dwyer

RISHTON: Philip Dewell, Paul Stephenson, Mark Ackers, David Hitchens, Phil Rigby, Jack Hayes, Adam Coker, Andrew Mason, Andrew Beardsworth, Damien Landsberger and Sean Collard. Subs: Rob Wallace and Richard Forrest