“THEY nearly caught you!” – a teammate teased Joel Barber after he had glided from halfway to touch down Northwich’s sixth try in their latest triumph.

In this form it’s hard to imagine anybody keeping pace with Blacks, who have won every match since October 3.

Visitors New Brighton, victors themselves in four of the past-half dozen fixtures, found a way to frustrate their hosts for long periods at Moss Farm.

But that’s only half the battle, for they caused only the slightest of dents in their opponents’ defence.

Martin Poste’s men, if only in flashes, were devastating with ball in hand during the first half.

Seldom in possession before the break, they demonstrated too why theirs has been the meanest front row in the division.

They took the lead from their first attack, Robin Houghton’s precise pass inside inviting Richard Dale to add a final flourish to a flowing move that started inside their own 22.

James Underhill duly converted.

A second score did not arrive until 20 minutes later, when Sam Naylor made a decisive dash to the line after Northwich had probed for an opening.

This time though Underhill’s kick clattered an upright.

Blacks’ ability to move the ball from side-to-side quickly, in contrast to their guests’ much slower tempo, earned further reward when Barber darted over in the left corner shortly afterwards.

Underhill added the extras in impressive fashion from the touchline, establishing a 19-0 interval lead.

And his teammates needed only five minutes to collect a bonus point once play resumed, when Chris James barrelled to the line from close range.

To their credit, New Brighton die not crumble.

Instead they notched a try of their own following a quickly-taken tap penalty in front of the posts, adding a conversion too.

The next 20 minutes were scoreless, and Northwich fumbled for the fluidity that had set them apart from stubborn opponents earlier in the contest.

While the away team were resolute, they offered next to no threat as an attacking force.

That resistance was broken by Blacks’ captain Chris Dale on 68 minutes, when he burst through to score despite a desperate attempt by New Brighton’s last man to halt him.

Underhill’s kick made it 31-7.

Barber carved a path to the line, after an alert Chris Heywood had stolen back the ball, to add gloss to his side’s latest success.

With Underhill having a breather, Richard Dale slotted the conversion.

New Brighton reduced the deficit from the game’s final play, their wing claiming an opportunist try on a rare occasion when Blacks’ defence lost concentration.

“We weren’t at our best, but to be fair we came up against the strongest front five we’ve met this season,” reflected Poste afterwards.

“But on the moments we did click, even they couldn’t stop us.”

Northwich, who visit Isle of Man to play Douglas next weekend, stay five points clear of West Park – slender victors against Manchester – at the South Lancs/Cheshire Division One summit.

Northwich | Grabski, James, Maddocks, Farley, Bradshaw, Heywood, Naylor, Chris Dale, Poste, Underhill, Houghton, Reilly, Richard Dale, Outram, Barber Replacements Cartman, Baldwin, Harrison Tries Barber (2), Richard Dale, Naylor, James, Chris Dale Cons Underhill (3), Richard Dale