NICK Baldwin held his nerve to kick a penalty from a close encounter’s final touch that secured victory for Northwich.

They demonstrated their resilience to complete a double over rivals that led for the most part at Walton Lea Road.

However Baldwin’s boot, ever reliable, made the difference for Blacks.

They sit third in North One West at the turn of the year as a result.

That prospect might have felt remote after Ben Hockenhull landed an early three-pointer for Warrington.

A first try followed quickly, when centre Keith Wardley jinking pas his opposite number before his pass sent Tom Arnold scuttling to the line.

Hockenhull’s extras made it 10-0.

Tom Wood, after throwing a dummy, then accelerated through a gap to the line to extend the home team’s lead.

They were pegged back by a pair of Northwich tries, first when Will Du Randt ghosted to the whitewash on the blind side.

Robin Houghton applied a final flourish to another move after Blacks had turned over possession, and Baldwin’s conversion cut a deficit to three points at the interval.

Hockenhull slotted a penalty for 18-12 early in the second period, only for Northwich to reply again.

Joel Barber ran to the line for the first of his two tries after Chris Dale had picked up the ball at an attacking scrum before feeding it to scrum-half Matthew Poste.

Baldwin’s kick put his side in front for the first time.

The lead did not last, and a third Hockenhull penalty followed.

Undeterred, Barber duly claimed a copy of his first try to establish a narrow advantage for the men from Moss Farm.

They will have feared the worst though after flanker Sean Callender charged unopposed to through a hole in Blacks’ defence following a lineout.

And their chance of a win appeared to have disappeared when the referee signalled a final play of the contest at a lineout close to the halfway line.

However Warrington were punished for entering a ruck from the side, and Baldwin exacted maximum punishment with a flawless kick from distance.

Northwich | Hulbert, Thompson, Michael Bradshaw, Smith, Dudley, English, Heywood, Chris Dale, Poste, Baldwin, Skinkis, Underhill, Barber, Houghton, Du Randt Replacements Chris Bradshaw, Farley, Lindsay Tries Du Randt, Houghton, Barber (2) Cons Baldwin (2) Pen Baldwin