Preston Grasshoppers 29 Macclesfield 42: Counting the cost of mistakes
A commanding second-half performance by Macclesfield overturned Preston Grasshoppers’ narrow lead at the break and restricted the disappointed hosts to a solitary bonus point.
Head coach Dan Orwin said: “Several things let us down: our discipline, not adapting to the referee, unforced errors and a lack of impact off the bench.
“We were on top for the majority of the first half but saw Macclesfield’s confidence grow. Our scrum has been dominant so far this season, but not today.”
So difficult did Hoppers find the last 40 minutes that they only grabbed the four-try bonus point in the dying moments.
They had started with a flourish, Owain Williams having a try ruled out for a forward pass in the fourth minute, but with the consolation of an easy penalty by Sam Freeman.
Hoppers quickly went 10 points up when Harry Holden burst around the front of a lineout for a try, converted from the touchline by Freeman.
Macclesfield had a big pack and some powerful runners in the backs, with a patient build-up bringing its reward through Ben Blackburn’s close-range try, converted by Harry Oliver.
Harry Blackwell’s try, converted by Oliver, gave Macclesfield the lead for the first time before a good run from Freeman put Williams over in the corner and Hoppers’ man of the match again converted from wide out.
The pendulum swung back Macc’s way when referee Gavin Jones awarded them a penalty try for a no-arms tackle by Rory Brand, which also brought the scrum-half a yellow card.
He later annoyed the home faithful when he failed to punish a seemingly similar offence by the visitors, but Hoppers were not to be denied a half-time lead as Holden repeated his earlier burst for an unconverted try.
Hoppers lost the initiative soon after the break, when skipper Josh Longson was sinbinned for an apparent deliberate knock-on.
Macclesfield quickly capitalised with another converted score from a clean break, this time by replacement Kyle Smith.
As Hoppers’ handling deteriorated and other errors crept in, the visitors grabbed further converted tries through Oli Longmore and James Oliver.
It took a late effort by Jacob Browne, converted by Freeman, to secure Hoppers’ bonus point but they were left to reflect on too many missed opportunities.