WINNINGTON Park, already assured of finishing bottom of the table, were taught another harsh lesson at Burrows Hill on Saturday.

After a promising start, during which they pinned back their guests and applied pressure that prompted mistakes, they capitulated to a 20th defeat of term.

The hosts lost discipline, and were on the wrong end of a result that suggests the difference between the teams was greater than it first appeared.

“Sefton didn’t beat us – we beat ourselves,” said head coach Roger Pickering.

“I continue to believe this group has the ability to play at this level, but a lack of cohesion continues to be our downfall.

“Rugby can’t be played by individuals, and this game was a reminder of that.”

Sefton conceded a string of penalties in the first half, but the home team were unable to take advantage.

They showed glimpses of their capability, and Dave Cross scored a deserved try following fine work by the pack.

A combination of high-quality tackling by the visitors, and erratic decision-making by the hosts, prevented Park from adding to their tally.

Instead they offered little resistance as Sefton started to recover.

The away team ran in a series of unanswered tries, swelling their margin of victory to more than 30 points by full-time – a quest helped by three Winnington players spending a spell in the sin-bin.

“For the first half an hour we played with a structure we’ve been looking to engrain on the training pitch,” added Pickering.

“After that something triggered a total collapse and we completely lost our way.”

Park | Marshall, Evans, Ridgway, Cross, Moriarty, Underdown, Robins, Stubbs, Allmark, Jack Williams, Lamb, Lewis Pickering, Danny Williams, Gibbins, Moran Replacements Phillips, Taylor, Neary Try Cross Con Jack Williams