Batley Bulldogs 20 Leigh Centurions 18

LEIGH were just one tackle away from earning the point that would have given them a clear run for the promotion finishing line.

Locked at 18-18 with seconds left on the clock, they merely had to feed a scrum, take one tackle and were home and dry.

But in a few crazy seconds they infringed twice and Richard Price stepped up to slot over the deciding penalty as the final hooter sounded.

It was a sickening hammer blow for Leigh who must now win all their final three games and hope for kind results elsewhere to secure the second promotion place.

After totally dominating the first half and building up a 14-0 lead, they defended doggedly as the Bulldogs swept forward down the infamous Mount Pleasant slope.

Down 18-16 with just seven minutes left, Leigh looked to have grabbed a priceless draw when Dean Purtill put over an equalising penalty - only for the final cruel twist to come.

Perhaps Leigh should have had more points on the board at half-time when tries from Andy Fairclough, John Gunning and Purtill had them 14 points clear. And they probably should have had a better return than just two Purtill penalties from a second half that saw them hammer away at the Batley line.

Both were decisive factors as the Bulldogs, with a 100 per cent home record on the line, clawed their way back into contention.

Leigh conceded their first points five minutes into the second half when Price dummied over for a converted try, but it was only when ex-Great Britain centre Roger Simpson skipped clean through for the first of two tries that made it 14-12, did the alarm bells start to ring loud and clear.

Purtill soothed the nerve ends when he knocked over a 65th minute penalty but within four minutes, and Leigh claiming in vain for a Batley infringement, Simpson was picking his way through the defence again for another six-pointer.

Leigh's mounting desperation saw Safraz Patel almost bulldoze over and Jason O'Loughlin have a goal-bound drop kick charged down.

But Leigh would have gladly settled for a share of the points that would have kept their outright lead in second place.

Now they really do have a mountain to climb.

Leigh: Hill, Purtill, Hadcroft, Donlan, Sarsfield, Gunning, O'Loughlin, Street, Jenkins, Pucill, Daniel, Nixon, Fairclough. Subs: Liku, Costello, Patel, Blackburn - all used.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.