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Nonetheless it was the Donkeys who had the best opportunity to open the scoring, following pressure on the Saints
line Si Alvy squeezed the ball out to Tim Hardcastle but it fell at his ankles and he was unable to gather it
in with the line at his mercy. Saints quickly ran in three tries, converting 2 of them to give them a 16-0 lead.
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The second quarter followed the same pattern as Saints went on to score a further 16 points, but the Donkeys registered
their first points of the game at the end of the quarter as Mark Willans drove over the line to score out wide, with Hank scoring
the conversion.
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Following halftime the Donkeys continued to improve as Tim Hardcastle nipped through to score, with Hank's conversion making
the score 32-12. However Saints put the Donkeys under more pressure, and eventually scored what was their only try in what was a tight
third quarter.
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Despite Mark Willans' second converted try of the afternoon early on in the final period, St Helens regained their grip on the game as the Donkeys started
to tire, scoring a further 3 tries in the last 15 minutes. However the Donkeys were to enjoy some more glory, firstly winning a scrum against
the head deep in St Helens territory and then in the last minute of the game Tim Hardcastle jinked through the St Helens defence
from the base of a scrum close to the Saints' sticks to score to make the final score 48-22 in favour of St Helens.
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Both teams deserve an enormous amount of credit for what was an enjoyable game played in a tremendous spirit, and despite the result the Donkeys can take
a lot of positive things away from it and look forward to their next fixture. Many thanks to the St Helens players and supporters for their hospitality, it was a great pleasure
meeting them all and we look forward to playing (and beating) them at the Donkey Sanctuary!
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