Longton . . . 13pts Birkenhead Park . . . 3pts BIRKENHEAD Park's recent lack of match practice showed with a below par performance.

Park never really got out of first gear against a determined but limited Longton team in a Powergen League North Division One match full of errors and frequent penalty awards.

Park had a promising opening when skipper Dave Ibbotson made a good break to set up a position from which Alex Davies kicked a penalty.

Another good run by Paul Kay resulted in a second penalty, but Davies was off target and he also missed with a third attempt after 15 minutes.

Longton captain Tony Wheat equalised after 30 minutes and the score remained at 3-3 after an uninspiring first-half.

Birkenhead had chances to take control in the third quarter when Alex Davis produced a moment of magic to make a telling break before chipping ahead, but Longton just managed to clear the danger. The Park forwards then drove strongly but lost control of the ball in the process of touching down.

Wheat put Longton ahead with a second penalty, but there was precious little entertainment from either side.

The crucial score just about summed up the whole afternoon. Longton pressurised a defensive Park scrum and the ball went loose near the Park line before an attempted clearance rebounded straight to Longton scrum-half James Gabriel, who had a simple run in for the only try of the match.

Park will have to improve this week for the visit to the Upper Park of third-placed Altrincham Kersal (3pm).

In the morning, Park are hosting a tag rugby tournament for local primary schools, starting at 10am, as part of the Wirral Mini Games programme.