If the forum was to be believed then Bolton didn't stand a chance at Bower Park and their hopes at promotion would slip away with Eccles travelling to Hawcoat in a game that most were expecting them to win. However, Bolton have laid waste to the natural order of North Lancs Cumbria this season and an 80 minute performance that will not be forgotten earned them a double over the pre season promotion favourites.

First half tries from Mike Richardson, Will Bate and Alex Youngman set the tone, before a devastating forwards display in the second half secured the bonus point win with Richardson and Sam Hilton clocking up a try.

Some changes in the back line saw James Singleton start at scrum half with Mike Mills in at 10 and Dave Bruen returning to the side at inside centre after a short injury lay-off.

Bolton started with Mills kicking deep into the home sides half. The ball was collected and the Black Reds sizeable forwards pack came out of the blocks towards a solid defensive Cherry & White wall. There they met the full force of a team that holds the strongest defence in the league but they were not to be stopped just yet. The forwards worked in unison with their back line, led well by Jack Clegg from 10. A speculative kick through was collected by the outside centre who motored towards the line. Only an outstanding cover tackle from full back Mark Doherty and hard work from Will Bate at the breakdown stopped what would have been a sure fire 7 pointer.

Aspatria continued with their kicking tactics but when a kick found right winger Mike Richardson he showed Bolton just what he is capable of, taking the ball 50 metres down field, evading several tackles and going over in the corner for the first score of the day. From the touchline Mark Doherty was unable to add the extras but Bolton were in the ascendancy after just 5 minutes.

Bolton knew they must use this momentum to build a lead but were well contained by an organised Aspatria defence. A late tackle from Dave Bruen on Clegg provided an opportunity for Aspatria to get on the board and he duly took it to take the score to 3-5.

Incensed by the easy points they had gifted to Aspatria, Bolton set out to make amends. Number 8 Rick Newman was already earning the man of the match plaudits with his outstanding tackle count and line breaks. One such line break had the home side on the back foot and Mills soon had the ball out wide to make the most of a dog legged defensive line. A well worked move saw Will Bate dashing towards the line and going over for his 16th try of the season. Once again Doherty was unable to convert. 3-10.

Following several warnings, the match official sent the Black Red scrum half to the sin bin and Bolton set about making the most of the one man advantage. A scrum ball on the 22m line gave Bolton the platform they needed and after a strong drive, Newman picked up from the base and broke left. An offload found James Singleton who was pulled down agonisingly short of the try line, however Alex Youngman was on hand to receive the ball and drop over the whitewash for Bolton's 3rd try, which Doherty was able to convert.

Bolton did have another opportunity to extend their lead before half time but the ball rebounded off the right hand upright to keep the score at 3-17 going in to the break.

Bolton had travelled knowing they had to win, but at half time the bonus point was already in sight and the team had the 4th try as their first goal of the half. It didn't take long for the Cherry & Whites to respond and from a scrum 5 metres out, the Bolton pack started to exert their dominance over their larger counterparts.

The drive came on and Aspatria were sliding back under the posts. Some illegal work by the home teams number 9 had the crowd crying for penalty try but the official didn't bow to their wishes. Newman picked from the base and charged towards the line but was stopped short. The ball was quickly recycled thanks to Ash Cooper and was thrown wide to make the most of a narrow defence that had been sucked in towards the scrum. Richardson was the beneficiary and Bolton had become only the second team this season to score 4 tries.

Bolton knew that Aspatria had the ability to come back with 30 mins still on the clock and when Mike Mills was sin binned it gave them the advantage they needed to score a well worked try down the left flank with their back row touching down for 5 points. Clegg was on target with the boot again and the score was now 10-22.

With the clock running down Bolton knew they were close to handing Aspatria their biggest home loss of the season, but they were not yet done.

The forwards continued to dominate the collisions with Louis Critchlow and Tony McLaughling personifying Bolton's desire through their hard running and bone crunching hits. One such hit ended the Aspatria captains day and gave Bolton yet another reason to keep pushing for a 5th score.

It finally came just a few minutes from time. From a ruck on the 22m line, Bolton managed to set up a maul and thanks to some sterling work by the forwards they began the long march towards the try line. The tiring Aspatria forwards could do nothing to stop the dominant Bolton forwards taking the ball over the line with Sam Hilton the grateful recipient. His first try since February 2013. A reward for the incredible work the loose head prop does for his side. Doherty put the final nail in the coffin with a kick from under the posts to spark jubilation for the Cherry & Whites.

Rumour has it that even coach Nick Holmes was seen cracking a smile... Although they haven't yet been confirmed.