Blackpool started the stronger of the two sides at Fleetwood Road scoring early on thanks to excellent work from captain Ben Holland's strong run, allowing fellow back row Tomas Sanderson to pick up and score in the corner.

Gale force winds made passing difficult, but Blackpool's confidence started to grow and by half time the score was 29-0.

The half time team talk inspired Kirby. They came out for the second half with guns blazing and scored an early try to reduce the gap to 29-5.

But Blackpool's defence continued to hold strong and head coach Paul Moran said: "The lads pulled out all of the stops today to put in a fantastic performance."