A last-gasp try in the final play of the game saw Rossendale snatch victory and close in on the top of the table.

And it was fitting that the ‘old warrior’ Tim Fourie was the player whose outstretched arm appeared from the bottom of a ruck a metre from the visitors line to touch the ball down.

Although the legs don’t carry him around as fast these days, the immense experience and determination if the player/coach shone through all afternoon.

The early exchanges saw Lymm strike first with a penalty, before playing up the slope, Dale opened their account with a try from wing forward Matt McKenzie – the Kiwi who fed off a subtle inside pass off scrum half Jamie Albinson.

Stand off Will Sharratt converted to make it 7-3.

Dale then down to 14 men when number eight Danny Collins was sent to the sin bin for 10 minutes for a high tackle and the home side had to dig deep to hold on to their lead against a very capable Lymm side.

The visitors narrowed the gap to a point with a penalty following another infringement at the ruck by Collins saw him receive a second yellow card and summoned for the rest of the game to the sidelines.

The home side made changes to personnel with Steve Nutt replacing Sharratt at fly half and Ian Marshall replacing Leyton Taylor in the front row. Going into the last 20 minutes with a man down, Rossendale were up against it, but the changes gave them an added impetus. The visitors however seized their chance and scored an unconverted try with five minutes remaining.

Dale’s riposte saw them rumble down the slope and camp themselves on the Lymm line. And in a dramatic climax, a final drive for the line saw match-winner Fourie emerge to the delight of the home supporters. Nutt converted to finish the scoring as the final whistle blew. It was a fantastic win for the valley side and takes them closer to leaders Chester who lost .

Dale now go to Chester on Saturday (ko 3pm) where victory would see Rossendale challenging for top spot.