RELATIONS between the Darlington clubs have been strained as they attempt to resolve registration issues surrounding players moving across town.

Mowden are attempting to sign Sean McCartney, the Newcastle Falcons academy winger who began the season in the Darlington team, while centre Andy Pugh and lock Chris Oakley are moving in the opposite direction.

Darlington expected to include Pugh at Driffield last Saturday, but Mowden’s reluctance to let him go delayed the registration and both he and Oakley had to settle for a game in the second team’s 20-0 win at home to Sunderland.

Mowden appeared to be in better health than their neighbours as both teams returned to action after seven weeks. While Darlington lost 45-8 at Driffield, Mowden won 25-15 at home to Birkenhead Park, who visited Yiewsley Drive for the first time.

When Blackwell Meadows stages its first game for two months tomorrow, Darlington will be desperate both for a decent crowd and to complete the double over Durham City. The clubs were at opposite ends of North One East when they met in October, but City are now only a point behind.

Mowden face a tough match at Chester tomorrow but will be buoyed by what chairman of rugby, Mike Keeligan, described as “a very gutsy performance”

against Birkenhead Park.

“Their forwards tried to bully us, but we stood up to it very well and our three-quarters were too quick for them,” he added. “Dan Squire had a good game at No 8 and the Seddon twins, Andrew and Graeme, both did well.

“It was the first time they had started together for us. Dean Kelbrick and Robin Eatough were outstanding.”

With Gareth Lodge on army Rugby League duty, coach Peter Taylor selected himself, knowing that the visitors would have a number of old heads up front.

He could now keep his place in the second row as Luke Monument had to retire after 12 minutes with a rib injury, something which acting captain Howie Murray also suffered. He retired at half-time, with Dan Miller switching to hooker and Ian Keeligan going on at prop, while Andy Wilson, normally a back row man, acquitted himself well as Monument’s replacement.

Mowden’s pitch was in good condition, allowing them to use the pace of the backs to overcome physical opponents.

South African full back Kelbrick scored two of Mowden’s three tries, while winger Matty Lister touched down for the sixth successive game.

Given the experienced campaigners in the Birkenhead side, there appeared to be a strong likelihood of a repeat of the first clash between the teams, when they made all the running then ran out of gas.

But Mowden took the game to their opponents and scored an early try when Kelbrick supported Eatough’s break.

Richie Young added an excellent conversion.

Birkenhead struck back when a defensive lapse in midfield allowed them to score by the posts, but a sweetly-struck penalty by Young restored Mowden’s lead. The Birkenhead fly-half was correctly sin-binned for deliberately knocking on what would have been a scoring pass, but this galvanised the visitors and their pressure was rewarded with a penalty for off-side.

Kelbrick found a gap in the defence to score his second try in added time from a move which began on halfway and Young’s conversion gave Mowden a 17-10 lead at halftime.

Young stretched the lead through another penalty before a Birkenhead lock finished off a big driving maul after a period of pressure. In the final quarter, Mowden got back on top through moving the ball wide and scored the clinching try when Lister followed a chip by Andrew Seddon.

Lister was blocked by an opponent, but the ball bounced off the Birkenhead player’s shoulder and the home winger grabbed it before shrugging off several defenders to touch down.

Eatough almost scored the try his performance deserved when he intercepted in midfield.

But he was tackled just short, denying Mowden the four-try bonus point.

Darlington led 8-5 at halftime at Driffield, winger Danny Anderson finishing well to score their try after keeping the ball alive through five phases. But with the keenly- anticipated centre pairing of Pugh and Dave Richardson failing to materialise, Driffield exploited a weakness in the second half, running the same move to score four tries in the last 20 minutes.

Darlington did not have their first-choice props either, as Australian Dave Tunstead has not yet sorted out his visa problems and Joe Oselton still has a knee problem.