Hartlepool Rovers kicked off their 2024/25 preseason campaign with a friendly match against Stockton Rugby Club. Both teams had large squads to choose from, as it was their first game of the preseason.

On a glorious summer's day, Rovers kicked off going up the slight hill. The match was split into three 30-minute periods, with Rovers having to play up the hill for two of those segments.

Stockton started the brighter of the two sides, putting Rovers under a lot of pressure. However, Rovers' solid defense kept the home team at bay. Eventually, Rovers got hold of the ball and went through several phases before the ball was moved to Gunn, who powered his way over the line for the opening try. The conversion was successful, giving Rovers a 7-0 lead.

Stockton responded well, working a good try of their own, followed by another, making the score 12-7 to the home side at the end of the first third.

The second third saw Rovers come out of the blocks quickly. A solid scrum allowed Charters to pick from the base and run in untouched. Dazz added the difficult conversion, leveling the scores at 12-12.

Stockton once again hit back, scoring from a well-executed set-piece play. However, the match took a turn for the worse for Rovers when their skipper and talisman, Dylan Langley, suffered a nasty injury, dislocating his elbow. After lengthy medical attention, Langley was able to get into a car and was taken to the hospital.

The injury and subsequent break in the game seemed to disrupt Rovers, and Stockton took advantage, scoring a couple of well-worked tries.

The final third saw Stockton, with some fresher legs, maintain the edge. Rovers did manage to get a score when Rochester intercepted and ran in under the posts, but the final score was Stockton 48 - Rovers 19.

Head coach Darren Smith was positive about the performance, stating that for the first 40 minutes, Rovers looked sharp and were executing their training ground plans effectively. He was particularly pleased with the set-piece play, which allowed Rovers to launch their attacks and the low number of penalties conceded. Something that hurt Rovers last season. However, the injury to Langley was a significant blow, and Smith wished him a speedy recovery. The three new players who joined over the summer have settled in well and all put in great performances. Special mention goes to Ben G-S who played the full 90 minutes at hooker. An impressive shift.

Smith also had praise for the Stockton team, acknowledging that they will be a challenging at the top end of DN1 this season and predicting that they will bounce back quickly.

Rovers' next preseason friendly is a Friday night match against Sunderland on August 23rd at the new Friarage, with a 7:30 pm kickoff.